part 2] mosquitoes in the beitish museum. 143. 



In Prof. Cockerell's descriptions stress is laid on the small size 

 of Cities petrifactellus in comparison with G. protolepis. The- 

 photographs of the types, however, show that there is really 

 scarcely any difference in size between the two ; this is, indeed, 

 fairly obvious from the measurements given by the author. 

 These measurements show that the wing of G. petrifactellus is. 

 narrower than that of G. protolepis, and has somewhat shorter 

 fork-cells. Such differences are commonly associated with sex 

 in recent mosquitoes, and it seems to be most probable that the 

 same is true of fossil forms. In response to a query by Prof. 

 Cockerell, Dr. Harrison Gr. Dyar has kindly examined the types in. 

 the Washington Museum, and informs me that, in his opinion, 

 G. petrifactellus may be the male of G. protolepis. 



Aedes protolepis is abundantly rejaresented in the collections in 

 the British Museum (Natural History). Apart from 24 male and 

 14 female specimens which are determinable with a fair degree of 

 probability, there are some 40 others which, although too frag- 

 mentary for positive identification, probably are most of them, if 

 not all, examples of A. protolepis. The following descriptive 

 notes are based on a comparison of all these specimens. There are 

 very few that are well preserved in more than one part, and it 

 is not easy to correlate with certainty the different parts and the 

 two sexes. 



Size. — The wing-length varies from 3*2 to 4 mm., female wings, 

 being on the average slightly longer. The average full length 

 of the body is about 5 mm. The abdomen alone varies in length 

 from 2*5 to 3*5 mm., most specimens (whether male or female) 

 measuring about 3 mm. 



Male head. — A number of specimens shows the plumose 

 antennae, the two long terminal segments having only a basal 

 hair- whorl, as in recent mosquitoes. The proboscis is slender, 

 scarcely, if at all, sAvollen at the tip, abotvt 3 mm. long (thus equalling 

 the abdomen); the labella are of normal size. The palpi are very 

 slightly longer than the proboscis, exceeding the latter in length by 

 less than half the length of the terminal segment. The long segment 

 is about two and a half times as long as the two terminal segments 

 together, and distinctly swollen on its apical fifth. The last two. 

 segments are bent gently downwards, as in Oclilerotatus. The 

 penultimate segment is equal in diameter to the tip of the long 

 segment, but tapers somewhat apically. The terminal segment 

 is equal in length to the penultimate, and distinctly more slender, 

 its tip being more or less pointed. In the best specimen (one- 

 of two males lying close together on a small block, I. 9620) 

 the last two segments of one palpus are rather conspicuously 

 hairy ; in other less perfectly preserved examples these seg- 

 ments appear to be either bare (I. 10074), or carry a few apical 

 hairs on the terminal segment only (1.8986). In one of these 

 (I. 10074) the palpi appear to be considerably longer than the 

 proboscis, but this is almost certainly due to the fact that the 

 apical portion of the proboscis is broken off. 



