1891.] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 33 



THE following description of a variety of Papilio turnus may be of 

 interest to the readers of the NEWS: The specimen, which is a ^, was 

 taken on the 6th of July, 1890, at Mt. Airy, Pa. The specimen differs 

 from the normal rf in the almost entire absence of the row of yellow 

 markings in the black border of the anterior wings, only the two yellow 

 markings in the extreme apical portion of the wings being present, while 

 the row of yellow markings in the border of the posterior wings is nar- 

 rowed down to a mere dash, the yellow of which is thickly interspread 

 with many gray scales. Of the many descriptions and figures of the va- 

 rieties of P. turnus that have been published from time to time, none 

 describe the above variation. PHILIP LAURENT. 



RETINIA COMSTOCKIANA Fernald, occurs abundantly in yellow pines at 

 Sugar Grove, near Lancaster, Ohio. Serious damage results in conse- 

 quence, as the infested twigs and branches invariably die. At present, 

 October, the larvae are lining their mines preparatory to hibernation. The 

 habits of the insect here agree well with those given by Prof. Comstock 

 (Report Dept. of Agriculture, 1879), whose observations were made at 

 Ithaca, N. Y. I have found that weevil follows the moth's larva as a borer 

 in the dead twigs. Prof. D. S. KELLICOTT. 



PLATYCERURA FURCILLA Packard. At the above-mentioned station, 

 late in September, I took several larvae, apparently of P.fnrcilla. They 

 were all found concealed among the yellow pine needles; in confinement 

 they were rarely seen feeding. Dr. Lintner has described, with his usual 

 accuracy, the larva and its habits in " Entomological Contributions," No. 

 3, p 131. Prof. D. S. KELLICOTT. 



THE ELECTRIC LIGHT AS AN INSECTICIDE. Anyone taking the trouble 

 to examine the contents of the globe surrounding an arc light, in the morn- 

 ing, will be astonished at the immense number of insect remains, consist- 

 ing of all orders. By far the greater number are small lepidopterous 

 forms, and, according to my experience, the Tortricidss outnumbering all 

 the rest. Many Neuroptera fall victims to the light, among them large 

 numbers of the " aphis lions," whose larvae feed on the aphides, or plant 

 lice; thus we lose one of the agriculturist's best friends. Many species 

 quite rare in collections may be taken in this way, though very few perfect 

 specimens are to be had, owing to the intense heat of the carbons, the 

 slightest touch of which burns the wings. Prof. Lintner made a micro- 

 scopical examination of the contents of a single globe, and estimates that 

 the debris he inspected represented 33,000 insects, and he believes the 

 average number destroyed in a night by a single lamp at nearly 100,000. 

 On one occasion I saw nearly three pints of bodies, legs and wings emptied 

 from a single globe by a man who replaced the carbon in the morning. 



C. A. B. 



HUMORS OF COLLECTING. Like all other things, entomology has its 

 ludicrous side, as some such squibs as the following will verify: A few 

 years ago while out collecting with a fellow-entomologist, not far from 



