1913.1 



111 



I860— foiuid by Mr. Daboulay in his father's garden." The Rev. W. Tylden, 

 who was (judging from his notes) well acquainted with Dawson and Eye, and 

 had frequent transactions with Brewer and Turner, was an occasional contri- 

 butor to this magazine in its early years, the last note from him, bearing date 

 April, 1873 (Ent. Mo. Mag., IX, 290). The " Mr. Daboulay " referred to may 

 possibly be the same as Du Boulay, after whom Mr. G. R. Waterhouse named 

 Articerus duhoulayi (Ent. Mo. Mag., vol. I, p. l-i9). Is it possible to trace this 

 specimen ?— E. G. Batford, 2, Rockingham Street, Barnsley : April, 1913. 



The Entomology of an Opossum's nest. — So much good work has been done 

 during the past two or three years in investigating the Coleopterous fauna of 

 the nests of small mammals and birds, that the following extract from the 

 Adelaide (Australia) Observer of March 8th last, will probably prove of interest 

 to your readers : — 



" An Opossum's Nest. — In jireparing opossimis in as lifelike surroundings 

 as possible for the new gallery, the Museum taxidermists found it desirable to 

 procure a hollow limb, and obtained one near Adelaide. On sawing it off the 

 limb was found to contain an opossvim's nest, with the opossum (Trichosurus 

 indpecula, L.) at home in it. On further examination the nest was found to be 

 swarming with insect life. Among these were noted thousands of larvae of a 

 small moth ; thousands of Acaridx, or mites, and Psoridfp, or book -lice ; two 

 kinds of tick, one a very peculiar sort ; several interesting beetles, one of 

 which is new to science ; and himdreds of a bvig in all its stages. This last- 

 named insect smells exactly like the bed-biig, but when matured is winged. 

 It appears, however, to have the same unpleasant habits, as most of the larvae 

 and some of the matiire specimens appeared to be gorged with blood. Seven 

 pupae of two kinds of flies were obtained, and many unidentified larvae of these 

 latter two are very curious, and they probably belong to one of the lace- 

 winged flies, of which some extremely beautiful species are known in South 

 Australia. It is hoped, therefore, to rear some of the larvae to the mature 

 forms. Probably many opossum nests are known, and the haul obtained from 

 the one examined has caused tha Museum officers to desire to examine other 

 nests ; consequently the Director would he glad of information as to any nests 

 within easy distance of Adelaide." — T. Hudson Beare, 10, Regent Terrace, 

 Edinburgh : Aiml 14th, 1913. 



Andrena niveata, Friese, probably loronfjly recorded as British. — In his paper 

 "Die Bienenfauna von Westpreussen," Prof. J. D. Alfken records this species as 

 an immigrant from the Steppes-region, and in a correspondence with me con- 

 cerning the species of the minutula group, expressed his doubt as to the 

 probability of its occurrence in Britain. He has also been kind enough to send 

 me specimens of A. schenckella, Percz (= nana, Schenck, Schmiedn. nee Kirby)> 

 which entirely agree with British specimens supposed to be niveata, taken by 

 myself. One of these, sent to Saunders in 1899, was confirmed by him as 

 belonging to niveata. It is therefore very doubtful whether A. niveata is a 

 British species at all, as my specinaens, taken in such different localities as 

 Suffolk, Oxford and Devon are certainly to be referred to as A. schenckella. 



It is almost certain that we have at least one other species of the mimitula 



