KEPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 35 



which has been printed in the Proceedings; the recent coruls by Mr. 

 T. Wayland Vanghan, of the U. S. Geological Survey; the cravlishes 

 by Prof. W. P. Hay, of Howard University, Washington, District of 

 Columbia; the Pycnogonida? by Prof. Leon J,~Cole, of the Universit}' 

 of Michigan; the Alpheidi\3 by Dr. H. Coutiere, of the Museum of 

 Natural Histor}^, Paris; the leeches 1)}^ Dr. J. Percy Moore, of the 

 University of Pennsylvania, and the Ascidians from the North Pacific 

 Ocean by Dr. William E. Ritter, of th(^ University of California. 



Dr. L. O. Howard, Honorary Curator of Insects, has published dur- 

 ing the 3"ear a large number of papers, mainly of an economic char- 

 acter. Mr. William H. Ashmead has continued his classitication work 

 on the Hymenoptera, has completed his classitication of the Chalcid 

 flies and has spent some time on the preparation of a monograph of 

 the North American Braconid{\?, begun ten years ago. He has also 

 finished, for publication by the Washington Academy of Sciences, 

 reports on the Rynchota of the Harriman expedition, and on the 

 Hymenoptera of the Galapagos Islands, collected ])y the expedition of 

 the Leland Stanford Junior University. Mr. Ashmead has likewise 

 made much progress upon a catalogue of the Hymenoptera of North 

 America and the West Indies. Mr. D. W. Coquillett has c()mi)leted 

 a synopsis of the dipterous family Chironomid;\\ Dr. H. G. Dyar 

 has in course of publication a Indletin entitled A Catalogue of North 

 American Lepidoptera North of Mexico. IVIr. Rolla P. Currie has 

 been engaged in monographing the North American species of the 

 ant-lion flies, and has begun the compilation of a catalogue of the 

 Neuropteroid insects of North America. 



In the Division of Plants, Mr. F. Y. Coville, Honorary Cuiator, 

 continued his investigations on the genera .SV///,/- and R!h,s and the 

 preparation of a work on the flora of Alaska. His pul)lications dur- 

 ing the year included papers on a new genus of Alaskan heather, Ilar- 

 rimaneUo^ and on two species of Rihes. Dr. J. N. Rose was occupied 

 in the stud}" of Mexican plants, and engaged with Dr. N. L. Britton in 

 preparing a revision of the Crassulacea? of North America. Mr. C. L. 

 Pollard prepared several papers descriptive of new species of violets 

 and of Chamber ista and a popular account of plant families. Mr. 

 W. R. Maxon published several notes on ferns. 



The collections of mammals and birds are frequently consulted hy 

 the assistants of the Biological Survey of the Department of Agricul- 

 ture. Dr. Edgar A. Mearns, U. S. Army, spent the summer and 

 early autumn in continuing his work upon the natural history of the 

 Mexican Boundary Survey, more especially in regard to the mammals 

 and birds. Dr. D. G. Elliot, of the Field Columbian Museum, Chi- 

 cago, examined the mammals of Mexico and Central America, and 

 Mr. John S. McDonald, of Milwaukee, conducted studies upon the 

 North American mammals in Q-eneral. 



