264 ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. [October, 



" Ovisac elongate, bag-shaped, widened and rounded behind, somewhat 

 narrowed and abrupt before, where the head of the female protrudes; 

 often very largely conformed to the shape of the leaf. Length of felted 

 sac 5-6 mm.; width 2-2.5 mm. It was observed that the whitish sacs 

 were likely to escape notice among the young fruit of the Larrea, which 

 was just setting, and was covered with a whitish, woolly pubescence. 



" Larva. The larva is the same color as the adult female; legs slender, 

 antennae consisting of only six joints. Larvae were found May i3th, which 

 were beginning to exude a sac. 



" Egg. The eggs are whitish in color; they are enclosed in the end of 

 the felted sac, behind the body of the female, the head of the female 

 being usually more or less through the anterior end of the sac as the eggs 

 are deposited. Eggs found in the sacs of adult females were unhatched 

 May 1 3th. 



"Food-plant. Found abundantly May i3th on leaves of the creosote 

 bush (Larreamexicana); occasionally on the stems also. It is usually 

 on the underside of the leaf, which is small and very nearly covered by 

 the felted sac." (Townsend.) 



Hab. Near the Agricultural College, Las Cruces, N. Mex. 



This is the insect described by Prof. Townsend in Bull. 7, N. 

 Mex. Agric. Exp. Station, as a new Signoretia, no specific name 

 being then proposed. On examination, it turns out to be a Ber- 

 grothia, very near to B. townsendi, but differing principally as 

 follows : 



B. townsendi. Rather smaller, antennae y-jointed, 2 and 5 about equal; 



food-plant Fouquieria. 

 B. steclii. Rather larger, antennae 8-jointed, 2 decidedly longer than 



3; food-plant Larrea. 



It is true that one specimen of B. townsendi seemed to have 8 

 joints to the antenna, but 7 was the normal number; and apart 

 from this, the proportions of the joints are not the same in the 

 two forms. Taking this with the very different food-plants, it 

 appears to be necessary to regard B. steelii as distinct. 



At Prof. Townsend's suggestion, the insect is named after the 

 late Mr. Samuel Steel, who first found it. Mr. Steel was to have 

 been the first graduate of the New Mexico College of Agricul- 

 ture, in 1893, but was most unfortunately killed in the early part 

 of that year. He had studied entomology with Prof. Townsend, 

 and had shown unusual zeal and ability, so that much was ex- 

 pected of him in the future. 



