GIRAL'I.T AXD STRAUSS— THE REDRUG 
1 2 I 
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It struck the writers at once, that an excellent opjrortunity here offered to 
prove whether or not this species would naturally leave their preferred hosts, 
chickens, and go to the dwellings of man; or whether they would crawl onto man, 
thus be transferred to his dwellings, ancl breed there. Hut this could not be 
determined because of the absence of the superintendent, and nothing could be 
obtained from the attendant, who denied all knowledge of bugs, especially those 
found in beds. 
I'his -species found associated with chickens agrees well with the description 
of columbariHs given by Osborn ( 1896), and they agree with supposed specimens 
of that species now in the collection of the United States National Museum. On 
comparison with other species in the National Museum collection, they are at 
once easily separated from the species associated with the bat (////r/zr/// Jenyns), 
and with the swallow ( hinindinis Jenyns ). d'hey are closer to Icciiilai ins, but differ 
in the shape of the body, which has the greatest width of the abdomen at the 
middle, and which, in general, is smaller, and in the relative lengths of joints 3 
and 4 of the antennae, which are subequal in columbarius, but joint 3 much 
longer than 4 in leclubarius. They cannot possibly be Acanthia inordora I luges. 
'I'he specimens in the National Museum are from the United States. 
.\. Expinment 7 idih human blood. 
At 6.45 P. M., September 28th, an adult of this species, full-fed when cap- 
tured, was placed into a small glass vial and the latter then inverted over a por- 
tion of the fore arm, just above the wrist. In this way, the insect was forced to 
rest on a portion of the skin. 
Upon regaining its position, after the fall down the sides of the vial, it 
remained perfectly motionless for nearly a minute. Then, very quietly, it 
inserted the beak and began to feed. In ten minutes, it was gorged with blood, 
and the body was therefore much elongated. About eleven minutes after begin- 
ning to feed, the bug withdrew its beak, its body greatly distended with blood. 
.\nother recently fed adult captured on September 24th, showed willingness 
to feed from the fingers of the hand on the afternoon of September 29th, when 
they were placed near it. 
•Accordingly, it was transferred to a vial, and the latter inverted over a por- 
tion of the under surface of the fore arm, at 6:08 P. M., in the presence of 
a bright light. 
It tried to escape at first, but at 6:09 P. M., it inserted the beak and began 
to feed. The vial was then removed, leaving the insect attached to the arm. It 
was wholly unmindful of the light. The abdomen gradually commenced to 
