REPORT ON THE DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY. V9 



Ohio State University (71 MecopteraJ^ Miss M. M. Enteman, Uni- 

 versity of Chicago (329 specimens of Hyraenoptera) ; Prof. E. B. Wil 

 liamson, Vanderbilt University (199 dragon flics, genus Gomphus); 

 Mr. J. A. G. Rehn, Philadelphia Academy of Sciences (170 Mexican 

 and Central American Orthoptera); Mr. II. ( '. Toll. Pasadena. Cali- 

 fornia (400 Specimens of beetles). 



A number of skeletons of birds were loaned to Dr. R. \Y. Shufeldt 

 for use in connection with his work on the osteology of North Ameri- 

 can birds. 



A total number of 1,736 specimens of plants were lent to various 

 specialists during- the year. 



DISTRIBUTION OF DUPLICATES.' 



The demand for zoological material by educational institutions 

 increases every year, but during the year covered by this report no 

 large amount was distributed, for the reason that the sets made up some 

 years ago were practically exhausted. In the case of marine inverte- 

 brates, however, as already noted (see p. 73). one hundred new sets, 

 comprising in all about 30,000 specimens, were prepared. Three sets 

 of invertebrates and three of fishes were distributed, containing in all 

 1,092 specimens. In addition, 10 small special lots of marine inverte- 

 brates were also distributed, together with the duplicate ophiurans of 

 the Agassi/ Albatross expedition of 1891, as already noted (see p. 73). 



LABORATORY USE OF COLLECTIONS BY INVESTIGATORS. 



As in previous years, the staff of the Biological Survey, Department 

 of Agriculture, made extensive use of the collections for purposes of 

 comparison, and especially mammals and birds. 



Mr. Ernest Thompson-Seton spent some days in examining the col- 

 lection of American deer in connection with a work on the large game 

 of North America which he has in contemplation. Dr. E. A. Mearns, 

 U. S. Army, resumed for a time his work on the zoology of the 

 Mexican boundary survey, and in that connection studied the speci- 

 mens of American cats in the collection of the Museum. A large series 

 of the birds of Panama was brought to the Division of Birds by Mr. 

 Outram Bangs, and compared with the Museum collections. The 

 committee of the American Ornithologists' Union on nomenclature 

 spent soint 1 time in the Division of Birds, as in previous year-, in 

 determining the status of various newly-described species and sub 

 species of birds. 



The ichthyologists of the U. S. Fish Commission consulted the col 

 lection of fishes. 



Prof. L. C. Glenn and Mr. (i. C. Martin, of the Maryland Geolog- 

 ical Survey, consulted the collections of niollu>k> on main occasions 



