498 ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. [June, 



only one female had been taken. In my case, the greater 

 number of specimens I took and saw were females. This is 

 another illustration and proof that clinches the saying, " that 

 nothing is rare when you know when and where to find it." 



The species of the genus sEgiale are, without doubt, ex- 

 tremely local, which certainly cannot be accounted for by lack 

 of food plant, as the soap weed or yuccae is to be seen in quan- 

 tities throughout this State, yet it is only in widely separated 

 spots that the genus sEgiale occurs. 



WE have recently had a pleasant visit from Mr. August Busch of The 

 U. S. Dept. Agric. who was studying specimens in the Coll. of the Amer- 

 ican Entomological Society. 



PROF. W. G. JOHNSON, of College Park, Md., states that his article in 

 the May NEWS on certain mites did not appear in print coincidentally with 

 the mites. The mites are expected to reappear about June 9, 1900. Those 

 wishing specimens of the mites will please take notice. 



BUGS CALLED OUT FIREMEN. A cloud of bugs was responsible for 

 the calling out of the Trenton, N. J., Fire Department last night (May 

 ist). The bugs were gathered around the steeple of the Fourth Presby- 

 terian Church in such numbers and at such a distance from the ground 

 that a passer-by mistook them for smoke and sent in an alarm. When 

 the Fire Department arrived on the scene, Chief Allen, with the aid of a 

 field glass, discovered the mistake, and the fire companies returned to 

 their houses. Philadelphia Record, May 3, 1900. 



IDENTITY OF Hemaris tennis and Hemaris dijfinis. As soon as my 

 Hemaris tennis emerge, I shall be ready with my notes on the identity of 

 tennis and diffinis. I am sure that tennis, diffinis, uniformis, thysbe, are the 

 same, in other words, that the Winter pupae, from mid-Summer larvae give 

 the even-margined, whitish yellow tennis and eggs of tennis, give the late 

 Spring and early Summer larvae, which produce in July, diffinis in all 

 gradations from whitish, even-margined tennis to reddish yellow serrate 

 diffinis, and also Strecker's forms, cethra. These are my observations 

 for three years, which I confidently expect to see verified finally by my 

 concluding test of last Summer's brood from eggs of typical diffinis in 

 numbers (seventy odd), which should produce tennis this Spring. This 

 last test is simply to verify and check the same observations of two former 

 seasons, only it has been made with scrupulous care. The Spring and 

 late Summer larvae show no differences in any particular, and the food 

 plant is, of course, the same. Triosteum perfoliatnm, one of the 

 Caprifoliacece. ELLISON A. SMYTH, JR., Blacksburg, Va. 



