THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST HI 



as an up-to-date spraying machine, but without result. I then 

 drew close to the trunk of the tree, and on the jutting spike of a 

 dead branch appeared another Hoplosia niibila. I had seldom 

 found anything of much account on dry wood, but I recalled the 

 book statement that this insect bred in dead limbs of basswood. 

 Half the tree spread out on the meadow side of the low stone 

 rampart, so I made to enter the field; on the upper end of a picket 

 and again on the top rail of the fence I met— apparently, like me, 

 getting over the wall — three more specimens of Hoplosia niihila. 



Where had they come from? Had they dropped from the 

 green foliage above, or emerged from a dry branch under the tree? 

 I noticed now for the first time a large, dead limb lying along the 

 bank of field stone^ — a windfall of several years ago — rotting, but 

 fortunately not sodden from contact with the earth ; the end away 

 from the butt had one or two boughs still armed with broken 

 branches, and one of these rose at an angle and was partly sup- 

 ported on the second rail of the fence right at the picket. Only 

 an enthusiastic collector knows how my mouth watered and my 

 heart danced when I looked closely at the picket and the branch 

 here on the sunny side of the fence: resting on their surface, within 

 easy reach, I counted 7 specimens of Hoplosia nuhila. By the 

 time I turned reluctantly away to join the hoeing-bee at lunch, I 

 had captured 17. 



As soon as lunch was over some of the men scattered to look 

 for bait, hoping to catch a bass or two before revisiting the kitchen- 

 garden. I, too, set out to look for bait, but as soon as I rounded 

 the corner I dived into the friendly shelter of the cedars and made 

 a bee-line for the basswood. The sun had almost given my re- 

 cruiting ground the slip, but I succeeded in capturing 8 more 

 specimens abou't the dead limb and the picket fence; and on visit- 

 ing some trees further along the ridge I captured 2 more. 



To test out the insect's habits and season I made it a point 

 during the next few days to visit all the basswoods newly felled 

 ordeadthat 1 could think of in the neighbourhood; on July 3rd I 

 examined some newly felled basswood at Nassau and succeeded 

 in capturing 3 specimens of Hoplosia, apparently attracted to the 

 dying trees either to breed or to oviposit on the branches; and a 

 few davs later I took 5 on some windfalls and one on a lopped 



