OF WASHINGTON', VOLUME XV, 1913 153 



Busck, Cory, Craighead, Cushman, Duckett, Ely, Gahan, Greene, 

 Heinrich, Hopkins, Howard, Kirk, Knab, McAtee, Middleton, Mc- 

 Indoo, Quaintance, Sanford, Schwarz, Shannon, Snyder, Walton, 

 and Wood, members, and Messrs. Frederick Karl, ("has. Menagh 

 and Drs. W. A. Hooker and Martini, visitors. Mr. Schwarz re- 

 ported that the next number of the Proceedings had been printed 

 and would be mailed to the members in a few days. The name of 

 Dr. Martini was proposed by President Busck for corresponding 

 membership and that of Mr. W. S. Abbott by Mr. Cushman for 

 active membership. 



Mr. Busck remarked on the difficulty experienced by the Sec- 

 retary in securing notes given at the meetings. He also read ;i 

 letter from Mr. Caudell, addressed from Copenhagen. 



The following papers were presented. 



BIOLOGICAL NOTES ON A FEW RARE OR LITTLE KNOWN 

 PARASITIC HYMENOPTERA. 



BY R. A. CUSHMAX, Bureau of Entomology. 



The observations brought together here are presented with the 

 consent and partly at the suggestion of Dr. L. 0. Howard, Chief of 

 the Bureau of Entomology. 



PERILITUS AMERICANUS Riley. 



This Braconid parasite of lady-beetles was very abundant in 

 the region of Vienna, Virginia, during the fall of 1912, invariably, 

 so far as the observations of the writer go, parasitic on Megilln 

 maculata. This coccinelid, following its habit of congregating in 

 large numbers in the fall in some protected place, used as shelter 

 the burlap bands put around apple trees for trapping codling moth 

 larvae. Large numbers of these were parasitized by Per Hi tux. 

 During the past spring the abundance of Perilitus was again noted, 

 many lady-beetles astride of the parasite cocoons having been 

 taken from low herbage, especially clover infested by Macroxiphinn 

 />/*/. Although a number of other species of Coccinellidse, en- 

 couraged by the unusual abundance of aphids, were fully as abun- 

 dant as Megilla, none but the latter and a single specimen of H-ip- 

 />i>t/(itn/a convergens were found to have been parasiti/ed. 



Adult specimens of the parasite reared in the fall of 1912 when 

 placed with various species of coccinellids attacked the different 

 species apparently indiscriminately but no progeny resulted. 



