Part I.] Beeson : Life-History of Diapus furtivus, Sampson . 7 
The frontal brushes are found only in the young beetle and are 
absent in beetles which have bored into the wood. 
This species is easily recognizable from other shot-hole borers of 
about the same size, found in Sal, as it is the only species of its size, 
with the elytra coloured yellow in the basal parts and dark brown in 
the apical parts. 
Relative proportion of the Sexes. 
There appears to be no record of the proportion in which the sexes 
of the species of Platypodidae occur under normal conditions and it 
is of interest to give the following figures obtained for Diapus furtivus. 
In a brood of 1,090 individuals bred out from Bengal material the 
proportion wasMales 59-2 %, Females 40-8%. 
From two lots of material originating from the United Provinces 
the proportion was :—Males 59-5 %, Females 40-5 %. 
In the remaining breeding cage records the preponderance of males 
over females varies from 10 to 20 %. 
Observations made in the field in Bengal in 1913-15 confirm these 
figures, but rather divergent results were obtained by collection of 
beetles on the wing swarming round a newly felled tree, which tend 
to show that the females are more readily attracted to the host tree 
and appear first on the scene, being followed later in the day by the 
males. 
Proportion of sexes taken on wing at Trap-tree. 
Date of capture. 
Time of day. 
Percentage of individuals. 
$ 
? 
January— 
14th 
Morning ...... 
28 
72 
17th 
Afternoon ..... 
48 
52 
18th 
Late afternoon . . . J 
55 
45 
19th 
Early morning .... 
13 
87 
The Egg. (Plate I, figs. 5, 6 x 24.) 
The newly laid egg (Plate I, fig. 5 x24) is broadly oval, pearly white 
and shining. The shape changes with maturation and when nearly 
[ 7 ] 
