•612 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXVIII. No. 722 



part of the volume is tlie insufficient treat- 

 ment of larval forms; and the author could 

 have found much information on the life 

 history of many species by consulting the 

 pages of the various English entomological 

 journals. 



Eecent numbers of the " Genera Insect- 

 orum " include the Brenthidse (fasc. 65, pp. 

 88, 2 pis., 1908), a family of curious elongate 

 beetles allied to the true weevils. The author 

 is H. von Schonfeldt. He catalogues 111 

 genera and 624 species, almost all of v^hich 

 are tropical. This part appears to be well pre- 

 pared. Professor V. L. Kellogg treats of the 

 Mallophaga (fasc. 66, pp. 87, pis. 3, 1908). 

 Although it treats of the species of the world, 

 it is very much less useful than several of the 

 author's previous publications dealing with 

 American forms of this order. Dr. G. Ender- 

 lein has reviewed the neuropterous family 

 Ooniopterygidse (fasc. 67, pp. 18, pis. 2, 1908). 

 As before, the author has published, a few 

 years ago, a very much more valuable mono- 

 graph of the group. Dr. F. Hendel presents 

 the sub-family Lauxaninse of the dipterous 

 family Muscidse (fasc. 68, pp. 66, pis. 3, 1908). 

 There is a general account of the biology, and 

 the generic characters seem to be thoroughly 

 elucidated. Albert Bovie is the author of 

 three fascicles on parts of the great family 

 Curculionidffi, or weevils. Fasc. 69 — Enti- 

 minse, pp. 7, 1 pi.; fasc. 70, Cryptodermidse, 

 pp. 3, 1 pi.; fasc. 71, pp. 11, 1 pi. — Alcidinse. 

 All of the forms are tropical. A useful 

 feature is the figuring of a number of types. 



An article of great interest to all ento- 

 mologists is that by Mr. W. F. Kirby on the 

 length of life of British entomologists.^ Mr. 

 Kirby has looked up the figures for 309 

 persons and finds that entomologists live 

 much longer than many other classes. He 

 suggests that the list should induce insurance 

 companies to offer reduced rates to entomolo- 

 gists. The greatest number of deaths (15) 

 occurred at the age of 72; the nest (12) at 

 65; the next (10) at 74; 9 at 58, at 60, at 

 62, at 66, at 67 and at 70; 8 at 76 and at 



" " On the Longevity of British Entomologists," 

 Zoologist (4), XII., 216-221, 1908. 



82; 9 lived over 90 years. It is hardly pos- 

 sible that figures for American entomologists 

 would produce as favorable results. 



De. E. Bergroth is the author of a very 

 useful catalogue of the species of the 

 Hemipterous family, Pentatomidae,' that have 

 been described since the catalogue of Lethierry 

 and Severin, which was issued in 1893. 

 These fifteen years have witnessed great ac- 

 tivity in this family; no less than 1,000 

 species have been added, and 140 new genera 

 proposed during this time. Africa has fur- 

 nished a larger proportion of the new forms 

 than any other continent; South America and 

 Australia are well represented, but the Central 

 A m erican region is scarcely mentioned. 



Dr. 0. M. Reuter has given a notice of 

 changes in names and synonymy preliminary 

 to a monograph of the Nabidae.' A number of 

 species considered are from the United States. 

 The Eeduviolus linibatus of Europe he records 

 from Canada and Colorado, and our little 

 Carthasis, previously considered as the Mexi- 

 can species, he describes as C. contrarius. He 

 also describes a new species from California. 

 It is with great regret that we learn that Dr. 

 Renter can not do further original work on 

 insects. 



Australian mosquitoes are treated by 

 Thos. L. Bancroft in a recent number of the 

 Annals of the Queensland Museum (No. 8, 64 

 pages, 1908). He has taken 32 species in 

 Queensland, gives full descriptions of them, 

 and often notes on the habits of the adults. 

 Only four species are common enough to be a 

 nuisance, and two of these were introduced, 

 Gulex fatigans and Stegomyia fasciata. 



Mr. R. Demoll has made an extensive at- 

 tempt to homologize the various parts of the 

 cibarian structure of bees.° He gives a com- 

 parative account of the morphology of the 



^ " Enumeratio Pentatomidarum post Catalogum 

 Bruxellensem deseriptarum," M4m. Sac. Entom. 

 Belg., XV., pp. 130-200, 1908. 



* " Bemerkungen fiber Nabiden, nebst Beschreib- 

 ungen neuer Arten," MSm. Soo. Entom. Belg., 

 XV., pp. 87-130, 1908. 



° " Die Mundteile der solitaren Apiden," Zeitschr, 

 unssenscli. Zool., XCI., 1-51, 1908. 



