OF WASHINGTON. 45 



tion of structural characters and to the classification of the 

 species into natural groups. Doctor Gill then spoke of the 

 danger there is in relying too much on similarity of habits or 

 mode of life as a guide to classification. With proper limita 

 tions, however, ecology may furnish useful hints. 



Mr. Busck thought it a rather gloomy. view to take, that the 

 systematists should be getting away from the natural groups, 

 and he contended that although our present arrangement of 

 insects may not be perfect it is surely much nearer perfection 

 than it was in the days of the old authors. Doctor Dyar said 

 that a natural classification would be one in accord with phylo- 

 geny, while an unnatural one would not. 



The following paper, read by title, has been accepted by 

 the publication committee: 



THE CRYPTOCERATE HEMIPTERA OF AMERICA IN THE 



WRITINGS OF PROFESSOR ARNOLD 



L. MONTANDON. 



By J. R. DE LA TORRE BUENO. 



Prof. Arnold L. Montandon, of Bucarest, Rumania, has de 

 voted a great deal of attention in recent years to the crypto- 

 cerate Hemiptera and has published a large number of notes 

 and papers on them, all of great value to students of the water- 

 bugs. American hemipterists will find these of great inter 

 est, for not only has Professor Montandon published several 

 monographs of peculiarly American groups, but he has also 

 described a number of new species indigenous to the Western 

 Hemisphere, and corrected many synonymies, reviving for 

 gotten species and establishing the distinctive characters of 

 many obscure forms. In addition, he has paid great attention 

 to the Pentatomidae, especially the Scutellerinae. 



In the following bibliography are listed all the papers, so 

 far as can be learned, which Professor Montandon has pub 

 lished to date on the American water-bugs; but papers up'on 

 other groups of Hemiptera, or those which deal only with Old 

 World Cryptocerata, are omitted. It is the aim of the writer 

 to place in concrete form before American hemipterists the 

 importance to us of the work done by this European savant; 

 hence the form of this list. No less important to us is an ac 

 quaintance with those forms found in Spanish America and 



