28G 



PSYCHE. 



[April -June 1SS5 



of pear, Ulmus and Pla/aniis as food of the 

 larva; and (Entom. corresp., 1S69, p. 360) 

 again describes the egg and imago. In Amer. 

 entom., Nov. 1S68, v. i, p. 59, this species is 

 mentioned as injuring oak and pear trees. 

 Packard (Guide study ins., 1869, p. 22S) 

 quotes Harris' account of the habits of this 

 species. Huggins (Amer. entom., Feb. 1S70, 

 V. 2. p. 12S) found tliis insect ovipositing 

 in an apple tree. Packard (Bull. '7, U. S. 

 entom. comm., iSSi, p. 105-106) figures the 

 larva, which he states to attack Ulmus, ^uer- 

 ciis, Acer and Plataiius; and {op. cit., p. 129) 

 says^ " In jellow birch at Providence," R. I. 

 Harrington (Can. entom., Dec. 1S82, v. 14, 

 p. 225) gives some notes upon this species 

 and adds Fagiis to the food-plants. 



Croesus la/i/arsus Norton (Proc. Entom 

 soc. Phil., 1S62, V. I, p. 199). Norton (/.c.) 

 describes the male of this species and later 

 (Trans. Amer. entom. soc, 1S67, v. i, p. 84) 

 describes the female, and adds, '• Bred by Mr. 

 Walsh from larvae feeding on birch." 



Xypliidria altenuata Norton (Proc. En- 

 tom. soc. Phil., 1S62, v. I, p. 144). Norton 

 {I.e., and Trans. Amer. entom. soc. 1869, v. 

 2, p. 354) describes the male of this species, 

 and Patton (Can. entom., Jan. 1879, ^- "' P- 

 14-15) describes the female. Patton (/.c.) 

 writes of his specimen, "Taken from a dead 

 stick of Bcliila nigra," and mentions that 

 N/iyssa humida is a parasite of this species. 



New solvent of chitix. — Dr. 

 Looss, assistant in the Zoological in- 

 stitute at Leipzig, has found that a .so- 

 lution of sodic hypochlorite {^eati de 

 Labarraquc of the druggists) , or of po- 

 tassic hypochlorite iyCaii dc jfavcllc), is 

 a fine solvent for chitin in making mi- 

 croscof)ical preparations. He writes 

 {Zuol. anzeigery i June 1SS5, jahrg. 8, 



P- .3.34) : 



"The liquid, as bought, completely 



dissolves, wlien heated, even the solid- 

 est and hardest chitinoiis parts of insects 

 in a short time, first making them glass- 

 like, transparent, and entirely colorless. 

 If the liquid is diluted with six or seven 

 times its volume of water, and the chi- 

 li nous parts, eitliev fresh or after they 

 have been hardened, are put in it for 

 twenty-four hours, or even longer ac- 

 cording to size, the chllin will lie al- 

 tered, altho not noticeably externally ; 

 it loses much of its original britllcness. 



ami above all things i.s more permeable 

 to staining solutions. The objects re- 

 quire, for complete staining greater or 

 less time according to size, but the col- 

 oration is beautiful and distinct with 

 either alcoholic or aqueous staining re- 

 agents. In our Institute pediculidae 

 and mallophaga have been prepared by 

 this method wliich show, besides their 

 great transparency, complete and clear 

 coloration. This is likewise the case 

 with nematodes and their eggs. It is 

 furthermore especially remarkable that 

 by this treatment the nndcrh'ing soft 

 parts are entirely spared and admit 

 studying upon them the finest struc- 

 tural relationships, such as the element- 

 ary structures of striate muscidar fibres 

 (' Muskelkiistchen') and the nerve end- 

 ings. Sections of bees' heads have been 

 made which were as beautiful as could 

 be desired. At all events this reagent de- 

 serves to be experimented with fuither." 



