82 TRANS ACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



example. The male appears to be only on the wing 

 during fine weather, and, owing to its fragility, even but 

 a slight wind seems detrimental to it. Flying in company 

 with the Clunio were both sexes of a species of Chironomus, 

 the female of which it resembles very closely both in size 

 and colour; and, at first sight, it was not easy to dis- 

 criminate between the two species when they were on the 

 wing. The Clunio flies but short distances at a time, gener- 

 ally about two feet, settling but for a moment between each 

 effort. The wings during the whole time are incessantly 

 in vibration. It is only seen at low water, and lives for 

 a very short time, probably not surviving until a second 

 ebb tide. I have not seen it ascend into the air, or do 

 otherwise than merely skim over the water and rocks 

 within a few inches of the surface. The single female 

 which I met with was observed resting upon the surface 

 film of the water; and she is likewise very short lived. 

 The genus Clunio was erected by llaliday in 1855 for 

 the males of a single species (C. marinus) which he found 

 on the shores of Kerry below high-water mark. lie 

 diagnosed the genus as follows : — 



" Proboscis obsoleta. Antenna? ll-artieulatre, articulis 

 3-tio et ultimo elongatis. Alas alutacere, venis longitu- 

 dinalibus furcatis binis, transversis nullis. Tarsi postici 

 articulo tertio subelongato."§ 



Rather than present any detailed description of Clunio 

 blcolor, I append the careful description of C. marinus 

 given by that inimitable entomologist, and then point 

 out the differences between the two species. 



Haliday's description is as follows: — 



" Long |, Exp. | lines. Head rounded, dusky fer- 

 ruginous, concealed under the projecting front of thorax, 



§ Unfortunately published in a journal now long extinct, 



