I 



1912 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 77 



CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN INSECTS. 

 C. Gordon Hewitt, D.Sc, Dominion Entomologist, Ottawa. 



It is well known to all the members present how the idea of a catalogue of 

 the insects of Canada originated and the reason for its genesis, and I have attempted 

 in a recent number of the Canadian Entomologist, which I have no doubt 

 most of the members have read, to give some idea of the agreement to which the 

 committee which was formed came to with regard to the scope of this catalogue. 

 My object, therefore, in speaking on the subject this afternoon is not to discuss 

 what has already been accomplished, as that is set forth in the short article men- 

 tioned, but to discuss any points which members of the society or those who are 

 assisting in the preparation of this catalogue, wish to discuss. I am very pleased 

 to tell you, as you may have seen from the short note at the end of the article, 

 that I took up the question of publication with the Geological Survey and Mr, 

 Brock also took it up with the Minister, with the result that they have consented 

 to publish the list in parts as we desire. I think the best thing we can do now, 

 and which I had intended, is to publish the different groups as they are ready. 

 For example, some groups such as the Noetuidse would form a fairly large volume, 

 I suppose, so that such a group would be published in a single volume. On the 

 other hand, a number of the groups and families are quite small and they will not 

 be published separately; they will be held over until all the sub-families are pre- 

 pared, and then the family will be published in a complete manner. 



There is one question which I wanted to discuss with you and that is the 

 question of nomenclature. It is extremely desirable and it is necessary that we have 

 some uniformity in this matter, that we should act thoroughly in accordance with 

 the modern rules and usages of nomenclature. There is a small matter on which 

 there should be some consensus of opinion, and that is as to the use of initial 

 capital letters in specific names. Take the Larch Sawfly, for example, which is 



Lygaeonematus erichsonii. 



The old naturalists and still many of those who are accustomed to use these 

 proper names, write the specific name erichsonii with a capital E, and we should 

 decide whether in such cases a capital or a small letter is to be used. 



With a view to obtaining the official opinion I wrote to Dr. Stiles, who is 

 Secretary of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, which 

 decides all questions of nomenclature, and he replied as follows : — 



Washington, B.C., 

 Octdber 9th, 1911. 

 Dr. C. Gordon Hewitt, 



Dominion Entomologist, ; 



Ottawa. Ont. ■ 



Deab Doctoi!, 



Replying to your letter of October 3rd, I would say that Article 13 of the Inter- 

 national Code on Zoological Nomenclature, reads as follows: — 



" While specific suhstantive names derived from names of persons may be written 

 with a capital letter, all other specific names are to he written with a small initial 

 letter. Examples: Rhizostoma Cuvieri, or R. cuvieri; Francolinus Lucani, or F. lucani; 

 Hypoderma Diana, or H. diana; Laophonte Mohammed, or L. mohammed; Oestrus avis; 

 Corvus corax." 



Under " Discnssion " of Article 13 is the following paragraph: — 



" Formerly all substantive specific names were capitalized, while most adjectival 

 names were written with a small initial letter. Then the custom relative to specific 

 names changed to confining the capital to names derived from proper names. Later, 



