Up the Puruni River. 319 
(Pyrophorus notlilucus) flashed like stars through the 
forest; and last, but in almost every sense the monarchs of 
the night, mosquitoes sallied forth in legions. My camp 
seemed to be a particularly favoured spot, since mosqui- 
toes abounded during the whole time of our residence, 
although some little distance in from the riverside none 
were to be seen. A curious fact noticeable about the 
Elater beetles was the peculiar attraction towards a 
glowing, not blazing, fire to which they seem subject. A 
brilliant flame or tongue of fire does not appear to have the 
same fascination over them, for they would pass directly by 
a brightly burning duplex lamp and immolate themselves 
on the hearth, dropping into the centre oftheglowingheat. 
Turning out one night on an alarm of " Tiger" 
being raised, I found on the ground a luminous worm, 
which next morning proved to be the larva of a beetle, 
possibly this very Elater. It was preserved in Islay whisky 
and brought to town, and some day, perhaps, the genus 
to which it belongs will be satisfactorily settled. 
A particularly large kind of mosquito was common 
near the benab, dark blue in colour, with the exception 
of the end of the body, where vermillion patches occur. 
These insects possess peculiarly long legs, and, when at 
rest, measure quite half an inch from the ground to the 
highest part of the body. Their humming is extremely 
loud, and is equivalent to the noise made by about ten 
ordinary mosquitoes. Another peculiar species of the 
same insect to be met with here, had its two hindmost 
legs thickened in the middle like the pollen-carrying 
thighs of a bee.* 
* I have since seen a similar instance in the bush on the left bank of 
the Corentyne River. 
