REPORT ON MOSQUITOES. ^05 



ovary of a female ready to lay, perfect in size and form, failed 

 to darken in color, and collapsecl. 



August yl, eggs of this second series were placed in four jars 

 and covered with seawater 100 per cent., seawater 50 per cent., 

 seawater 25 per cent., and pure artesian spring water. No 

 larvae had hatched in any of these jars August 6th, after being 

 covered for seventy-two hours, and the water was then poured 

 off, leaving only a little moisture. August loth, again covered 

 the eggs in the fresh-water jar with water of the same kind and 

 wrigglers hatched at once. The same experience resulted with 

 the other jars, tending to show that the eggs must be at least par- 

 tially exposed before they hatch. Eggs of this series that had 

 been kept nearly dry since they were laid, were covered with 

 water at 3.35 P. M., August 8th, and at 4.08 P. M., wrigglers 

 had begun to emerge. -Vugust 13th tested jar 4 in which the 

 sod was completely dry and found the eggs hatching after one' 

 and one-half hours. August 15th, poured water over the en- 

 tire sod and wrigglers began to appear in three minutes ! Adults 

 from this lot were obtained August 24th. September 23d, some 

 eg-gs of this series that had been kept in a damp closet since laid, 

 were covered with water and hatched within an hour afterward 



August 4th, the third series of experiments was started and a 

 dozen jars were stocked, each with ten gravid females. In the 

 jars which contained only dr}^ lint no- eggs had been laid up to 

 August 6th, when the jars were brought indoors. August 8th, 

 the eggs in the jars in which the lint had been allowed to get per- 

 fectly drv after the insects had oviposited, were found collapsed. 

 At noon, August 8th, put water into jars 7 and 8, and at 3 P. M. 

 wrigglers were present. These jars were put out in the marsh 

 August i2th, and some ditch water was added. August 15th, 

 put the voung larvre into a small artificial pond and recovered the 

 sod with marsh water. On the 19th, there was another lot of 

 young larvae in the jars, while those in the small pond were ap- 

 proaching pupation. August nth, added water to another jar 

 of this series and on the 12th, larv.-e were found. On the 25th, 

 there was a fresh hatching from this series, and this left some 

 egp-s still in good condition. 



The fourth series was started August 14th, twelve or more 

 gravid specimens being confined in each of twelve jars contain- 

 ing as follows: No. i. dry sand; No. 2, wet sand; No. 3, dry 

 lint; No. 4, wet lint; Nos. 5 to 12 inclusive, ordinary upland 

 soil over moist lint. Not all the specimens had laid eggs on the 

 15th, and some were yet alive on the 19th. In jar 4 the lint was 

 so saturated that the water just failed of flowing it and here the 



