1974] 
Smith — Life History of Abedus herberti 
273 
laboratory. Plastic washbasins (15 by 26 by 30 cm) containing clean 
gravel and deionized water housed bugs in the laboratory. Finger 
bowls (10.5 by 4.5 cm), provided with aquarium gravel and deion- 
ized water to a depth of about 4 cm, received hatchlings obtained 
from eggs of field-captured encumbered males. Gravid females, 
paired with unencumbered males, produced fresh eggs for incubation 
studies. First and second instar nymphs were fed on cultured vesti- 
gial winged Drosophila which were floated on the water’s surface. 
Third and fourth instars received legless crickets ( Acheta domestica ) , 
and fifth instars ate intact crickets. I renewed food and water every 
other day, and recorded molts which had occurred each day. Cast 
skins were preserved in seventy percent alcohol, one percent glycerin 
for study and measurement. Open water temperature in the labor- 
atory was a reasonably constant 18 C (± 0.5 C). 
I observed hatching and used still and motion picture photography 
to record this event for analysis. I measured eggs, first, second, and 
third instar nymphs and the legs of fourth and fifth instars using a 
stereoscope ocular micrometer, and the bodies of fourth and fifth 
instars with a dial caliper. 
Eggs, Incubation, and Hatching 
eggs 
The eggs of Abedus are always laid on the back of the male 
(Fig. iA). Oviposition, which continues for 12-48 hours in the 
laboratory, alternates with copulation. Encumbered males are found 
throughout the year in Arizona. A detailed study of courtship and 
male brooding behavior in A. herberti will be presented elsewhere 
(Smith, in prep.) . 
A mucinous glue is secreted by the female prior to the deposition 
of each egg starting at the apex of the male’s hemelytra and pro- 
ceeding forward, uniformly covering the male’s back up to and some- 
times including the pronotum. It is usually the case that males carry 
the eggs of only one female, but polygynous matings apparently do 
occur (Menke i960). I inferred from data on hatching, that of 
seven encumbered field captured males, only one individual had con- 
sorted with two females to acquire his load of eggs. In this instance, 
72 eggs hatched over a five day period, this followed by three days 
during which no eggs hatched. The remaining 15 eggs hatched over 
a 24 hour period. In all other cases, hatching occurred more or less 
continuously over a three to five day period. 
Freshly laid eggs begin swelling immediately. Swelling has the 
