354 ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. [Oct., ’08 
fected rat (Mus decumanus) taken from old Chinatown, nine- 
ty fleas were obtained, eighty-five per cent. of which were 
C. fasciatus. In Oakland, Alameda and Berkeley the rat flea 
C. fasciatus predominates to a marked degree. Ninety-five per 
cent. are the common species, the remainder being for the 
greater part Ctenocephalus canis, the cat and dog flea. 
Ctenopsylla musculi Duges is suspected of being a recent 
immigrant, This species was first collected in North America 
by Dr. Duges from a seaport town in Mexico. It was origin- 
ally described as a new species with the name Ctenopsylla mexi- 
cana. It is, however, synonymous with Ctenopsylla musculi. 
This species was found principally on ships from the orient 
and on one ship which came from Mexican ports Ctenopsylla 
musculi was found. It is found along the harbor front and 
one-half mile inland. Rats from the orient are no doubt re- 
sponsible for its introduction into San Francisco. 
Pulex cheopis Roth. originally was collected by Rothschild in 
Egypt, but is universal in its distribution. It has been recorded 
from southern Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, but never 
from North America. This is the flea which is charged with 
eighty to ninety per cent. of insect transmission of plague in 
India. It was collected from ships in the harbor which had 
visited ports in the Philippines, Japan and Hawaii. It was col- 
lected in San Francisco two blocks from the water front on 
Mus decumanus, the brown rat. On shipboard its host was 
found to be the black rat, Mus rattus. On land it was found in 
company with Ctenopsyllus musculi on rats from a water front 
grain warehouse. Nine species of this flea, Pulex cheopis, were 
received from Assistant Surgeon Ebert, who removed them 
from his person. Dr. Ebert is an officer in the United States — 
Public Health and Marine Hospital Service and employed in 
plague quarantine on ships from the orient and South America. 
It was while on duty sulfuring the holds of the S. S. “Mon- 
golia’” that he first became aware of the attacks of the parasites. 
Fortunately for the victim, the “Mongolia” enjoyed a. clean 
bill of health. The significance of the oriental flea introduction 
may be appreciated by the fact that eight or ten cases of the 
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