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NATURE 



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n. V >\ lihk i 



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They are smaller than Pulex irritans and do not bite 

 80 severely. Scores of them inarched up my legs 

 as I sat in pyjamas. I bought some tin.s of that best- 

 known of insect powders." I covered my le^ 

 with it. It had no effect whatever. The fleas bit 

 and jumpetl with undiinini.shed zest. Heforc taking 

 steps to rid the bungalow entirely of the crratiircs, 

 I t(X)k a do/en of them, and placet! them in an empty 

 biscuit l)ox, and another dozen in a Ijox containing 

 a layer a ouarter of an inch thick of the powder. 

 In twenty-four hours the fleas in both boxes were 

 all alive ; some were resting actually on the deadly 

 powder. I also shared with many in the trenches 

 the bitter experience that these insect powders had 

 no effect on lice. Lp, de Costobadie. 



Mottram, nr. Manchester, 

 November 5. 



Lest the good work of American entomologists 

 should be ignored by default, may I direct the 

 attention of your correspondent on the above subject 

 (October 27, p. 622) to two valuable papers recording 

 the results of definite experiments planned against 

 clothes moths ? The first, by E. W. Scott, W. S. 

 Abbott, and J. E. Dudley, appeared in IQ18 as 

 Bull. 707 of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 

 " Results of Experiments with Miscellaneous Sub- 

 stances against Bed-bugs, Gsckroaches, Clothes 

 Moths, and Carpet Beetles"; the second, "Clothes 

 Moths and their Control," by E. A. Back, appeared 

 in July last as Farmers' Bulletin, No. 1353, of the 

 same Department. These papers contain a mass of 

 information regarding the relative effects and best 

 methods of employing very many different substances 

 against clothes moths belonging to species found in 

 Britain ; and curiously enough, in view of the ex- 

 perience of your correspondents, both papers agree 

 in regarding naphthalene in good condition as " one 

 of the safest and best materials for protecting fabrics 

 against moth injury," although it must be used in 

 moderately tight receptacles so that the fabrics 

 remain in a naphthalene-permeated atmosphere. 

 Camphor used in the same way is said to be almost 

 as effective, its fumes killing all stages of clothes 

 moths. James Ritchie. 



The Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh, 

 November 6. 



My own experience of clothes moths in museums 

 extends over many years, and I regret that I cannot 

 agree with " E. E. A." in Nature of October 27, 

 p. 622, that paper is a barrier. The clothes moth 

 ' fauna " of Britain is changing. At one time the 

 chief pests were moths belonging to the genus Tinea, 

 which are animal feeders, attacking furs, feathers^ 

 wool, silk, etc. To-day the most dangerous pest is 

 (Ecophora (or Acompsia) pseudospretella, which, 

 according to Meyrick, was first introduced about 1840. 

 This species eats both animal and vegetable sub- 

 stances. I know it as a disastrous guest of neglected 

 herbaria, preying indifferently on the dried plants or 

 on the paper ; and I have observed that it has 

 perforated and penetrated the newspaper coverings 

 of mounted birds and mammals. Fabre, apparently, 

 was unacquainted with this species when he stated 

 that paper is a sure barrier. Pseudospretella certainly 

 prefers slightly damp surroundings, and is known to 

 be a lover of cool climates ; it is extremely abundant 

 in London, and is much more conspicuous than any 

 species of Tinea. Perhaps it is not yet established 

 in central or southern France. 



Without making any careful experiments, I have 

 NO. 2822, VOL. 1 12] 



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believed that naphthalene scattered in ' 

 moths away to some extent. It is not 

 find n ■--' !rirva in a store box of mouiiT' 

 in cii es which suggest that the ji..; 



insinii..v. .. w.c egg through a crevice, li, 

 are immune from many well-known iii-< 

 Fuming with hydrocyanic gas has no cJieci 1 .,c 

 fumes of chloroform cripple the larv<c for a few days ; 

 but in a week or so they become active again, and 

 may probably complete their metamorphoses. Drench- 

 ing with motor spirit is aLso useless. I^rv;f droi.ncd 

 in a strong solution of naphthalene, an* I .ad 



until they are thickly encased with a ti ,at» 



begin to crawl alx>ut when the naphltialene is 

 sufficiently evaporated to give freedom of action to 

 the segmemts. Bisulphide of carbon, in my experi- 

 ence, kills the larvae. 



Bisulphide of carbon, a week or two ago, proved 

 useless in dealing with a small colony of " Aluseum 

 Beetles " ; but drenching the specimen (a mounted 

 bird) with motor spirit appears to have been success* 

 ful. I take this beetle to be Ptinus germanus. 

 described as " scarce " in Cox's " Handbook of 

 Coleoptera," the only work available here at the 

 moment. Ptinus fur is the better-known species. 

 Probably the latter insect will ro-mlrr. .),tf,.rr.„t 

 handling. My own experience of the 

 to the genus Glyciphagus is that Ip ; 

 has no effect, although it is advised by high au- 

 for these disagreeable pests. Like man\- 

 " insects," they withstand drenching in petrol, and 

 the only remedy is successive fumings with sulphur 

 dioxide — a plan not always possible in varied collec- I 

 tions. A really comprehensive work on museum 

 (and household or warehouse) insects would be very 

 welcome. The losses in stored collections, although 

 for obvious reasons kept secret, are certainlv great. 

 This is due not always to neglect, but ' to the 

 curator's faith in one or other of the well-known 

 insecticides. 



I have been told (and certainly credit the tale) 

 that constant vigilance is needed to protect stocks i 

 of " Insect Powder " from the ravages of some sort i 

 of warehouse pest. Yet this powder, when pure, 

 is very useful indeed in collections, in spite of its 

 comparatively high cost and its messy qualities. 

 Crude experiments on my own part suggest that a 

 mixture of equal parts of borax, sulphur, insect 

 powder, and naphthalene might be scattered or 

 otherwise used as a deterrent. I tiave tried plunging 

 valuable and delicate spx;i.jiens, such as mounted 

 butterflies and pressed plants, in a solution of celluloid 

 in amyl acetate. When dry, a thin and perfectly 

 invisible " size " of celluloid is left behind. The 

 specimens are thus protected from damp and fungi, 

 and are probably safe from mites also. 



An example of the work of CEcophora can here 

 be described. About two years ago a duplicate 

 stuffed wheatear was placed in a glass cupboard, 

 faintly illuminated, and distinctly damp. Three 

 months ago, in clearing out the cupboard, I found 

 that the bird had lost its skin entirely ; even the 

 homy rhamnotheca of the beak, and the scales of 

 the feet, had disappeared. Nothing remained except 

 the wires, the bones, and the stuffing ; and, strange 

 to say, the stuffing was neither tow nor cotton wool, 

 but waste silk. I have known CEcophora larvae 

 feeding on a Chinese " joss stick," a compound of 

 resins used as incense, and have found one in an 

 excavation in a " vegetable ivory " nut. In the 

 latter case no other insects were visible, and every- 

 thing pointed to the moth caterpillar as the culprit. 



Fredk. J. Stubbs. 

 Oldham Corporation Museum. 



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