OF WASHINGTON. 47 



Culex sollicitans Walk. 



Abundant everywhere; the most common mosquito. They 

 were very troublesome except at the actual breeding places, where 

 they were scarcely more fierce than house flies. Apparently 

 they are not prepared to bite immediately after emergence. The 

 breeding places of this mosquito were not found till near the end 

 of my stay, so that I had begun to think I should not find them 

 at all. However a place was found at Amagansett where the 

 species bred in swarms. The land behind the beach at this point 

 is low and had been flooded at some time previously by high 

 waves ; subsequent rains had diluted this water. The swampy 

 pool which it formed, full of grass, was examined on September 

 1 6th. It was at that time scarcely perceptibly brackish to the 

 taste. It contained many pupae and a few well-grown larvae ; no 

 young ones. The grass in and about the pool fairly swarmed 

 with freshly emerged sollicitans. A heavy rain had occurred the 

 previous day so that the pool was evidently more diluted than it 

 had been and it was too fresh for normal breeding. Of the ex 

 amples carried home those at first emerging were all sollicitans, 

 but the later ones were cantans. I did not at this time differ 

 entiate the larvae of these species. They must be very similar. 

 The adult must fly considerable distances. It was noted at Yap- 

 hank, which is three miles from the bay and over six miles from 

 the ocean. It was only somewhat less common than cantans 

 at that place, and I should judge it capable of reaching the mid 

 dle of the island (15 miles). Since writing the preceding re 

 marks, Prof. J. B. Smith has loaned me some larvae that he is 

 sure are sollicitans. They are indeed very similar to my can- 

 tans. The hairs are a little shorter, the air tube also shorter, be 

 ing scarcely more than twice as long as wide, and the lateral 

 comb of the eighth abdominal segment consists of fewer, slightly 

 more irregularly shaped spines ; lout the characters are so slight 

 that I am doubtful if they can be used in practical differentia 

 tion. 



Culex cantans Meigen. 



Nearly as common as the preceding, and more troublesome 

 and persistent in the woods, though less common in the ho'use. 

 The larvae breed in fresh-water swamps formed by rain in low 

 ly m g> g rassv places. A low place near the beach at Bellport, 

 located much as the one at Amagansett above referred to, but 

 lying behind a higher bar of sand, was not reached by the high 

 waves. It was dry on August 27th but was filled with fresh water 

 by subsequent rains. On September I3th it contained many 

 larvae in various stages of development, some of which pupated 

 the following day. They emerged mostly cantans, though one 



