FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB. 185 



in the earth, while their tops were sealed by plates of glass lined 

 with cotton wool. It was found that the young ticks had 

 extraordinary powers of insinuating themselves through the 

 cotton wool, and heavy weights had to be placed on the glass 

 plates before the chambers were properly secured. From the 

 causes already mentioned, and the absence of anyone in charge 

 of my laboratory, all the plants died long before the conclusion 

 of the experiments ; but this seemed to make little difference to 

 the life of the young ticks. 



Having prepared the chambers, small lots of eggs were 

 inserted in test-tubes so that the date of emergence could be 

 observed. Control lots of eggs were placed in test-tubes and 

 plugged with cotton-wool. The length of life of the young ticks 

 in these latter tubes was usually about a fortnight, after which 

 they died and shrivelled up. In the closed chambers the ticks, 

 upon hatching, immediately emerged from the open test-tubes, 

 spread in all directions, and the cotton-wool seemed to have 

 a special attraction for them. After a while however they 

 congregated in small crowds, usually in the axil of a leaf or 

 some place where they were not likely to be disturbed. One 

 of these groups contained I suppose about 200 ticks in a 

 state of rest, immediately moving if molested. They remained 

 thus huddled together on the leaf of a Tradescantia for weeks. 



The last ticks emerged from the eggs on October 3, and on 

 March 4 following, or just five months later there were still 

 some ticks living. No appreciable growth had taken place in 

 these ; they seem merely to have been quiescent during the time, 

 probably imbibing small quantities of vegetable matter from the 

 surrounding grass debris in which they had wintered. The 

 living ticks were found in dried up Bahamas grass. 



From these and other observations, interrupted as they 

 were, I am led to conclude. 



(1). That the common, Creole or blue tick is probably the 

 Ehipicepkaluu concvnna of Koch, and widely distributed 

 in these islands. 



(2). That the Gold Tick of Antigua, wrongly called the 

 St. Kitts Tick, is the llyalomma venustum of Koch. 



(3.) That it is not indigenous in this Island, but was in- 

 troduced about thirty years ago from the West Coast 

 of Africa. 



(4). That its young are first noted in quantities upon 

 the cattle about May, and that the ticks cause great 

 inconvenience till about the month of September after 

 which they disappear. 



(5) That the full females lay from 15,000 to 20,000 eggs, 

 all of which may be fertile. 



