ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 173 



tkecarmn, and a small species of Tinea. The small beetle is described as 

 Dorcatoma bibliophagum. It sometimes bores through a row of several 

 volumes. Carbon sulphide is the best remedy, but as the fumes injure 

 the colour of the books and are not without danger, F. Secques * suggests 

 placing the infected books for two or three days in an air-tight receptacle, 

 containing vapour of formol at a temperature of 50° or 60°. To remove 

 the insects from inaccessible nooks in the library, small vessels with 

 formol may be placed in the vicinity, or even powder of trioxymethylene. 

 It is noted, however, that the vapour does not kill the cocoons. 



. Scale Insects of Date Palm.f — T. D. A. Cockerell describes Parla- 

 toria bhinchardi, found on date-palms transported from Africa to Arizona. 

 The female is dormant through the winter ; the male seems to be very 

 short-lived, dying after impregnating the female. The larvae, which 

 crawl about restlessly for some time, are probably carried from tree to 

 tree by insects and birds. Attention is also directed to the marlatt 

 scale (Phmucococcus marlatti), discovered many years ago by C. L. 

 Marlatt on date-palms imported from Algeria. E. H. Forbes J discusses 

 methods of exterminating these date-palm scales, recommending especially 

 good pruning and firing infected trees with gasoline. 



Pests of the 01ive.§ — F. Silvestri continues his account of the inju- 

 rious insects which infest the olive. He deals in detail with the important 

 Prays oleellus, one of the Hyponoineutidae, and more briefly with numerous 

 other pests. 



Mating of Rivellia boscii.|| — W. H. Piersol describes the curious 

 mating habit of this fly, which he studied near Toronto. The female 

 runs about on the leaves in small circles or spirals, varied by an occa- 

 sional straight course. The wings are moved slowly up and down, with 

 occasional pauses for a second or two. The much smaller male follows 

 closely, and when the pace admits touches the female on the abdomen 

 with his proboscis, or with an anterior leg. Sooner or later he mounts, 

 the penis is extended and taps the abdomen of the female two or three 

 times, when the latter also becomes extended (automatically, for it 

 happens even when the male's attentions are not acceptable), and copu- 

 lation begins. The wings keep in constant motion, great excitement is 

 exhibited, and a droplet of colourless fluid from the male's proboscis is 

 transferred to the female, who eats it. This transference of a globule is 

 repeated many times before the pair separate. There are many curious 

 details in this connection. There is some evidence of choice on the 

 female's part. The author refers to the passage of some secretion from 

 the mouth of the male pigeon to his mate as a possibly analogous case. 



Blood-sucking Flies.1T — Mario Bezzi takes a survey of the species in 

 the genera Stomoxys, Glossina, Glossinella, Siphona (Hcematobia) ami 

 Lyperosia, and describes a few new forms. 



* Bull. Zool. Soc. France, xxxii. (1907) pp. 100-1. 



t Bull. Agric. Exper. Station Univ. Arizona, No. 5G (1907) pp. 185-92 (5 pis. ). 

 X Tom, cit., pp. 193-207 (5 figs.). 



§ Boll. Lab. Zool. Scuola Agric. Portici, ii. (1907) pp. 83-184 (68 figs.). 

 |] Amer. Nat., xli. (1907) pp. 465-7. 

 If Rend. R. 1st. Lombardo, xl. (1907) pp. 433-60. 



