60 Journal of Entomology and Zoology 



secrete the sac about themselves. The eggs are laved in the 

 bottom of the sac, being quite closely packed with wax -filaments. 

 As the female deposits the eggs her body is crowded forward, the 

 dead remains being found in the upper end of the sac. In some 

 instances in the laboratory, it was noted that undersized females 

 would secrete a sac, dejiosit a small number of eggs and die. Upon 

 dissection, it was found that there were often mature eggs in the 

 oviducts or partly developed eggs in the ovaries. The first laid 

 eggs in the bottom of the sac hatched several days in advance of 

 the others and thus the nymphs escaped before the later eggs 

 hatched. 



Under laboratory conditions the first moult took place 17 days 

 after hatching and the second moult a week later. After the sec- 

 ond moult the individuals had lost the pale cadium yellow color and 

 became the violet gray of the adult. The day following the second 

 moult they secreted sacs, although they were very much smaller 

 than those which first made sacs under natural conditions. Nor- 

 mally they probably have five moults. The overwintering indi- 

 viduals found in nature were first instar nymphs which had not 

 left the sac. 



Parasites. — One Hymenopterous insect was found, Pscudo- 

 coccobius clau.'iscni Timberlake (2) which parasitized a large per- 

 centage of the mealy-bugs. As many as si.\ of these parasites 

 were found in an adult female. They usually kill the female after 

 she has made the sac and before oviposition. They overwinter in 

 the sac as adults, emerging in the spring through circular holes 

 which they make. 



Resistance to drowning. — Several experiments were made to 

 see if this insect was specially protected from the water. It was 

 found that submergence for three or four days had no ill effect on 

 an adult and that they could float on the surface of fresh water for 

 three weeks without dying. These results are of little significance, 

 however, as Mr. Floyd Wymore, in his B. S. thesis work at the 

 University of California, 1922, found that Pseudococcus gahani 

 Green, a terrestrial mealybug, not only could live under water but 

 laid eggs and otherwise lead (juite a normal life. 



Acknowledfiements. — I am deeply indebted to Prof. G. F. Fer- 

 ris of Stanford University for numerous courtesies, especially for 

 determining this mealy-bug as a new species and for the permis- 

 sion to examine his collection of Coccidae. I am also indebted to 

 Mr. W. C. Matthews for photographing figure B, and to Prof. E. O. 

 Essig for suggestions and aid. 



Note: (2) Mr. A. B. Gahan, F^ntomoloRical Assistant of the United States 

 National Museum, writes as follows: "The parasite appears to be Ptnitdo- 

 rorcnhiux cliiunsriii Timberlake. This species was described from a sinsle 

 male specimen bred from Eriitm. sp. [Lichtensioides Ckle.] * * ' at Riverside, 

 Calif. Your males fliffer very sliRhtly in the extent of yellowish color on 

 the face but I believe there is very little reason to doubt that they represent 

 this species with the type of which they have been compared." 



