eo 
‘fifty of the flies issued during the night and early morning. They 
were crawling on the window at 6a.m. Many more were found within 
the box, with wings not yet developed. 
I returned again to Adelaide within four days, the time taken in 
making the trip. I wrote to the United States consular agent, Mr. 
George Harris, at Brisbane, Queensland, te ascertain forme the occur- 
rence of Icerya in that district. Through the department of ‘orestry 
at Adelaide I was informed that Icerya existed at Stansbury, on the 
Yorka Peninsula, at the place of Mr.F. Wurm. Accordingly a trip was 
made across the water on October 1, and I was kindly and hospitably 
received by Mr. Wurm. That gentleman showed me a small orange- 
tree completely covered with Icerya, but aside from this, not a single 
specimen could be found for miles around, nor had they ever been ob- 
served before this. The tree infested with the scales was completely 
covered with a small black ant, so much so that several conld be count- 
ed upon each of the scales at the same time. Upon examination only 
two specimens of the Icerya were found to be parasitized by the Les- 
tophonus, and these had already left. No doubt the abundance of the 
ants upon the scales prevented the flies from ovipositing. I recom- 
mended keeping the ants off the tree as the scales would then dis- 
appear. 
How often must the mother flies have been hovering over this young 
tree in their attempt to lay eggs, and how many of them must have 
been carried off as food for the young of the industrious ants! Mr. 
Wurm also informed me that Icerya had been fouud by him upon the 
roots of black grass. On examination, however, this proved to be an 
entirely different coccid, Lecanium ole, which had found its way to 
this place in small colonies on olive-trees. The cut-worms had done 
considerable damage to fruit-trees, grape-vines, aud other vegetation 
during November. Some of the apple-trees were completely stripped 
of their foliage. Melolonthid larvee had been very injurious to the 
wheat crop by eating the roots.* The common grasshopper was also in 
abundance here.t+ 
On December 6, from four large specimens of Icerya that had been 
inclosed, thirty-four flies (Lestophonus) and five parasites of the latter 
had issued. I examined condition of Icerya on place from which last 
sending was made, and from which nearly every one of the old and 
infested scales had been removed, the trees at the time being full of 
large Iceryas; yet at this date but very few of them were left, the coc-_ 
cinellid larvee and the Chrysopa in conjunction doing good work, eat- 
ing, no doubt, the healthy as well as the infested scales. Some of them 
had apparently gone through second molt, yet the greater part were 
* Three species of Melolonthid beetles were collected at this point by Mr. Koebele, 
and being unknown to our fauna will have to be carefully studied for determination. 
—C. V.R. 
t The same undetermined species referred to on p. 17. 
