Sirex taxodii, new species.— ♀. Length, 11.5 to 13 mm.; ovipositor very nearly the length of the abdomen. Black; a spot back of eyes and the process of the las dorsal segment reddish-yellow; antennal joints from 11 to apex, an annulus at base of middle and hind tarsi, and at base of hind tibiæ, yellowish-white. Wings brown-black, with a faint purplish tinge in certain lights.

This is one of a series of papers—Andreninæ, Tr. Am. Ent., Soc. 28: 187; Halictinæ, Can, Ent. 34: 245, 1902: Sphecodinæ, Ent. News 14:103; Megachilidæ and Bombinæ. Tr. Am. Ent. Soc. 29:163; Nomadinæ Can. Ent. 35:172; Epeolinæ, Can. Ent. 35: 284, 1903— intended to bring together the results of studies of the bees of the neighbourhood of Carlinville, Illinois.

The species here treated belong to genera previously “lumped” under Andrena.

Three submarginal cells.

♀ with joint 3 of the antennæ shorter than 4 and 5; ♂ with joint 3 shorter than 5, rarely as lon gas 4; sculpture in both sexes with few exceptions coarse, enclosure usually ridge, depressions fo abdominal segment usually sharply defined; ♀ with a simple tibial.

The note in the Canadian Entomologist for April 1903, by the late Prof. A. R. Grote, the one by Mr. J. Wm. Cockle, in the May number for the same year, and the one in the April 1904, number, all relating to this subject, have interested me greatly.

Over 25 years ago I observed and recoreded for the first, I believe, the destruction of the pupæ of our very common Samia cecropia by the Downy Woodpecker, by puncturing the cocoons and feasting on the juices of the occupant. The habit of the insect in attaching its cocoon firmly to and parallel with the twigs and smaller limbs of trees places them at the mercy of these birds, especially during that part of the year when the trees are devoid of foliage.

General colour very dary blackish brown, with a sight purplish tinge, quite smooth and somewhat shinny. Ordinary marking jet black, but not conspicuous, owing to the similarity in shade with the ground colour. The distinct black, more or less solidly filled claviform and the yellow-filled reniform are the most conspicuous features in teh maculation. Basal line present through fragmentary, represented by two blackish dots on costa, in one speciment with some whitish scales between them, forming a more or less evident dot, in the other speciment this si not so noticeable, the line is also evident between the median and submedian veins, though in a lighter, diffused sort of way.

It is now over three years since I published a list of Albertan butterflies under the above title. The list gave promise “to be continued,” and it was fully intended at the time to publish the continuation the same year, but for a variety of reasons it had to be postponed. The delay, however, has not been without advantages. Not only have a number of species come to hand that had not been recorded here up to that time, but many that were then standing under names by which I had known them for years, have been found to be wrongly named, and several of them have been described as new species. Closer study, too, of long series, has resulted in a better understanding of nearly allied forms; and it is hoped that some of the notes here appended, though they have no claim to perfection, will enable some obscure species to be more easily separated than they have been hitherto. At the same time, I much regret that I have not been able to make more comparison of local material with that from other districts. Not only has it been hard to spare the time which much exchanging calls for, but it has often proved a very difficult, if not impossible matter, to get by exchange some of the commonest species, their very commonness seeming to render them, so to speak, scarce, at least in collections. I hope, however, to pay more attention to exchange in the future, and when more forms from other localities have come to hand the result of their study, and comparison with their Alberta representatives will probably be published from time to time.

Mr. Jacob Schreiner, of St. Petersbug, Russia, has been sending me for names some of his rearings of parasitic Hymenoptera, among which are many interesting species.

Dasyllis cinerea, sp. nov.—Black, shining, with slight bluish reflection; head thorax, tip of abdomen, and legs with cinereous hair and pile. Length, 12–15 mm.

♂ ♀. —Head black, fae cinereous pollinose, mystax and vibrissæ long, composed of moderately-dense cinereous hair, with the exception of a few black ones for the most part confined to the orla margin, but sometimes extending up on the facial gibbosity; ocellular tubercle prominent with black hair; occipito-orbital hairs fine, black and gray, the letter predominating; beard dense, silky, of same gray colour; palpi small, black-haired; antennæ black, first two segments with black and gray hairs.

Fore wings chrome yellow, a pink patch at base of wing, about 3 mm. wide; this is most marked on costa and between median and submedian veins. A subterminal pinkish band, broad at base, where it is confluent with the pink fringe; at centre is narrow and furthest removed from margin, at inner angle it broadens out, becoming again confluent with fringe. Fringe pink, in one speciment slightly paler inwardly. Hind wings pale yellowish white, firnge concolorous.

Culex Dupreei, new species,— Female. Near serratus, but much smaller, the white-scaled median vitta of the mesonotum broader, widening posteriorly where it is wider than the brown lateral portion, etc. Black, the bases of antennæ, lower part of pleura, the metantotum, basal portion of venter, coxæ, and femora yellowish; scales of palpi black, those of occiput white, and with a spot to black ones each side; scales of middle of mesonotum white, those on the sides brown, on the pleura and scutellum white; scales of abdomen brown, those in the basal angels of the segments and on the venter white; scales of femora yellowish, those on front side of first two pairs, and on apical portion of upper side of hind ones, chiefly brown, those of tibiæ and tarsi brown; tarsal claws toothed; wings hyaline, lateral scales of the veins narrow and liner, petiole of first submarginal cell about one-third the length of that cell, hind crossvein about its length from the small; length, slightly over 2 mm.

The Locustidæ (Tettigonidæ Rehn), comprise the long-horned or green grasshoppers, katydids and camel or stone crickets. They have for the most part of southern distribution, and hence are but poorly represented in Ontario, except in the south-western part, to which the majority of the species are confined.

By a recent article in this Journal giving the life-history of Sabulodes arcasaria, Walk., Dr. Otto Seifert demonstrates the need of careful study of some of our species of Geometridæ. A similar case has come under my notice. In June, 1896, I gathered in beating ten rough-looking mahogony-red larvæ from a small group of oaks(Quercus nigra). They were exactly alike in form and colour, and apparently well-grown, so I carried them home, supposing they would quickly mature. They had no thought of it.

While engaged in studying the still enigmatical insect, Platypsilla castoris, along Devil's River, Texas in the spring of 1891, on opossum was treed by the dogs one evening, and shot. The following morning I found the animal, which was a female, and though herself dead, the young were still alive and in the pouch of the mother. While examining these I observed that the pouch also contained numbers of fleas. Specimens were captured and sent to the Department of Agriculture at Washington, I being at the time employed by the Division of Entomology.

In his Monograph of the Geometrid Moths, Dr. Packard described and figured two moths as Metanema quercivoraria, Guenée, and Endropia textrinaria. Grote and Robinson. He placed them in different genera and had apparently no doubts as to their distinctness.

This Spittle insect of the Pine was abundant on two trees on the campus of Blacksburg, Virginia, last summer, and an attempt was made to observe its oviposition and to work out its complete life-history.

Owing to lack to time this was not successful, but the following notes may be of some interest:

The Protective Secretion.—The material under which the nymphs live consists of a cler albuminous liquid, exuded by the insect, mixed intimately with bubbles of air introducted by the nymph after secretion; it is tasteless, or slightly salty.

In the issue of Psyche for April,1903, I published a paper on the diffusion of insects in North America, in which reference was made in a footnote to the probable trend of diffusion in the Sphingidæ, and this may be looked upon as supplementary to that publication. In the former paper I could not deal with this phase of the problem of diffusion of insects, to the extent that this family deserves, nor am I certain that this is possible even now, but it seems desirable to point out some suggestive features of the present distribution and probabale diffusion of this interesting family of moths.

I have on several occasions had specimens of both the European and Oriental cockroaches sent me by fruit dealers, who had found them on bunches of bananas, and there was a report of the capture of a large scorpion, said to be over five inches in length, on a bunch at Spokane, Wash., but the most interesting capture that I have to record is a beautiful freshly emerged specimen of Ceramidia Butleri, Moschler, which I secured here last March. The specimen was sent to the U. S. Museum for identification, and Dr. Dyar writes me that it made a welcome addition to their cabinet, aud cites Guatemala and the Amazons as its habitat.

The larvæ of this Noctuid moth were again found at Ottawa the past season, in beds of Irises, on the grounds of the Central Experimental Farm. They were not, however, at all numerous, and did not do any appreciable harm this years. Two larvæ were collected on July 28, one of which was inflated; the other pupated on Aug. 1, the moth emerging on Sept. 7. Another larva was found on Aug. 4, the moth appearing on Sept. 15. The pupa of the former specimen was much larger than any of those obtained in 1903, an account of which appeared in the last Annual Report of the Entomological Society of Ontario. This pupa measured 30 mm. in length and 7.5 in width.