Natural History of District of Columbia — McAtee 99 



Four-mile Run Valley, for its whole course, provides in- 

 teresting and profitable collecting grounds, none of which, 

 however, excels the vicinity of Glencarlyn. The bottom land 

 along the creek near the Carlin Springs has a wonderful 

 insect fauna, an indication that the locality will repay in- 

 vestigation in other lines. Some things that have been col- 

 lected onh' at Glencarlyn are the flower fly {8i/rphus fisheri), 

 the lampyrid beetle Neoceletes crateracollis described as a 

 new genus and species, and the scorpion flies Bittacus pili- 

 cornis, B. stigmaterus, and B. punctifer. 



Certain restricted areas near Falls Church seem to share 

 with Glencarlyn some of the most remarkable species, accord- 

 ing to notes kindly furnished by Mr. Nathan Banks. The 

 very rare Syrphid fly, Mi.rogaster breviventris has been taken 

 only at these two points in our area; the same is true of 

 the Leptid fly Rachicerus fulvicollis and the scorpion fly 

 Panorpa virginica. 



Falls Church is not without its own peculiar forms as 

 only here have the following rare Syrphid flies been taken : 

 Calliccra jolinsoni, Xanthogramtna felix, Criorhina verbosa, 

 VoluceUa obesa and Ceria abbreviata ; the remarkable he- 

 merobiid Dilar americana described from a single specimen 

 was rediscovered at Falls Church ; and the only specimens 

 from this region of the pretty little Psyllid Livia marginalis 

 were obtained at Falls Church. Interesting hymenoptera of 

 southern affinities which have been collected here include the 

 mutillids : Ephuta pau.rilla, Mutilla ornatipennis, Pseu- 

 doinethoca geryon, Sphaerophthahna johnsoni, S. rubroscu- 

 tellata, and Photopsis niyrmicoidt's : the Psammocharidae : 

 Priocnemus facetus, and Agcniella accepta and the Sphecid 

 genus Podium. 



Many records and descriptions of new species of insects 

 from Falls Church have been published by Mr. Nathan Banks 

 to whose collecting acumen most of the above records is 

 due.'^ Mr. Banks has left the scene of his fruitful endeavors, 



" Another instance of the importance of tlie collector is afforded by the 

 records (unique in the region) of the following orthoptera at V^inson Sta- 

 tion, Va. : Ilesprrotettix brevipcjinis. Aiiiii-ofjrijIlHs muticus and Occunthus 

 pi7ii. All of these were captured by H. A. Allard who has unusual ability 

 to detect orthoptera b\' their stridulations. 



