STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
811 
MIDGE. PARASITES. THE EGG PAnASITE. 
interesting subject, these parasites of the wheat midge, has never 
been more fully investigated, all we'yet know of them being the 
little furnished us by Mr. Kirby. 
The second or egg parasite, named Inostemma inserens, pertains 
to the samo family and is of the same size and color with the pre¬ 
ceding, from which it is most readily distinguished by the color 
of its legs, which are black with only the feet and the ends of the 
fore shanks rusty yellowish. Its antennas are elbowed, having 
the first joint long, stout and club shaped, the second joint larger 
than the following ones and oval, the four next joints minute and 
globular, and the four remaining ones compacted together into a 
large egg shaped club. Its abdomen is shaped like the head of 
a spear and ends in a sharp point, and is furnished with a very 
long ovipositor resembling a fine hair. 
This makes its appearance on the wheat ears quite as soon as 
the midge does, and before there are any larvae for it to puncture. 
Mr. Kirby saw it inserting its long sting between the chaffs, at the 
top of the florets. Its eggs are quite unlike those of the midge, 
being extremely minute and globular. They are supposed to be 
inserted into those of the midge, and Mr. Kirby remarks it must 
require more than one egg of the midge for the growth of its 
larvae, such is the size of this insect. But it is more probable 
that it is analogous to the egg parasite of the Hessian fly, which, 
as Mr. Herrick has discovered, does not prevent the egg from 
hatching nor its larva from growing so far as to elaborate the 
amount of nourishment which the parasitic larva requires for its 
own growth. Again we cannot but regret that so little is posi¬ 
tively known and so much is left to conjecture with regard to the 
economy of this parasite. 
The third pasasite pertains to the family Chalcididce, and is the 
species on which Mr. Westwood has founded the genus Macro- 
glenes. Hereby this species comes to be designated the Macro- 
gleties penetrans. It is slightly larger than the other two and 
may be distinguished from them by being of a dark blue instead 
of a black color. Its antennae are shorter than the thorax, 
elbowed, club shaped, ten-jointed, the three last joints being com¬ 
pacted into an egg shaped or conical knob. Its abdomen is com¬ 
pressed, and in the female is cut off in a straight line at its end, 
where are two projecting valves with a short sting visible between 
them. 
