1889.] 



THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



47 



A Contribution to the Life-history of 

 Lophyrus Pini. 



By the Rev. HILDERIC FRIEND, F.L.S. 

 (Concluded from page 35 J 



Since my former paper (p. 33) was written, I have fortunately been 

 able to obtain living material from the locality already named, which 

 puts me in possession of the complete history of this insect. The 

 eggs are glassy or hyaline, and rather large (about the one-twenty- 

 fourth of an inch in diameter). They are deposited in a silken nest, 

 at the base of the pine tree, so that when the larvae emerge, their food 

 supply may be ready to hand. This year the larvae were already 

 hatched in January, but whether this is normal, or due to want of 

 frost, I cannot say. They are of a semi-transparent character, so that 

 the green (or other colour) is due entirely to the food ; and during 

 their sojourn at the roots of the trees, they feed on the earth, rootlets, 

 or other material lying around, and so appear a dirty brown. The 

 jaws are brown and strong ; two brown spots appear at the opposite 

 extremity ; and progression is apparently by means of stiff hairs 

 (setae), rather than legs — but these hairs, in all probability, take on 

 the form as well as the function of false legs as the grub developes. 

 The larvae are about one-third of an inch in length, and present no 

 other, macro-scopical characters of importance. In due time the 

 larvae leave their abode, attack the nearest pine branches, feed, and 

 then spin their cocoon. This is a very interesting production of a rich 

 brown colour, a third of an inch long, of an oval shape, and very 

 symmetrical form. The imago, so far as my observations go, emerges 

 in the early autumn, but I have as yet failed to ascertain the food- 

 plant of the perfect insect. Having enjoyed the bright days of Sep- 

 tember, and sought the society of the male, the mother fly deposits 

 her eggs with due regard to the needs of her offspring, and gathers up 

 her feet to die. Now the cycle is complete. The study of the perfect 

 insect suggests two points of interest. First, the males must be poly- 

 gamous, seeing there is only one male to ten females. Secondly, the 

 antennae of the males are so much more highly developed than those 

 of the female, that we must suppose they are intended to aid it in dis- 

 covering the whereabouts of its consorts. 



