406 



PSYCHE. 



[February 1S93. 



grouping of the Diptera orthorrhapha, which 

 he has now published in detail in English in 

 the Berliner entom. zeitschr. for 1892 (pp. 

 417-466). His Nemocera vera contain the 

 families Cecidomyidae, Mycetophilidae, Culi- 

 cidae, Chironomidae, Psychodidae, Dixi- 

 dae (?), and Tipulidae; his Nemocera anom. 

 a/a, the Bibionidae, Simulidae. Blephero- 

 ceridae, Rhyphidae and Orphnephilidae ; and 

 his Eremockaeta, the Stratiomyidae, Taban- 

 idae, Acanthomeridae and Leptidae (+Xylo- 

 phagidae). His complete discussion will be 

 found very interesting. 



With the publication of the seventh part 

 Distant has completed his Monograph of 

 Oriental Cicadidae, a large quarto of over 150 

 pages and 15 plates crowded with admirable 

 figures. The work includes 268 species ar- 

 ranged in 34 genera and divided into the two 

 subfamilies of Cicadinae and Tibiceninae 

 according as the tympana are mostly covered 

 or uncovered. Owners of the work, which is 

 published by the Indian Museum of Calcutta, 

 will be glad to place it by the author's Rhopa- 

 locera Malayana. 



The recent publication of a new part of the 

 Proceedings of the Entomological society of 

 Washington completing vol. 2 and filled 

 with biological papers of broad interest, em- 

 phasizes once more the concentration of 

 entomological industry at our national capital 

 and the excellent influence exerted by the 

 division of entomology in the U. S. depart- 

 ment of agriculture. 



PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 



CAMBRIDGE ENTOMOLOGICAL CLUB. 



9 December, 1892. The 174th meeting 

 was held at 156 Brattle St. Mr. S. H. Scudder 

 was chosen chairman. 



Mr. Howard Evarts Weed of Agricultural 

 College, Miss., was elected an active membqr. 



Mr. S. H. Scudder exhibited a sketch of 

 the body of a carboniferous walking stick, 

 Protophasma, from Europe to show that the 

 three divisions of the thorax must have been 

 of nearly equal length and not as in living 



Phasmidae very unequal, the prothorax in 

 living forms (with the exception of Prosopus, 

 Phyllium and similar highly specialized 

 forms) being much shorter than the other 

 two divisions. He stated that this was the 

 condition now of the embryo Diapheromera 

 just before leaving the egg, the elongation of 

 the mesothorax and metathorax taking place 

 during the emergence of the insect from the 

 egg. This adds another to the numerous 

 instances in which the early types of animals 

 resembled the embryonic rather than the 

 mature condition of their modern representa- 

 tives. 



He also stated that in the examination of a 

 nearly ripe embryo of Dissosteira Carolina, 

 he found one of the antennae completely 

 developed, which the other showed only the 

 enlarged base, the stalk being entirely absent. 

 In the same embryo there was an entirely 

 different arrangement of the middle legs of 

 the two sides; on one side, which seemed the 

 normal, the femur overlay the hind femur 

 and the tibia and tarsi Avere folded sharply 

 back upon the femur; upon the other, the 

 femur lay beside the hind femur, and the 

 tibia was bent at only about a right angle to 

 the femur; but apically was with the tarsi 

 twice bent to keep it from extending beyond 

 the opposite side of the body. 



He remarked further on a species of Gryl- 

 lodes found in a burrow beneath a small 

 sand hillock in Florida, by Mr. C. J. Maynard. 



Mr. A. P. Morse showed some specimens 

 taken by him at Wellesley, Mass., Nov. 17, 

 1892, of the following species: Chortophaga 

 viridifasciata, Stenobothrus curtipennis, 

 Melanoplus collinns, Encoptolophus sordidus 

 and Eurymus philodice. All the specimens 

 were mature. In the case of the first named 

 an unusual occurrence at that season of the 

 year. 



He also showed a specimen of Xabea 

 bipunctata taken by him at New Haven, 

 Conn., Aug. 30. Mr. Scudder said he 

 thought it had not been previously taken in 

 New England. 



