May, '04] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. I7I 



Notes and News. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL GLEANINGS FROM ALL QUARTERS 

 OF THE GLOBE. 



The session of the Alstead School of Natural History for this year will 

 open on Wednesday, July 6th. The school is at Alstead Centre, N. H., 

 and the Secretary is Mr. VV. S. W. Field, Milton, Mass. 



Two RARE NEUROPTEROID INSECTS. — Punorpa ru/a, described from 

 Georgia, by G. R. Gray in Griffith's Edition of Curvier's Animal Kingdom 

 (1833), has not been recorded since. Mr. Hine in his revision of the 

 Panorpidae of the United States, did not have it, and it has been the one 

 species lacking in my collection of this genus. In a collection of neuiop- 

 teroid insects from North Carolina sent me by Mr. F. Sherman, 1 find one 

 specimen of this species agreeing exactly with the description even to the 

 four hyaline dots in the apical band. The wings are not as yellow as in 

 P. americana and P. tiuptialis, and I think that the species is more nearly 

 related to P. subftircata. The specimen was taken in Wilmington on 

 Christmas day. 



Mantispa viridis was described from Florida by Walker in his catalogue. 

 Its green color was so abnormal to the genus that some authors doubted 

 its position. Last year Mrs. Slosson sent me a specimen from Biscayne 

 Bay, Fla., and later Prof. C. F. Baker sent a specimen from Grenada, 

 Nicaragua. It has the green color of a Chrysopa, but does not differ in 

 other ways from ordinary Mantispa. — N. Banks. 



Megachile sexdentata Robertson. — Miss Anna Gohrman recently 

 sent me a female Megachile collected July 31, 1903, by Karl Schivack- 

 hem at Raton, N. M. I was surprised to find that it was M. sexdentata 

 Rob., hitherto only known from Illinois. This is an ordinary looking 

 bee, but upon close examination it is seen to have very good specific 

 characters ; from its occurrence in Illinois and New Mexico, it may be 

 expected to occur in many States, and collectors should look out for it. 

 Miss Goiirman also sent a couple of species of Osmia which she collected 

 on July 4, 1903. at loco flowers at Johnson Park, N. M. They prove to be 

 O. nigrifrons Cress, and O. novomexicana Ckl., the latter only the second 

 specimen known. The list of New Mexico bees now numbers 51 r,* not 

 counting a dozen or more undecided species obtained by Mr. Viereck, 

 and a number of unrecorded and probably new Colletes, Hahctus and 

 Andrena, now being studied by Messrs. Swenk, Crawford and Viereck 

 respectively. — T. D. Cockerell. 



Curious habit of two ortalid flies. — It has long been known to 

 all collectors that many Ortalid flies have the habit of moving their wings 

 back and forth, sometimes in unison, sometimes alternately, as though 



* The whole of North America (including Central America and West 

 Indies) has about 1882 recorded species. Probably a hundred more have 

 been distinguished as new by Mr. Viereck and others. 



