The present paper presents the results of a study of a number of dissections of the reproductive system of the cherry case bearer, Coleophora pruniella CI. while making observations on the general morphology and biology of this species. The work was done while located at the Peninsular Branch Experiment Station at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin.

The Male (Fig. I)

The reproductive system of the male is decidedly more simple than that of the female and its essential features agree with those described for other Lepidoptera.

For the purpose of determining whether foxtail midges occurred in Canada and if so their range, a survey of places where meadow foxtail grass, Alope curus pratensis L. was known to be grown was made in the spring of 1934. This survey followed a request for information upon the point by Dr. L. E. Kirk, Dominion Agrostologist, on behalf of Dr. R. O. Whyte, Chief Officer of the Imperial Bureau of Plant Genetics; Herbage Plants, Aberystwyth, Great Britain. Dr. Whyte is interested in discovering areas free from foxtail midges which might bme used for the production of meadow foxtail seed. The location of stands of the grass were secured through Dr. Kirk and co-operation in making observations was sought and readily obtained from various people living in the vicinity of these stands in Canada.

While determining a collection of interesting Histeridae taken by the writer and others in Mexico during the past few years, three species were found to belong to the genus Pseudister Bickhardt. As two of these were undescribed, and as one species described from New York and one from Paraguay have been masquerading for many years under a different genus, the following short review is necessary to straighten out the existing confusion. Through the kindness of Dr. K. G. Blair and Dr H. Scott of the British Museum, types of all the species considered in this paper have been examined by the writer.

The subfamily Geosarginae forms a troulesome complex in the New World tropics, and much work will be necessary before certain generic and specific relationships can he determined. In the Nearctic region, however, conditions are not so serious; for, in spite of the fact that certain of the genera are not very satisfactorily defined, the species are comparatively few and, for the most part, quite distinct. It is hoped that the present review will serve to identify the species found in America north of Mexico.

In handling some miscellaneous material belonging to the U. S. National Museum the writer noticed a unique specimen of a new genus and species of much interest as presenting additioiial evidence of the close relationship of those two large and important families, the Arctiidae and the Lymantriidae. A similar specimen, submitted by Dr. J. McDunnough, has served to amplify the descriptions.

Three of the species of Ablautus Loew described here have been on hand for several years and, as no additional material has become available, there seems to be no reason for delaying their description longer. These small robber flies inhabit the more arid regions of the West and Southwest and seem to prefer sandy localities in the sage brush. Osten Sacken commented on the fact that Ablautus mimus O. S. was associated with Lestomyia sabulonum O. S. on sandy soil and seems to mimic it; and Melander says, regarding Cyrtopogon ablautoides Mel., “The species presents a curious superficial resemblance to Ablautus mimus O. S., with which it is associated in the sandy desert region.”

During the winter of 1931-32, iny attention was drawn to the swarms of long-legged flies in a root-house attached to the barn on my father's farm at Salmon Arm, B.C. The root-house is built above ground, with sawdust insulation between the double walls, and has three ventilation shafts through the ceiling, and one at ground level; the floor is of earth, on which planks are put down as required. At the timle in question it contained a bin each of mangels and potatoes, about 200 boxes of unpacked apples, and sundry cabbages and carrots.

In 1929 the writer described a British Columbian blackfly pupa with most unusual characteristics—unique among North American species in that the customary slender respiratory filaments are replaced by a closed, ringed, club-like horn with tw-o short, curved basal spurs. An examination of the literature at our disposal of the pupae known from Europe, Africa, Asia, Australasia and South America, indicates that a number of other unusual forms have been described, especially from Africa. Although the valid species of Simuliidae in the world fauna probably number more than three hundred and fifty, only about twelve of the known pupae of which we have records have breathing organs that are not of the filamentous type. In Northern Europe, Simulium equinum L., as described by Edwards and Puri, has breathing organs consisting of wide, thin-walled tubes, the basal and main branches of which form a ring on the thorax.

While at the University of Toronto in the spring of 1934, the author had the privilege of examining the Plecoptera of the collection of the Royal Ontario Museum of Zoology. It soon became apparent that a number of undescribed species were represented therein, and the present paper describes three of the most interesting of them. It is the interest and assistance of Dr. E. M. Walker and Dr. F. P. Ide that has made possible the descriptions appearing in this and in subsequent papers.

Late in 1934, Arthur Gibson, the Dominion Entomologist, received from Miss A. M. Heydweiller, of the Laboratory of Ornithology, Cornell University, a number of collections of external parasites taken from twenty species of birds at Churchhill, Man., during the summer of that year. These were passed to me by Mr. Gibson, and were found to consist of 27 collections of biting lice(Mallophaga), two of fleas (Siphonaptera) and two of mites (Acarina)

A week's vacation in the delightful Lac St. Jean country netted an interesting list of spiders. No attempt was made ta make a general collection. We were primarily interested in the Linyphiidae and collected mostly by sifting moss and forest litter.

At Bagotville we sifted moss on the wooded cliffs overlooking Ha-Ha Bay and in a little marecage nearby. These specimens are dated July 26, 1934.

In recent rearings by officers of the Entomological Branch several new species of Braconidae have been secured as well as records of species hitherto little known in Canada. The writer wishes to express his indebtedness to Dr. C. W. F. Muesebeck for his assistance in examining three of the species described below. Paratypes of all the species are deposited in the United States National Museum.

Numerous species of bees, commonly referred to Panurginus, must, as has been shown by Crawford, be referred to Pseudopanurgus. This is brought out, not only by venation, but also by characters of the genitalia and sternites. It is possible that these insects are to be separated subgenerically from the coarsely punctate, typical, Pseudopanurgus, but their relationship is not with Panurginus. The South American species which I have seen are also Pseudopanurgus.

In the course of my studies of this interesting group of flies, some new species have been described which I wish to record at this time.

Sciara townesi sp. n.

Male. Length 3½ mm. Shiny in appearance.

Head black, palpi brownish. Antennae black, covered with silvery pubescence. Thorax black. Pteropleurite slightly lighter. Legs yellow, ventral surface of trochanters black. Fore tibia with one spur, meso and metathoracic tibia with two spurs. Prothoracic basitarsus shorter than tibia. Wing, length 3 mm. Costa extends about 4/5 distance from Rs to M1+2. Hypopygium (fig. I) brownish black.

In an attempt to discover the native hosts of the parasites of the oriental fruit moth (Grapholitha molesta Busck) the larvae of a considerable number of microlepidoptera were collected and reared. The economic results of the work have been1 presented by the writer in a previous paper; the present paper comprises a list of the lepidoptera which were reared, with their food plants and parasites. The lepidoptera were determined by Dr. J. McDunnough of the Entomological Branch, Ottawa, and the hymenoptera by Mr. G. S. Walley of Ottawa and the specialists of the United States Bureau of Entomologym, Washington.

Increasing interest in limnology, aquatic biology and related sciences, has been one of the main factors in turning the attention of systematic coleopterists to this family of small beetles. Many new species have been added to the catalogue recently, and it seems probable that there are many more nearctic species yet to be described. It is with the idea of fostering the growing interest in this group that the following notes are offered from an experience of severa1 years' searching for these small, slow-moving, inconspicuous beetles.

Argynnis cybele Fabr. is generally distinguished from the closely allied A.aphrodite Fabr. by the following two features : (I) the veins of the central area of the primaries in the male sex are thickened by sex-scales; (2) on the underside of the secondaries the yellow submarginal band is broad and clear and not invaded by the red-brown color of the basal section.

While collecting in Nova Scotia during the months of June aud July, 1934, at South Milford and at White Point Beach, near Liverpool, I took a series of an Argynnid which struck me at the time as strongly resembling aphrodite on the underside but which on the upperside of the forewings showed the heavy sex-scaling on the veins in the male sex which would consequently indicate cybele.

Specimens of three species of Hemiptera have recently come to the attention of the writer. Since two of these represent new family records for the Canadian fauna and the third is a genus hitherto unreported from North America it seems advisable to place their occurrence on record. The specimens are deposited in the Canadian National Collection.

The nematine genus Dineura has had assigned to it at various times several species of nearctic sawflies. A close study of these species indicates that Dineura itself is not represented in our fauna, but instead three genera which resemble it in wing venation. This complex was considered by MacGillivray as the sub-family Dineurinae, but as pointed out by Rohwer it is in reality part of the Nematinae. The three genera involved may be separated from the other Nematinae by having the front wings with the base of vein 2A and 3A absent and the second radial cross-vein (2r) present. The extreme differences between the genera suggest strongly that the segregate is purely an artificial one based only on accidental similarity in venation.