THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. SJ^O 



Papers on Ihe geographical distribution of insects were read by Dr. 

 Anton Handlirsch (Vienna), who ranged over the whole field of fossil 

 insects, and Dr. P. Speiser (Labes), Baron von Rosen (Miinchen), dis- 

 cussed the forest Termites, while Prof. .Calvert gave an exceedingly 

 interesting review of the advance which has been made in the knowledge 

 of the dragon-flies since 1895. 



Among the papers on insect bionomics which were read, three may 

 be specially mentioned, on account of their exceptional interest. Dr. W. 

 M. Wheeler (Harvard), gave an account of his recent investigations in 

 Central America in ten Acacia-inhabiting ants. His results do not con- 

 firm the popular idea as to the adaptation of the acacias for the purpose 

 of encouraging ants with a view to protecting themselves against the leaf- 

 cutting ants. The ants merely frequent the convenient hollow places in 

 the acacias because it suits their convenience so to do. Dr. A. Seitz 

 (Darmstadt), described the results of an interesting experiment which he 

 devised to test the sense of sight of insects, in this case butterflies. The 

 character of this sense may be judged from the fact that the male butter- 

 flies of the species observed were found to be so short-sighted that they 

 attempted to copulate with paper-coloured replicas of the females mounted 

 on pins. A masterly and extremely suggestive paper on the Mallophaga 

 was read by Prof Vernon L. Kellogg. It was demonstrated .that the 

 association between these parasitic insects and their avian hosts was of a 

 most remarkable character, tending to show that the parasites had become 

 associated with their present hosts before the latter had become divided 

 into separate species. They showed to an extraordinary degree the effect 

 of isolation brought about by specific association. 



Before the sections for economic and medical entomology many 

 valuable and important papers were read. Sir Daniel Morris read a paper 

 by Mr. W. A. Ballou (Government Entomologist for the West Indies), on 

 the more important insects of the West Indies and the methods adopted 

 for their control. Prof. J. Jablonowski (Budapest), contributed two 

 papers, one of which on the methods of fighting the locust, Staiironotus 

 juaroccanus, in Hungary was of unusual interest and importance from the 

 Canadian point of view. Mr. A. G. L. Rogers (Board of Agriculture and 

 Fisheries, England), contributed a paper on the necessary investigation 

 with relation to insect pests preliminary to legislation. While the ideas 

 set forth by the author were in the main sound, hs made many assertions 

 which were not borne out by facts. This was shown in the subsequent 

 discussion, which proved so interesting that it was postponed until the 

 following day, when a resolution was passed, and subsequently submitted 



