I893-] 



THE BRITISH NATURALIST. 



117 



in the marshes bordering the Yar in the Isle of Wight, in the marshes 

 at Deal ; on chalk downs facing the sea at Kingsdown, near Deal, and 

 many other localities, but most of the records are from the southern 

 half of the English counties, although as a Swedish insect it might be 

 expected from our more northerly districts. Stainton gives " Alkham, 

 Bristol, Cambridge, Pembury and Scarborough (very common) " as 

 the localities he knew for the species. Mr. Porritt also records it from 

 the " Isle of Man " (in litt.j. Staudinger and Wocke give a wide 

 range : — " Livonia, Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, England, Carnio- 

 la, Central Italy, Sardinia and Bithynia " (" Catalog," p. 344). 



Time of Appearance — The perfect insect first appears towards 

 the end of May and is on the wing only a short time, from two to three 

 weeks. In 1890, I found this brood very abundant (" Entomologist's 

 Record," Vol. I., p. 65) during the last week in May. The second 

 brood begins to appear in July, but is most abundant during the first 

 fortnight of August, continuing, however, till the end of the month. 

 Stainton only gives " May and June " in the " Manual " as the time 

 of appearance, the second brood apparently not being then known. 



DEMOISELLES AND AGRIONS. 



BY W. HARCOURT BATH. 

 Author of " An Illustrated Handbook of British Dragonflies," &>c, c~c. 



One of the most charming sights which any enthusiastic entomolo- 

 gist can witness in this country, is undoubtedly a view, in their native 

 haunts, of those superbly elegant and graceful insects, the Demoiselles 

 and Agrions, engaged in their aerial peregrinations. 



We have, in the British Isles about a dozen different species of 

 these pretty Dragonflies of common occurrence, in addition to some 

 five or six other kinds of rare or doubtful appearance. 



The section to which the Demoiselles and Agrions belong, is 

 distinguished from the typical division, by its representatives possessing 

 hammer-shaped heads, with their eyes remote from each other ; their 

 wings are also of uniform size and their bodies are all exceedingly 

 slender. 



The Caloptevygida which contains the Demoiselles, are distinguished 

 by having coloured wings, containing an immense number of nervures 

 or veins, while the other family, namely the Agrionidcv or Agrions, never 

 have their wings coloured, and they are small species compared with 

 the former group. 



Most of these pretty Dragonflies make their appearance during the 

 early summer months, the time w r hen they are to be seen in the 

 greatest abundance, being from the end of May to the beginning of 



