144 
ORNITHOLOGIST 
[Vol. 11--No. 9 




out orders whenever they were met by the enemy. 
It was caused by a small party of ants ona 
shrub where they were “milking” some of their 
cow aphids, and before the real battle I saw an 
invading ant expelled twice from the shrub. An- 
gered by injuries received, it hobbled home to an 
ant hill not far away, and soon hosts of its fel- 
lows rushed forth and fell upon their foes and 
for a time the fighting was fierce. 
Heads, legs and antennze began to be strewn 
over the ground, and it is hard to say which 
would have won had not a severe hail storm dis- 
turbed them and put out of my head all thoughts 
of collecting for the day. 
A subsequent visit to the field did not add any 
light on the battle, for all traces of the fight were 
gone, and the two tribes of ants were calmly pur- 
suing their usual work. 
[While collecting in Newton, Mass., in 1884, I 
saw a battlefield strewn with dead and dying 
ants, many of them badly mutilated, but was too 
late to see the engagement. The blacks seemed 
to have had decidedly the worst of the fight. 
Legs, antenne and heads were scattered around 
promiscuously, and occasionally a black and a 
brown would be fastened together as they had 
died fighting. I have never had the pleasure of 
witnessing an actual battle—EDb. } 

Salve Bugs. 
I have just received through the kindness of 
Capt. E. Cantillion, of Gloucester, some speci- 
mens of what the sailors call “salve bugs,” owing 
to the fact that almost the entire substance inside 
of the skin or shell, is like wax or salve, and can 
be worked or molded in the same manner. When 
dry this substance is very hard, semi-transparent, 
and resembles common red resin. 
The “bug” itself is shaped very much like the 
ordinary sour bug, usually found under sticks 
and stones, with the exception that it has a small 
tail or fin composed of overlapping pieces for 
swimming. There are twelve segments or rings 
between the head and tail, all overlapping each 
other posteriorly, each of the first seven being 
about three times as wide as any of the others, 
and each supporting a pair of legs, armed with a 
long, sharp terminal claw, the three anterior pairs 
much more hooked than the others. The mouth 
is formed for sucking and projects slightly down- 
ward from the center of the underside of the 
head. The whole upper surface is hard, smooth 
and polished and the colors range from white 
to dark brown. 
They are parasites of the codfish and are usual- 
“years. 

ly found attached to the fins or tail. Their flat 
under surface, sharp claws and the position of the 
mouth all go to show how well they are adapted to 
retain their position and secure food during the 
rapid motion of the fish. The specimens referred 
to were taken over three hundred and fifty feet 
below the surface of the ocean, on the Georges 
banks. Length, 1 to 14 inches.—J. A. Wright. 
abbr be ates A 
IS Ee be ATA. 
Page 93, second column, fifth line, for forward read 
Sormed, 
Same column, seventh line from bottom, for Amyutor 
read Amyntor. 
Page 126, second column, twenty-sixth line from top, for 
Cicindelide read Cicindela. 
Same column, twelfth line from bottom, for punctutata 
read punctulata. 
Same column, eleventh line from bottom, for darsalis 
read dorsalis. 
CORRESPONDENCE. 


‘‘Botany of Birds’ Nests.”’ 
EDITOR ORNITHOLOGIST AND ObLOGIST—SrR: Last night 
two little boys who have resided in South America, and are 
much interested in birds, brought a bird’s nest to me to 
identify. I told them it was a Rose-breasted Grosbeak. 
They then gave me the particulars about the three young, 
which they saw fly, and the old birds, which made it posi- 
tive. These birds, as you are aware, are not very common. 
The nest was on grounds well protected. 
It was the nest of this bird that set me to thinking what 
an interesting matter it would be to study the botany of 
birds’ nests. Those found around Rockville, Conn., were 
all built alike, of one material, which puzzled me for several 
At last the material proved to be the slender 
branches of the hemlock, stripped of its leaves. The young 
left this nest in July. You should make a brief note of this 
find so far east.—J. M. Wade. 
pote ee 
It will soon be time to collect birds for 
specimens, and taxidermists, both profes- 
sional and amateur, are getting ready. 
There are two methods for disinfecting 
the skins before stuffing them, namely, 
arsenical soap, and what is known as “ Der- 
mal preservative.” Let all be advised in 
time that arsenical soap is the only posi- 
tively sure method yet discovered. The 
“Dermal” is a delusion and a snare; “ we 
have used both, and in no case has the 
latter proved efficacious,” says a correspon- 
dent.— Boston Saturday Evening Gazette. 
se — 
REcCEIVED.—C. S. Brimley, Thos. Miller, G. IF’. Bren- 
ninger, Walter Hoxie, Thos. H, Jackson, J. A. Singley, Harry 
R. Taylor, They will please accept our thanks. 

