274 Winter Insects of Eastern JVew York. [May, 



ble us to answer satisfactorily, but most probably the former 

 would be the more natural method of accounting for the phe- 

 nomenon. 



A few superficial strata of that member of the calciferous that 

 contains the fucoidal layers, have been observed in the northern 

 edge of Lewis county, but they are of very little extent and only 

 in isolated patches. 



{To be continued.) 



WINTER INSECTS OF EASTERN NEW YORK. 



BY ASA FITCH, M. D. 



It is the object of the following paper, to describe those insects of 

 Eastern New York, which occur in their perfect state in the win- 

 ter, and are peculiar to that season and the early part of spring. 

 They are objects of curiosity, as coming forth to our view in full 

 maturity and vigor, at that time in the year when almost every 

 other member of the animal and vegetable kingdoms is reposing 

 in torpidity under the chilling influence of solstitial cold. In an 

 economical aspect, they possess but little importance, their period 

 of life being limited to that season when the field furnishes no 

 herbage, the garden no flowers, and the orchard no fruits, on 

 which they can prey. They are chiefly interesting, therefore, 

 merely as objects of scientific research — as forming integral parts 

 of that vast array of animated beings, with which the Father of 

 Life has populated our world, and rendered it vocal with his 

 praise. 



Hence it is to the scientific rather than the agricultural reader, 

 that the following pages are addressed. To him they will be suf- 

 ficiently intelligible, without such illustrations as have accompa- 

 nied our previous contributions to this Journal. 



A few words respecting the analogies of the two first species 

 here described, may not be devoid of interest to the general reader. 

 A small insect, destitute of wings, and bearing some resemblance 

 to a flea in its general aspect, is found in the winter season, upon 

 the snow in the northern part of Europe, and also occurs upon the 

 Alps and the Hartz mountains. It has been known for nearly a 

 century, and from its singularly anomalous characters, naturalists 

 have been much perplexed to determine in which particular family 

 of the insect tribes it might with the most propriety be placed. 

 Linnaeus was the first to classify and name it. He regarded it as 

 possessing more analogies with the species associated in his genus 

 Panorpa, than with any other insects, and accordingly arranged 



