THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 169 



veloped females, and that the honey-bearers are a changed form of the 

 worker major with a greatly enlarged crop, in which they store the honey. 

 Mr. McCook has not yet committed his observations to writing, but, we 

 understand, that he will eventually publish them in the proceedings of the 

 Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia. It is impossible to give 

 here even a synopsis of the vast amount of information that he afforded 

 upon this interesting subject. 



Prof. Riley remarked, in connection with this subject, that many galls 

 secrete saccharine matter, and that sometimes the gall-insects themselves 

 are entrapped in it ; that the ants probably get their honey also from the 

 species of Coccus that frequents the scrub-oaks of Colorado; and that 

 almost all species of ants are able to expand their abdomens when 

 necessary. 



Dr. Haldeman observed that the reason why hills were constructed by 

 some ants and not by others was probably because some might have the 

 proper materials conveniently at hand and others not. He urged Ento- 

 mologists to domesticate ants in order to study their habits, most of which 

 are as yet very imperfectly known. 



Mr. Bassetl stated that very many species of galls are infested by ants ; 

 that he has observed a gall on scrub -oak swarming with ants, and with 

 Cetonia Inda and other honey-loving insects. 



Dr. John L. LeConte, of Philadelphia, Pa., read a paper on a collec- 

 tion of Coleoptera obtained from a few hickory twigs. Some hickory 

 trees on a friend's estate, nere Philadelphia, were observed to be diseased 

 and therefore cut down. Some of the twigs were sent to him, and from 

 them he obtained no less than twenty-two species of Coleoptera. He 

 expressed a strong hope that some competent Entomologist should pre- 

 pare a list of the insects that infest forest trees, and that it should be 

 appended to the report about to be issued by the U. S. Commission on 

 Forestry. 



Dr. Morris stated that he also had obtained a considerable number of 

 species of beetles from twigs. 



Mr. Haldeman said that the hickory was more infested with insects than 

 any other tree. 



Dr. LeConte next read a paper on the so-called " Lightning Bugs " 

 (Lampyrida:) :— 



Mr. Austin remarked that when a Fire-fly is at rest there is a faint ray 

 of light visible, proceeding from the edge of the segments of the abdomen; 



