304 Forty-sixth Report on the State Museum 



expressed that it eats lace curtains and other cottons, and that its range 

 of food may embrace "hair, furs, cotton, linen, and wool." Even 

 Anthrenus scrophularice, which in this country is hardly known except 

 as a woolen pest, is developing a fondness for insects in collections, 

 while in Europe it is recorded as eating furs, hides, leather, dried 

 plants, animal collections, "all kinds of collections of natural objects, 

 and victuals."* 



Dr. Hagen in his interesting paper on " Museum Pests, observed in 

 the Entomological Collection at Cambridge," mentions the species as 

 " exceedingly dangerous " to the collection.** 



Feather-felting by Attagenus piceus. 

 Professor Riley has recorded an instance of a remarkable felting of 

 the inside of a pillow case with the soft parts of the chicken feathers 

 with which it had been filled, through the feeding operations of this 

 insect. The short, downy particles which had been stripped off were 

 found inserted by their basal ends, the barbs of which would be caught 

 by the repeated shakings and firmly anchored. "The felting was 

 remarkably dense, evenly coating the whole surface of the ticking, and 

 greatly resembling in softness, smoothness, and color the fur of a mole."f 

 Another similar occurrence was related by Dr. Horn, and a specimen 

 " resembling fine plush " exhibited to the American Entomological 

 Society. J 



Remedies for the Carpet Beetles. 

 The best remedies for the two carpet beetles are, frequent searches 

 for their larvae in their haunts and crushing them, and the application 

 of kerosene or benzine to the places where the eggs and young larva? 

 occur. The favorite locality for the A. scrophularim, as is probably 

 known to most housekeepers by this time, is beneath the borders of 

 carpets, and in the floor joinings underneath. These crevices should 

 first be thoroughly treated with kerosene, and then closed with putty, or 

 a packing saturated with kerosene. The crevices beneath the base 

 boards should also be closed; by these means the retreat and escape of 

 the larvae will be almost entirely prevented, when the borders of the 

 carpet are lifted for a thorough search for the larvfe, as should by all 

 means be done, from time to time, in an infested house. The examina- 



* Hagen: in Canadian Entomologist, x, 1878, pp. 161, 163. 



** Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural History, xx, 1878, p. 61 . 



+ American Naturalist, xvl, 1882, p. 1018. 



X Transactions of the American Entomological Society, x, 1883, p. xvii. 



