534 



NOTES AND EXHIBITS. 



Mr. Froggatt read the following "Note on the occurrence of the 

 Icerya cegyiytiacum in New South Wales " : — 



" Some two months ago when collecting at Penshurst, near 

 Sydney, I found a number of mealy white coccids u|)on the 

 underside of the leaves of Goodenia ovata, in a paddock about a 

 mile and a half from the railway station. These I forwarded to 

 Mr. W. M. Maskell, of Wellington, N.Z., who immediately iden- 

 tified them as Icerya cEgyptiacum, the " Egyptian mealy-bug," 

 The species has until quite recently only been known from 

 Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt. In 1890 Admiral Blomfield 

 forwarded a number of specimens to the Kew Gardens, stating 

 that he had first observed it about four years before on the leaves 

 of a banyan tree ; but that since then they had spread all over 

 the gardens, attacking everything with the exception of a few of 

 the tougher-leaved figs, and doing an immense amount of damage. 

 The specimens were forwarded to Mr. J. W. Douglas, who 

 described it under the name of Crossoiosoma cegyptiacum (Ent. 

 Mo. Mag. March, 1890, p. 79). The Kew Bulletin, No. 41, 1890, 

 republished his description and gave an interesting account of 

 this pest, which is now placed in the genus Icerya. A few months 

 ago Mr. R. Newstead, of Chester, recorded it from Madras, India, 

 having received numerous specimens from a correspondent there. 

 Up to the present time these are the only two countries in which 

 it was known to occur. It is therefore very remarkable that it 

 should be found upon a native plant in an out of the way place 

 like Penshurst ; and if not endemic it is not at all clear at present 

 how it has been introduced into Australia." 



Mr. Froggatt also exhibited specimens of the Icerya. 



Mr. A. Lea exhibited a fine collection of Coleoptera recently 

 obtained by him at Forest Reefs, N.S.W. 



