—55— 



tinctive gallery, a fioure of which is also hereto annexed. In each 

 case there is a \'ery irregular main gallery, from which branch off 

 in all directions and at very irregular intervals, short, 

 irregular galleries. Usually there is, in about the centre 

 of the system a loop, connecting two main series and 

 giving origin to several larval galleries radiating in all 

 directions. At the time I collected the twigs the beetles 

 were quiescent in the side galleries. The galleries 

 seemed uniform in diameter throughout, and were in 

 the wood rather than the bark. At about the same time 

 I found in the stems of oak cut for Elaphidion larva, a 

 Aery similar species with galleries very much the same, 

 but much more numerous and much less definite for that 

 reason. Two sizes were represented here also, but all of 

 them less than half the size of the grape or other oak 

 species. These also I sent to Mr. Schwarz, and in due 

 time received the legend : " /Z eruditiis West, a little larger than 

 typical form," and "' H. eruditus West, typical size." Here my 

 faith ends! I feel certain that hispidulus Lee. is not eruditus Westw., 

 and I am as certain as any one can well be from field work merely, 

 that dissimilis Zimm. and hispidiihis Lee. do refer to sexes of the 

 same form. Where eyediis Lee. may go I am not so certain, but 

 if it be distinct from hispiduhis, then the male cannot be the dis- 

 similis Zimm. 



The " Ultimate Larva" of Platypsyllus. 



BY GEO. H. HORN, M. D. 



In the February Entomologica Dr. Riley describes what he 

 calls the ' ' ultimate larva' ' with so many details very greatly different 

 from those previously described by him and myself in what, for 

 convenience, I will call the " penultimate larva," that I have thought 

 it advisable to direct attention to them. 



It may be stated axiomatically that the larvae of coleoptera, 

 more particularly in their final period, de\'elop tozvard the imago 

 without any abrupt changes, which cause them to differ both from an 

 earlier stage and from the imago. 



The so-called "ultimate larva" violates the above proposition 

 in many important particulars, but for present purposes the head is 

 alone taken for review. 



In the larva and imago of Platypsyllus the head is of semicir- 

 cular outline, the broadest portion being the base. In the " ultimate 



