ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SECTION, 



ACADEMY NATURAL SCIENCES, PHILADELPHIA. 



Vol. l 



MAY, 1890. 



No. 5. 



CONTENTS: 



Cockerel] — What are the uses of bright 



colors in Hymenoptera 65 



Van Winkle — Collecting by lamplight.. 68 



P. P. C. — Elementary Entomology 70 



Calvert — Additional notes on some N. 



American Odonata 73 



Notes and News 74 



Entomological Literature 77 



Doings of Societies 79 



What are the uses of bright colors in Hymenoptera? 



BY T. D. A. COCKERELL. 



Following somewhat on the lines indicated in my letter pub- 

 lished in the February number, p. 27, with the editor's permission, 

 I will put the above question to your readers. Hereafter, I may 

 have something to say on the uses uf color among insects in gen- 

 eral, but the present question seems so suitable for general inves- 

 tigation that I will briefly give some of the pros and cons and 

 leave your readers to work the matter out themselves if they will. 

 In that admirable work, " Darwinism," Dr. A. R. Wallace lays 

 considerable stress on ' ' Warning coloration, ' ' and shows that 

 many animals are conspicuously colored as a sign that they are 

 dangerous or inedible. With insects this is said to be specially 

 noticeable, and thus insectivorous birds and other enemies of the 

 insect tribes get to know and avoid those they cannot eat, to the 

 great advantage of such. 



On p. 233 of " Darwinism" is a reference to the Aculeate Hy- 

 menoptera in this connection, as follows: "We all know how 

 well marked and conspicuous are the colors and forms of the 

 stinging wasps and bees, no one of which in any part of the world 



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