ADDITIONAL NOTES ON THE STRIPED SQUASH BEETLE. 219 
therefore the most favorable for their development. But I could 
find few or no larvæ, which seemed to me very unusual and re- 
markable. I searched the ground about the roots long and care- 
fully. I closely and frequently watched for the inexplicable cause 
of this paucity of larvee, but all in vain; I could find no enemy 
about the roots or on the ground that might be destroying the 
eggs. Thus baffled in my attempts to discover the hidden treas- 
ure, I thought of directing my observations to the bodies of the 
perfect insects themselves. Accordingly, upon dissecting a large, 
apparently pregnant, female I discovered the secret I so anxiously 
sought. Instead of a well filled ovary I found a large, dipterous 
larva filling almost the entire cavity of the abdomen. Others were 
examined with like results; instead of eggs I found larvae, one in 
each female beetle. Some of the larve were still small. . 
On still other beetles I found attached to the surface another 
species of parasite, drawing its nourishment by penetrating the 
abdomen. It was apparently some species of mite. ot 
find time to study it any further, and have no specimens at com- 
mand now. I bottled forty or fifty beetles for the purpose of 
breeding the dipterous lary. This was done on the 7th of July, 
18 Twelve days afterwards, that is on the 19th, I was re- 
warded with five small black flies in my breeding bottle, belonging 
to the great family Muscide, genus Tachina Fabr., or more cor- 
rectly according to the later arrangement of flies by Dr. Loew, 
family Tachinide. I sent one of these flies to Dr. Lebaron, state 
entomologist of Illinois, who locates it in the particular Tachina 
genus Melanosphora Meigen.* The maggot comes out of the 
body of the fly and forms its brown seed-like pupa on the sur- 
face of the ground. 
The abdomen of the beetle that has been well eaten out by one 
of these parasites often appears whitish yellow beneath, instead of 
black, as do many others. 
On the 22d I found other beetles in the field infested with small 
* Tachina (M \ diabroti (Fig. 60). Pitch black. Eyes and probosci: 
light brown. Halteres pale brownish. ‘a crescentric line on each side 
face, i in eae n Body moderately clothed with stiff black spines. at pert 
with a smoky yellowish shade towards the base. Expanse of wings, 
24 of an tak? pasion of wing .06 of an inch; length of body .13,—.14,—.15 of an in 
from five dry specimens 
