Insects. 



5895 



Notes 071 Anisolahia maritima^ Bon. 

 By George AVailes, Esq. 



In the early part of the past summer Mr. Bold showed me for a few 

 minutes two specimens of what he considered the larvae of the rare 

 Forficula gigantea, which he had found a few days previously on the 

 sea banks near South Shields, underneath stones at the foot of some 

 ballast heaps he had been accustomed to examine for Coleoptera, and 

 where he took Nitidula flexuosa, as recorded by him (Zool. 5111). I 

 at once pointed out appearances which led me to infer that this was 

 an error, and determined to wait until autumn, when all our Forficulae 

 complete their metamorphoses and arrive at maturity, and then inves- 

 tigate the subject. Accordingly, on the 22nd of September last, I 

 visited the locality, and soon met with the insects in abundance and 

 of all sizes, and, being well aware how fragile their delicate antennae 

 were, I took the precaution to collect them into a bottle of spirits of 

 wine. From what T saw upon the spot I was convinced that, although 

 there were no traces of wing covers, I had perfect insects of both 

 sexes, and not merely larvae, before me, and on my return home in 

 the evening settled the fact anatomically. I was aware that no work 

 on British Entomology contained a genus to which it could be 

 referred, and therefore turned to Burmeister's second volume, as the 

 latest descriptive authority I had at hand, and found that no descrip- 

 tion or even section would include this species. I forwarded, there- 

 fore, a specimen to my friend Mr. Westwood, stating that I expected 

 I had got something new, and his reply was that he had no doubt it 

 was the Forficula maritima of Bonelli and Gene, Forficesila maritima 

 of Serville, and the Anisolabia of Fieber. On referring to Fieber's 

 little work I was satisfied that he had had this insect in view (though 

 certainly mutilated specimens) when he defined the genus, but as I 

 did not then possess Serville's work I could not determine it to be the 

 maritima of Gene ; and on again consulting Burmeister, who professes 

 to include the species of Gene's pamphlet, I found not the least allu- 

 sion to it. Having in the interim added Serville's book to my library, 

 I observe the species very well described. According to Gene it is 

 widely difi*used, at the end of spring, along the shores of the Mediter- 

 ranean, Genoa, Nice and Tuscany, under stones and cow-dung, though 

 it would seem not to be confined to the sea-shore, as Serville men- 

 tions it to have occurred on Mount Lebanon, and Fieber adds Sar- 

 dinia and Sicily and South Carolina to its habitats. 



