6o 
The Female. —In the female the antennae are 
inconspicuous and have only short lateral hairs. The 
palps are also less conspicuous than in the male 
(Fig. 18). 
The female feeds upon blood, and is frequently 
seen with the stomach distended with blood, more or 
less digested. 
The female is also seen with the abdomen more or 
less swollen, with the greatly enlarged ovaries, which 
give a whiteish and opaque colour to the mosquito, 
and often make the insect much more conspicuous in 
its flight than it otherwise would be. 
Fig. 18 . Heads of Male {S) an d Female ( 2 ) Culex 
The Culicidae or mosquitoes are divided into 
several sub-families, e.g., Anophelina , Culicina , etc. 
The sub-family, Anophelina , is in many ways the 
most distinct of these groups. Not only are the adult 
insects highly characteristic in appearance, but the 
ovum and larva are quite unlike those of any other 
sub-family. 
The points which serve to distinguish the 
Anophelinae from other groups of mosquitoes are :— 
i. The character upon which the sub-family is 
founded, viz., the relative length of the palps and 
proboscis. In both the sub-families, Culicina and 
Anophelina , the palps in the male are long plumose 
structures, as long or longer than the proboscis. In 
