REPORT ON MOSQUITOES. 399 



b. MR. VIERECK's work. 



Beginning in the latter part of May, 1903, Mr. Henry L. Vie- 

 reck carried a series of observations and experiments at and 

 near Cape May City, which lasted until the end of September. 

 Excursions were made to several other shore points and from 

 time to time he was sent for a dav or two on special service, but 

 on the whole the Cape situation was kept under a continuous ob- 

 servation. The main object in view was a close watch on the 

 banded salt marsh mosquito Culcx soUicitmis, tO' determine its 

 habits, the normal place and manner of laying eggs, the reasons 

 for migrations and the circumstances under which they occurred. 

 Next in view was an exploration of the surrounding territory to 

 locate breeding places and to determine the possibility of practi- 

 cal control. 



Aside from these main lines instructions were, in general, to 

 keep a watch on all moscjuitoes found, tO' make collections of all 

 stages, to watch their habits, to determine their natural enemies 

 and other checks and also the circumstances which favored their 

 development. 



A line of experiments with fish gave results which are else- 

 where detailed, and a series of experiments with its eggs gave us 

 an explanation for the peculiar breeding habits of C. sollicitans. 

 May 25th, mosquitoes were already plentiful, and a brood of 

 babies was in the pools, which, however, were drying up. In all 

 the live ditches fish were found and in many of the higher pools 

 there were young, half an inch long, which were not able in all 

 circumstances to keep down the wrigglers because of dense vege- 

 tation, which made it impossible to get about very much. Up 

 to June 3d general explorations were made and areas suitable for 

 experiments were located. June 4th experiments were begun 

 with the common " killies," Cyprinodon and Fiinduius. June 8th, 

 mosquitoes of the second brood began to appear and some ex- 

 periments were made with oils tO' determine their relative value 

 as larvicides. Explorations had been extended meanwhile from 

 Sewell's Point to- Cape May Point, through the Cape Marsh and 

 to Two-Mile Beach, at which place a heavy brood of adults was 

 just developing. June 12th, the Five-Mile Beach territory was 

 investigated and a new or third brood was found fairly under 

 way. June i6-20th was spent along Seven-Mile Beach, where 

 the situation is more complicated than at any of the points fur- 

 ther south, but a fairly good idea of the dangerous breeding 

 areas was obtained. June 22d, the third brood was fully started 



