Jan., 1926 
The Queensland Naturalist. 
63 
A particularly noxious insect is the cantharides 
beetle which comes round the lamps at nig^ht. This 
beetle leaves a line of blisters where it has walked across 
the skin, and these become very inflamed and painful. 
They last for a week or more, and frequently leave a 
scar. 
One of the least pleasant of night experiences is a 
nuptial flight of termites. These insects invade houses 
in millions, attracted by the light, and within a few 
liiinutes after their arrival the room is so full of them 
that all lights have to be put out, and the occupants go 
to bed. Avliere the nioscpiito net offers its pi-otection. 
The termites that have lost their wings crawl in between 
books and into every possible crevice. The small hoTise 
geckoes eat till they are swollen out like barrels, and the 
cats also account for a great many. (The Philippine eats, 
by the way, usually have crumpled tails.) 
The number of insects taking part in one of these 
nuptial flights is inconceivable. One evening coming 
home from Manila T met a flight at ('alamba, about eight 
miles from Los Banos. All the way to Los Banos the 
the train was passing through a cloud of flying termites 
so thick that it was impossible to do anytliing but keep 
them brushed away. Xext morning I climbed Mount 
Maquiling. which is 3,000 feet high, the distance to its 
summit being five miles. All the way up the mountain 
side were the wings shed during the previous night’s 
flight. The numbers of insects must have been beyond 
the power of imagination. 
A small black termite is also a nuisance in houses. 
Tt does not desti’oy timber, but nests in clothing and 
behind furniture, caking everything with mud. A 
migration of these black termites is very interesting. 
They move in a long column, tAvo or three abreast, and 
at intervals of about a quarter of an inch on both sides 
sentries stand facing outwards. Interference with one 
of these results in a commotion spreading down the line 
and a stoppage of migration for a minute or two. When 
white and black termites meet there is a fierce I)attle, 
generally won by the blacks. 
Fireflies are very numerous, and show decided pre- 
ference for particular species of trees. One of their 
favourites is Enterolobium saman, the Rain Tree, round 
which they often congregate in such numbers that the 
