45 
Habits and Food of Larvae. 
Dr. Lutz in a letter informs me he has bred Aedes squammi- 
pennis, the type of my new genus Aedeomyia, and that the 
larvae are very characteristic; they were taken at a riverside. 
Uranotcienia he has also bred, and they occur, he says, in swampy 
regions. 
Other larvae. —With regard to the other genera, Mega- 
rhinus, Sabethes, Psorophora, and the new general have described, 
I know nothing with regard to the larval breeding-grounds. 
Professor Howard tells me he has recently made observations 
on the life-history of Psorophora A 
HABITS AND FOOD OF CULICID LARVAE. 
There are some marked differences between the habits of 
the various groups of mosquito larvae which I feel convinced, 
together with their more important structural peculiarities, will, 
when we know the life-histories better, help us greatly in the 
matter of a rational classification. 
At present it is only with Culex, Anopheles , Corethra, Modi - 
lonyx and Uranotaenia that we can deal, although Dr. Lutz has 
studied other types, such as my Aedeomyia , Psorophora , etc. The 
results of his studies, no doubt, he will soon publish. 
Anopheles larvae. — Anopheles larvae are found lying in 
the water in a more or less horizontal position, lying, in fact, 
straight out, with the spiracles of the eighth segment just out of 
the water, the rest of the body, except a small portion of the 
thorax, beneath. The curious stellate dorsal processes (Fig. 17), 
however, I find, just touch the surface film, and I believe are 
partly to hold the larva up in its horizontal posture. In this 
position they lie between the threads of green slime, holding on 
to them, and being themselves often green, are very difficult to 
see. These larvae have an important aid also in holding them¬ 
selves in this position in the long feathered bristles which stick 
out from the sides of the body. 
This method of remaining close to the surface of the water, 
and almost parallel to it, is well described by Captain James in 
regard to A. Bossii, &c. “ When looking down on them from 
above,” he says, “ they look like little bits of brown stick or 
thorns floating on the surface. When very small their heads 
* Vide Appendix, Vol. II. 
