1926] 
New or Little Known Australasian Cicadas 
73 
Inst., vol. 53, p. 246, pi. 45, figs. 3, 4. (Exclusive of synonymy). 
With the disposal of quadricincta Walk, and mangu Buchanan 
White, this species, the most widely distributed and best known 
of New Zealand mountain cicadas, fittingly takes once more the 
name given it by Mr. G. V. Hudson, than whom no one has 
contributed more towards a knowledge of the mountain insects 
of the Dominion. 
The description and figures of quadricincta (Myers, nec 
Walker) in Myers (1921), apply correctly to cassiope, but the 
synonymy and distributional records are to be disregarded. 
The male genitalia of a specimen compared with the type 
material are figured (14). A strong pinkish suffusion of the body 
is a constant character. 
The mountain cicadas of the South Island are now so 
numerous, and often very difficult to separate by general ap- 
pearance that I have thought it worth while to figure the aedeagus 
and related structures in them all. With no exception the male 
genitalia supply excellent distinguishing characters. 
The song of Melampsalta cassiope. — This consists of a 
resonant, birdlike prolonged lower note which may be vocalised as 
a vibrating “chur-r-r,” rising in a slur to a faint, very much 
higher note, like a shrill squeak. The second note sounds dis- 
tinctly like “-i-i-m” the whole phrase of the song giving the effect 
of “chur-r-r — ■ --im” unmistakably. 
The song is always slow and consists solely of a repetition 
of these two notes, both prolonged. The time of prolongation of 
each note varies so that there is no fixed rhythmical relation 
between them; for example in the sample given the first “churr ,? 
was observed to last 1 second, the a im” 2J4 seconds, the second 
“churr” 4 seconds, the “im” 8 seconds, the third “churr” 10 and 
the “im”. 2. The song produces a peculiar spatial effect, the 
insect being localised much nearer on the low note than on the 
high one. 
Chu,r-r i - L-ml Churr i-i-i-irv! Chu a -a r-n-Cm! 
