Attention was first directed to the Scoliid wasps of Madagascar in 1916, in which year it became clear that further attempts at importing Tiphia parallela from Barbados to Mauritius for the control of Phytalus smithi would have to be abandoned on account of difficulties of transport arising out of the war. The establishment of Tiphia in Mauritius shortly afterwards caused this question to lose its urgency, but in the meantime the attention of the writer had been attracted by a footnote in a paper by de Saussure* regarding Oryctes simiar and its natural enemy Scolia oryctophaga, the habits of which had been studied by Dr. Ch. Coquerel during his stay in Madagascar in the year 1850.

Severe injury to the roots of cucumber plants has occurred since January of this year (1922) through the attacks of the larvae of certain minute “fungus-gnats” belonging to the family Sciaridae. Although such attacks have not been recorded previously by growers of cucumbers, it is more than probable that the flies have been present in glass-houses for a number of years, and that damage arising through their agency has mistakenly been attributed to “eel-worms.”

Elongate, subcylindrical, black, clothed with yellowish-brown and whitish scales with antennae and legs fulvous, the legs with whitish scales.

Each season since 1918 numbers of leaf-feeding sawfly larvae have been taken during the months of June and July in both oat and wheat crops. The larvae feed along the edges of the blades during the day and usually cut off the upper portion.

In the course of a search for parasites of Cercopidae in Central America, made on behalf of the Government of Trinidad in 1916 and 1917, I came across a froghopper of the genus Clastoptera destroying the flowers of cacao in various localities in Panama and just over the border in Costa Rica.

With the exception of a short paper published some two and a half years ago by Major Patton, which, however, deals only with Tabanidae,* little or nothing has hitherto appeared in print on the subject of Mesopotamian representatives of the two families mentioned in the title of the present contribution. It is therefore hoped that the following notes, however incomplete, may be of some slight assistance to collectors of blood-sucking flies who may be stationed in Mesopotamia, and may at the same time stimulate them to further efforts.

When studying the bionomics of certain species of the Ceratopogoninae in the Gold Coast, samples of material collected from different sources, where it seemed likely that the early stages of these small insects might be passed, were brought to the laboratory for examination. The samples were chiefly taken from rot-holes in live trees, from cut bamboo stumps, from decaying logs, from old canoes, from the edges of pools and puddles, from crab-holes, and from the bases of banana plants.

Through the kindness of my friend Dr. James Waterston, the Authorities of the British Museum have sent me for examination a certain number of preparations containing some fig insects from various parts of the world. One of the species in this material, Otitesella digitata, Westw., has already been studied and figured by me in a recent paper;* some of the others are dealt with below.

During the past twenty-five years and more the house-fly, Musca domestica, L., has received much attention from entomologists, medical men, sanitarians and other investigators, and many observations on the life-history, habits, etc., of this fly have been made by individuals in different parts of the world. As a result of the investigations carried out during this period much information has been accumulated regarding the biology of this dangerous nuisance to mankind. However, notwith-standing all these observations and the great amount of knowledge that has been gained, there are a few points that have remained more or less indefinite. One of these is concerning the oviposition of the female fly; the number of eggs deposited during her life-period and the time elapsing between depositions.

In a recent and very useful summary of our present knowledge of phytophagous Chalcids (Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash., xxiv, no. 2, Feb. 1922) Mr. A. B. Gahan describes (p. 55, pl. vii, fig. 2, 2a) a new Eurytomid, Harmolita phyllostachitis (bred from Phyllostachys bambusoides in California), which is apparently the only Chalcid hitherto reared from such host-plants. I owe to the Director of the Imperial Bureau of Entomology the opportunity of bringing forward a second Harmolita with the same general habit, but from a widely separated region.

Although within the last few years—chiefly owing to the diagnostic ability and brilliant technical skill of Professor Robert Newstead, F.R.S.—several additions have been made to the list of recognised species of Glossina, the numerical total of which now stands at nineteen, the Glossina morsitans Group has not received a single accession. Peculiar interest therefore attaches to the discovery of the species described below, not only by reason of its apparent pathogenic importance,* but also on account of its systematic position within the genus.

Information volunteered by Salim, the native headman of Basheshi, near Maswa, drew attention to the outbreak of sleeping sickness here described late in February 1922.