340 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



more slender median saw nearly an inch in length. Upon finding a 

 suitable place, she drives this instrument with a sawing motion into the 

 wood to its full length, and deposits her eggs therein. 



Life history. The life history of this species has not been worked 

 out. It is presumably similar to that of the other members of the genus. 

 The eggs are deposited in pine or spruce, dying or diseased timber is 

 apparently preferred, although they are known to oviposit in recently 

 felled trees. The larvae run large burrows through the trunks, often ren- 

 dering them unfit for building purposes. The imagos are abroad in 

 July and August, but nothing seems to be recorded of the duration of 

 either the larval or pupal stages of this insect. 



Distribution. Fabricius records U. albicomis from both North and 

 South America. Later observers have reported it from the following 

 localities: New England ; New York; New Jersey; Louisiana; state of 

 Washington; Ottawa, Canada; Lake Winnipeg; Newfoundland; North- 

 west Territory. Cameron (see citation) calls attention to the fact that 

 though this insect and other American species of the genus are taken 

 from time to time in England, they are usually found near railway 

 stations, mines and other places where they might easily have emerged 

 from timber imported from America. He does not regard the species 

 as indigenous to England. Its normal habitat is probably limited to the 

 greater portion of the United States and British America. 



Comparatively harmless. Although some allied species are re- 

 garded as quite injurious to pine forests in Germany, in this country their 

 ravages are as a rule of not much economic importance. In most cases 

 they attack only the diseased and dying trees. 



Urocerus cressoni Norton 



Ord. Hymenoptera : Fam. Uroceridae 



Norton, Edward. Entomological society of Philadelphia. Proceed- 

 ings. 1864. 3:16 (original description); American entomological 

 society. Transactions. 1868-69. 2:361-62 (insect and varieties 

 described). 



Lintner, J. A. Country gentleman. 1884. 49:9 (brief account); 

 Insects of New York. 5th Rep't. 1889. p. 311 (abstract of preceding). 



Cresson, E. T. Synopsis of the hymenoptera of America. 1887. 

 p. 173 (listed). 



Smith, J. B. Catalogue of the insects of New Jersey. 1890. p. 15 

 (listed). 



