io6 



does not agree with Walker's type from St. Domingo, the prim- 

 aries are considerably darker, and the dark brown border of the 

 secondaries of only half the width : it must be distinct. 



A PARASITE IN ^GERIA SYRINGE. HARR. 



By G. H. French, Carbondale, 111. 



When examining the stems of some lilac bushes in my yard,. 

 I found a place in the bark of one where it seemed that an 

 yEgerian pupa might soon protrude for the purpose of liberating 

 the moth. Upon cutting away the thin iilm of bark, I found the 

 end of a chrysalis visible. I carefully cut away the wood, took 

 this out and put it in a jelly dish surrounded with lilac leaves to 

 prevent its drying up, and waited for the imago to come forth. 

 June 5th, a week after the chrysalis had been put into the jelly 

 dish, I saw something among the leaves which I supposed was 

 the expected moth, but which proved to be a hymenopter. 

 I did not know but the insect might be one of the boring bees 

 that often resort to the holes left by ^gerians in which to rear 

 their young, but an examination of both the insect and the 

 empty pupa case assured me that I had a parasite. The chry- 

 salis was certainly that of an yEgerian, having all the character- 

 istic marks of the pupse of that family ; and the insect in emerg- 

 ing from it had gnawed a hole near the end on the left side 

 instead of the usual method of emergence of insects from their 

 own pupa cases. More than this, the specimen was a true Ich- 

 neumonide and not a Crabronide as I at first thought it might 

 be. This is the first time I have known of any parasite working 

 in the ^gerians. 



I make the parasite to be Phcsogenes Ater, Cres. It is shining 

 jet black, 40 of an inch long, the antennae 25 jointed, the first 8 

 black, the next 4 white and the rest dark brown. The joints of 

 the legs are a little pale. 



It is impossible for me to say when the parasite was intro- 

 duced into its host ; but it must have been before it pupated, 

 because the chrysalis when taken from the bush was entire, show- 

 ing no broken place. That the ^gerian was y^. Syringes, I have 

 no doubt, as I do not know of any other boring in the lilac. 



LEPIDOPTEROLOGICAL NOTES.* 

 By Professor C. V. Riley. 



Plusia BRASSIC^, Riley (Rep. II. p. in). — Notwithstanding 

 its close resemblance to ni, the best authorities agree with Zeller 

 in considering it distinct, as it certainly is. Strangely enough 



♦From advance sheets of Bulletin 6, U. S. Ent. Comm., being General Index and Supplement to the 

 Missouri Entomological Reports. 



