300 AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 



few hairs on the apical part. The male palpi (fig. 41, i) are 

 longer than the beak, black, with some of the hairs of the fan- 

 like tufts, whitish, and the stalk of the basal segment with a 

 slight angulation near the middle. The antenna of the male is 

 plumose, blackish, with twelve cup-like joints surrounded with a 

 circle of fine long hair, and two long-, slender, terminal seg- 

 ments set wath fine short hair; the base of the apical one with a 

 circle of six long bristles. 



The female antenna has usually twelve long, narrow joints cov- 

 ered with short hair, and each set with six long bristles at the 

 base. 



The thorax has an undefined black central band, broken in the 

 posterior part by irregular lines of golden yellow scales and 

 edged with scales of the same color which extend for a short dis- 

 tance down the sides and intermingle with a patch of white 

 scales. The legs are all black, with the femur and inner side of 

 the tibia yellowish. In the male the anterior claw joint (fig. 

 94, 4) is excavated inwardly, and set with moderatelv long, bris- 

 tle-like hairs ; the inner claw is much longer than the outer, and 

 both have a single median tooth slightlv nearer the base. The 

 claw joint of the mid tarsi is curved a little inwardly; w^ith one 

 very long claw, sharply curved at the base and a long', straight, 

 tapering point, and one rather short claw ; both with a long slen- 

 der tooth near the base. The hind claw joint is long, with two 

 very small, single-toothed claws of equal size. 



The claws of the female are alike on all feet, of ecjual size and 

 with one tooth a short distance from the base. 



The abdomen is black on the dorsum, with faint white lines 

 separating the segments, and pale yellow on the venter. 



Habits of the Adult. 



Though aurifcr is bv no means common anywhere, it is one of 

 the most blood-thirsty species we have. It has never been found 

 far away from its breeding places and does not enter houses, but 

 does fly for some distance at night, and is not so closely confined 

 to the woods as canadensis. If its haunts are entered during the 

 day it attacks fiercely and fearlessly. Mr. Brakeley, who is the 

 only person known to me who has any considerable personal ac- 

 quaintance with this species, several times refers to this point in 

 his notes and mentions the fact that when once the insect has 

 tasted blood it is almost impossible to drive it off and it may be 

 taken without difficultv. After several field experiences an op- 



