426 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 6 



The parasite has been found in every wheat and corn field examined around Man- 

 hattan. Of 3,101 eggs collected between April 28 and June 10, the average percent 

 of parasitism was 20.8, and of 116 eggs collected at Crawford (central Kansas) 19 

 eggs or 16.3 were parasitized. 



The work is still under way and a full description of the parasite together with 

 notes on its life history and efficiency will be published later. Mr. Crawford of the 

 U. S. National Museum concludes that this parasite represents a new genus and 

 species of the Proctotrypidae. 



James W. McColloch. 



Swarming of Hemiptera. On the evening of July 1 of the present year, Boulder, 

 Colorado, was visited by incalculable numbers of Lygceus faceius Say. Coming home 

 at about 10.30 p. m., I found them in clouds about the electric lights, presenting the 

 same appearance as the Trichoptera at certain seasons in the vicinity of the great 

 lakes. They exhaled a strong and disagreeable cimicoid odor. In some parts of 

 the to\\Ti, I was informed, they were swept up with brooms. The weather here has 

 been exceedingly hot and dry for many weeks, and one can only suppose that the 

 bugs were compelled to migrate owing to the drying up of their usual food supply. 

 Once before, in Boulder, I have observed a similar phenomenon, the species in this 

 case being Homopterous. On September 21, 1908, I fovmd on the steps and in the 

 basement of the University of Colorado library enormous numbers of Homoptera, 

 mostly dead. I nearly filled a small mason jar with them, and could have secured 

 many more. The great majority, probably at least 90 per cent, were Xerophloea 

 viridis (Fabr.). The only other species at all abundant was Ldmoteltix exitiosus 

 Uhler. Agallia uhleri V. Duzee was the next in numbers. There were also some 

 miscellaneous insects, including two Nysiii^ angustatus Uhl., and one LygcBUs facetus 

 Say. The Xerophloea viridis were nearly all of the green form, but piiik and light 

 brown individuals occurred in small numbers. The browTiish variety is doubtless 

 var. grisea (Germar). The species X. viridis ranges from Massachusetts to Brazil. 

 The swarming of a Lepidopterous insect, Homoeosoma electellmn, at Boulder, has 

 already been recorded in Entomological News. 



T. D. A. COCKERELL. 



Observations Regarding Flight of the Cotton Moth in igii. In 1911, 

 certain work on the canal of the Bulls Bridge power plant at Merwinsville, Conn., 

 necessitated day and night work and to facilitate the latter we had a number of 

 electric arc lights at the two points where work was progressing, there being six arcs 

 at one point in a stretch of 300 feet and 10 or 12 lights at the other point in a section 

 about the same length, perhaps 200 feet wide, both localities being in the valley of 

 and close to the Housatonic River. On September 23, in reporting conditions at 

 the work my representative stated there were "millions of moths" around the lamps 

 and on Monday, the 25th, when I personally visited the work I found every one of 

 the wooden frames, from which the arc lights were suspended (these frames consist- 

 ing of an upright 4" x 6" and perhaps 10 feet high and a cross arm at the top about 

 5 feet long, from which the lamps were hung), covered with moths for the most part 

 as closely together as they could get. These were almost entirely cotton moths. 

 There were, however, 30 to 40 specimens of Tolype velleda, four or five Sphinx moths, 

 several Catocalas and a few other species. The ground surrounding these lights was 

 also completely covered with the moths and when disturbed they made a noise like 

 the rustling of dry leaves. The superintendent reported that for two or three nights 

 previously there had been far more than I found Monday morning; that at times 



