SECRETARY’S REPORT 129 
at which time conferences were held with the writer on island matters, 
plans for the future, improvements that would be desirable. W. M. 
Perrygo, of the National Museum, accompanied him as assistant. 
John E. Graf, Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 
spent 2 weeks on the island in June and July, examining the laboratory 
facilities and discussing its operations. 
A. C. Langlois, of the Bahamas, whose deep interest in palms and 
horticulture in general are well known, was a welcome visitor for a 
few days, during which brief time he was able to observe the palms as 
they grow in their natural habitat. 
W. E. Lundy, secretary-treasurer of The Panama Canal Natural 
History Society, a keen student of nature, spent a week on the island, 
and as on earlier visits prepared a detailed report of the mammals, 
birds, reptiles, and other forms that he saw. These yearly lists from 
Mr. Lundy form a very valuable record. 
Miss KE. Thomas and Miss Marie Weir, local naturalists of note, 
again revisited the island for a few profitable days. 
The writer continued his special research problems, particularly 
the long-term termite-resistance tests, and fruit-fly populations. The 
large Berlese funnel has been kept in operation, and it is of interest 
to note the great number of species of mites, pseudoscorpions, and 
ants, particularly some of the very rare genera, that have been 
collected in this manner. 
An interesting development from work done at Barro Colorado 
Island that should be mentioned here, since it has not previously 
been noted, is the availability of a phonograph record of jungle sounds 
by day and by night, familiar and friendly to those who know them, 
mysterious and sometimes fearful to the uninitiated. The work is 
that of Dr. Arthur A. Allen and Dr. Paul Kellogg of Cornell University 
who, during the war, made a long series of recordings in the jungle 
for training use with American troops assigned to outpost duty. A 
considerable part of the work was done on Barro Colorado Island, 
though it is only recently that the material has been released and 
prepared in form available to the public. The voices of howler 
monkeys, birds, and amphibians, reproduced faithfully by painstaking 
techniques, carry fully the ordinary sounds heard during the 24 hours 
about the Island. 
MORE URGENT NEEDS 
One of the most urgent needs is the fireproofing of certain structures 
by the use of concrete posts and concrete blocks, which could be 
accomplished gradually. These buildings are the Barbour and Chap- 
man houses, the kitchen and its adjacent storerooms, and the main 
laboratory building. 
