OF WASHINGTON. 75 



been bred by Sichel from the same host, and named and labeled 

 by Dr. Arnold Foerster. Doctor Howard stated that three 

 stations have been established in Russia and one in France for 

 feeding gipsy and brown-tail moth larvae in numbers in order to 

 attract parasites to them. Doctor Howard then exhibited and 

 explained an extensive series of photographs showing many of 

 the interesting points along the journey. 



The following papers have been presented and accepted for 

 publication : 



A PRELIMINARY REVIEW OF THE CLASSIFICATION OF 

 THE ORDER STREPSIPTERA. 



By W. X) WIGHT Pierce. 



Having practically completed the manuscript for my paper 

 entitled " A monographic revision of the Order Strepsiptera 

 Kirby " I am particularly desirous of paving the way for the 

 classification therein proposed by publishing a brief synopsis 

 of the general character of that classification. 



The order was established by Kirby in 1813 and has subse- 

 quently been shifted from one position to another by various 

 writers. The group has been placed in the Hymenoptera, 

 Diptera, Coleoptera, and Neuroptera, and has been given ordi- 

 nal value under the names of Rhipidoptera, Rhipiptera, and 

 Rhiphiptera. The usual position has been to rank the group 

 as the family Stylopidse in the Coleoptera Heteromera. This 

 is obviously false, for the Strepsiptera are all isomerous. 



The Tertiary genus Mengea points out clearly the divergence 

 of the group at that time and gives a strong basis for ordinal 

 rank. The system of hypermetamorphosis, which is far more 

 complicated than in any other order, the highly developed 

 nervous system, the reduction of the prothorax, and many other 

 characteristics, prove its claim to the highest rank. The proofs 

 are given in detail in the forthcoming paper. 



Order STREPSIPTERA Kirby, 1813. 



An order of hypermetamorphic endoparasites with highly 

 specialized reduction of certain functional organs, great spe- 



