47 
Megatoma undata were found inside the cocoons of Tenthredo lutea. 
Kuwert considered their work in killing pupe of this sawfly of consid- 
erable importance and ascribed the immunity of his garden from the 
work of the sawfly larve to this cause. It seems, however, that there 
may still be doubt about the accuracy of his conclusions. 
* As illustrating the necessity for the most careful examination of all 
the circumstances surrounding a case of Supposed parasitism, and as 
bearing upon the subject of Anthrenus varius, the fact may be men- 
tioned that on December 17 a living specimen of an adult Proctotrypid 
parasite was found in the center of an empty egg mass of the Orgyia, 
The species was new to the series of Orgyia parasites, and study showed 
it to be Laelius trogodermatis Ashmead, a parasite, as the name indi- 
cates, of Dermestid larve. Further examination showed a full-grown 
larva of the Anthrenus in the same egg mass. Mr. Ashmead informs 
the writer that he has previously reared this Proctotrypid from A nthre- 
nus varius, and the presence of this specimen on the Orgyia egg mass 
was thus explained. 
A very constant feature in the examination of the Orgyia cocoon 
masses during December, 1896, was the finding of many of the charac- 
teristic cocoons of a Chrysopa. They were hidden away among the 
mass in all conceivable situations. Some were empty, some contained 
parasites, while others contained the hibernating larve of the Chrysopa. 
During the preceding summer adult Chrysopas were reared in some 
numbers from Orgyia cocoon masses placed in the rearing cages for 
study. The frequent parasitism of these Chrysopa cocoons introduced 
another element of danger in drawing conclusions as to the true para- 
sites or hyperparasites of Orgyia. For a time the writer considered 
one of the species of Hemiteles (sens. lat.) reared from the Orgyia 
cocoons as one of the tussock-moth hyperparasites. While opening 
many Orgyia cocoons, however, in December, one was found which 
contained several old and empty cocoons of Pimpla inquisitor, and in 
one of these, back at its far extremity, was the puparium of a Sarcoph- 
agid fly, from which the adult had issued. More in a spirit of idle 
curiosity than in anticipation of any result, this empty puparium was 
cut open and here again in its far extremity was another object, the 
cocoon of this Chrysopa. The cocoon was intact, and upon cutting it 
open it was found to contain an adult of the Hemiteles, which up to that 
time had been considered a hyperparasite of Orgyia. The larvaof the 
Sarcophagid having reached full growth after feeding on the remains 
of the Pimpla pupa skins, or perhaps dead pup as well, had trans- 
formed within the Pimpla cocoon and the fly had issued. The para- 
sitized full-grown Chrysopa larva, seeking to hide itself as effectu- 
ally as possible, had crawled first into the Orgyia cocoon, second into 
the Pimpla cocoon, and third into the empty puparium, and in its 
far extremity, -with its little remaining strength, had spun its own 
cocoon only to die immediately thereafter from the attacks of the larva 
