358 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 1 



tion of the skin excited by the embedded female closes around her so 

 as to shove them otf . Here ends about all actually known of their his- 

 tory. ' ' From my observations this account is very probably accurate, 

 except the latter part. I found the males present on the head of the 

 fowl, but did not actually observe them in copulation with the females, 

 although fecundation must have taken place under these conditions. 

 So far as my observations go, however, no tumefactions of the skin 

 of the fowl take place. Judge Johnson farther says : ' ' From anal- 

 ogy we may infer that the period of gestation being completed, the 

 gravid female lays her eggs in this well prepared nidus, or more par- 

 ticularly that they remain or are hatched in her distended stomach, af- 

 ter which they crawl out and drop to the ground." 



From the ease with Avhich the females were induced to lay eggs in 

 the vials, I believe they simply drop off when engorged, like a cow 

 tick, and lay their eggs among the debris in the nests of the fowls. 

 At no time was there a tumefaction of the skin or a so-called nidus 

 formed. It seems to me that Judge Johnson must have ascribed the 

 disease known as ''the wart disease" to this flea or possibly confused 

 it with that of Sarcopsylla penetrans. 



Scientific Notes 



Toxoptera graminum Rond. has been found very generally distributed over 

 Minnesota during the last summer, wherever wheat is grown, and eggs which 

 were collected out of doors in the early spring near St. Anthony Park hatched 

 in due season, showing that the species can survive our winters, or at least, 

 did survive last winter. Insectary work upon this insect shows it to be 

 much more prolific than Macrosiplium granaria. 



Three species of locust, namely M. femur-rubrum, M. atlanis and M. hivi- 

 tattus, have been locally quite destructive in Minnesota this season. 



In work M'ith stalk borers, Genus Papaipema, during the summer several 

 species have been found to be common in Minnesota, among them P. fiircata 

 has injured hundreds of young ash in nursery rows by boring in the center, 

 and so weakening the tree that a slight wind breaks it. 



F. L. Washburn, St. Anthony Park, Minn. 



