48 DONALDSON BODINE. 



n. In the more essential features, the evidence of the antennae of 

 all the families of the Lepidoptera confirms the provisional classifi- 

 (jation based upon the wing structures, though in a number of cases 

 it indicated a change in the relationships of some of the families. 

 These arc indicated in the chapter on the discussion of the families. 



CONCLUSION. 



The work carried on upon the antennte of the Lepidoptera proves 

 that these organs are worthy of more extended study. Aside from 

 the great interest which attaches to them as the most specialized 

 sense organs, their value as records of the descent of families is very 

 considerable in taxonomic work. In the determination of the I'ela- 

 tionships of the larger groups, they do not furnish as good guides as 

 some of the larger organs, for while they are subject to great varia- 

 tion, they do not afford a sufficiently large basis for variation to 

 leave a stable and constant ground-work for the tracing out of the 

 patlis by which the specializations are brought about. As supple- 

 menting the evidence of the wings they are valuable. This thesis 

 has dealt only with the relationships of families and superfamilies, 

 but there is a large field for work within these groups, and in many 

 cases the antennre will be found most important in taxonomic work. 

 Owing to the difficulty of observation and the necessity for especial 

 preparation, they afford few characters which would be practicable 

 for recognition characters in ordinary systematic work, but for the 

 more careful and painstaking work of the study of relationships 

 they are of great value. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY. 



The following is a pretty complete bibliography of the subject of 

 the antenme of the Lepidoptera. Most of the works referred to are 

 upon the histology of tlie organs, or upon the question of the })hysio- 

 logical signilicance of the antenuiie. So far as I have been able to 

 discover, nothing has been done with the comparative study of dif- 

 ferent families. A few of tlie works given have not been at my 

 conunand, and they are given from references made to them by other 

 authors. 



Alpheraky, S. — De Tolfiiction chez les Lepidopteres. Bull. Soc. Ent. Fr., 1890, 

 pp. X(.;Y1I-C. 



