MOSQUITOES IN GENERAL 15 



the female affects one aiiteuiia more than the other, the 

 male turns his head until both antennae are affected, and 

 is thus able to determine the exact direction of the female, 

 to which he then Hies. Mayer found that the male can 

 thus i^uide himself to within five degrees of the exact 

 direction of the female. His conclusion is that " these 

 insects must have the faculty of the perception of the 

 direction of sound more highly developed than in any 

 other class of animals." Mayer carried his experiments 

 farther, and made large wooden models of the hairs, with 

 which he conducted interesting experiments. His paper 

 is published in full in the Araerican Journal of Science 

 and Arts, vol. viii. (1874), pages 89-103, and should Ije 

 read by those interested in this subject. 



Kecently, Mr. A. DeP. Weaver, an electrical engineer 

 of Jackson, Miss., wrote me that while engaged in some 

 experiments in harmonic telegraphy, in wdiich a musical 

 note of a certain pitch was produced by electrical means, 

 he was amazed to find that when the note was raised to a 

 certain number of vibrations per second, all mosquitoes, 

 not only in the room where the a})paratus was, but also 

 fr(Hn other i:)arts and from outside, would congregate 

 near the apparatus and would be precipitated from the 

 air with astonishing force, striking their bodies against 

 the apparatus. He states that he therefore covered a 

 large surface with sticky fly-paper and after sounding the 

 note for a few seconds captured all the mosquitoes in the 

 vicinity. He then devised an apparatus t(^ electrocute 

 th(3m. A section of wire window screen witli the paint 

 reuKjved was mounted (jn a board and small [>ins were 



