INSECT PESTS AND POISONING. 341 



birds and quadrupeds in one way only, that is by eating the 

 roots of the hair or feathers, and the epidermis. Mounted 

 heads of large ruminant animals are the particular prey of 

 these abominable pests, because they cannot be protected by 

 glass cases, and are seldom touched save with a feather dust' T. 



In ethnological collections all the garments of skin and 

 leather, and all the textile fabrics are subject to the attacks of 

 the Tineids, as they also are to those of the species to be no- 

 ticed next. 



ANTHRENUS. Although I have seen this "buffalo bug" try 

 hard to make an impression on mounted mammals, I have not 

 yet seen it do harm except to furs and leather or woolen gar- 

 ments. The adult buffalo bug (Anthrenus lepidus) is a tiny, 

 round, brown beetle, with white spots on its elytra, and, as 

 usual, it is the larvae that do the mischief. 



SYMPTOMS OF THE PRESENCE OF INSECT PESTS. Whenever little 

 heaps of brown dust are seen accumulating here and there on a 

 pedestal underneath a mounted specimen, know that dermestes 

 are actively at work somewhere above. Sometimes the larva- 

 will even show themselves on the hair, which means a bad case. 



If a perfect moth is seen flying in a case, or resting on a speci- 

 men, search at once for the larvse. The best way to do this is 

 to go over a specimen with a rough brush, or a comb, to see if 

 the hair pulls out at any point. If a tuft of hair gives way at its 

 roots, and you see a bare spot underneath, it means moth larva >. 



POISONING. Let us take first the case of a mounted specimen 

 which is known to be infested with the larv;e of either Deni/< */<* 

 or Tiueids. It must be treated thoroughly all over with a 

 powerful poison, not only to kill the insects already there, but 

 to poison any larvae that may be hatched hereafter and seek to 

 attack it. 



If possible, remove tho specimen from its pedestal, and beat 

 out of it whatever dust it may contain. Procure a quantity of 

 alcohol sufficient when diluted with fifty per cent, of water to 

 completely saturate the hair (or feathers) of the specimen, and 

 dissolve in it some corrosive sublimate about one ounce to 

 every three pints of the liquid. The point to strive for in mak- 

 ing up such a solution is to make it as strong with <lie corrosive 

 sublimate as it can be without leaving on dark hair a gray (or 



