BULLETIN 39, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. [8] 



Pill boxes are sometimes used with, fair success, but they are too 

 small to coutain a good quantity of material. In working over a col- 

 lection in pill boxes, one is almost sure to find some interesting forms 

 too scantily represented for description. 



II. Drawings. — As stated above, soft coccids can frequently be 

 described from dried material ; but a sketch of their appearance when 

 alive, with a note on their color, very much facilitates correct identiti- 

 catiou. For example, with the mealy bugs, we want to know whether 

 they have cottony filaments along the sides, or only at the tail, or any 

 at all, and so forth. A rough sketch may be made in a few moments 

 on the box or envelope at the time of collecting. The male coccids 

 should always be described when alive, if possible. 



III. Collecting food plants. — Collectors are begged not to guess at 

 the names of the plants. If they know, it is very necessary to record 

 the information, but in more than one case even the fragments of the 

 plants sent have belied the identification. It is excellent, when possible, 

 to put in a little bit of the flower, so that the name of the plant may 

 be ascertained or confirmed. Lately I received a new neotropical Pal- 

 vinaria on a plant unknown, but a few withered flowers were in the 

 package, and from them it was possible to learn at least the probable 

 order of the plant. 



IV. Treatment in the cabinet. — The plan of pinning coccid specimens 

 seems to me very unsatisfactory. Material can not conveniently be 

 pinned in quantity, or if it is, it is troublesome to label each specimen. 

 Furthermore, the scales will frequently come ofl' the leaves and twigs, 

 especially when such specimens are sent in the mails. The envelopes 

 or card boxes are unsuitable for permanent preservation of coccids for 

 several reasons, the principal of which is that they do not exclude 

 Anthrenus. I have now in use nothing but glass tubes with rubber 

 stoppers, and find them entirely satisfactory. Various sizes of tubes 

 maybe used, according to the specimens. The data are written on 

 slips of paper placed inside the tubes. Parasites may be put in small 

 X^ieces of glass tubing, stopped with cotton at each end, and these 

 placed inside the tubes containing the coccids whence the parasites 

 were bred. One caution is necessary : never put material in a stop- 

 pered tube until it is perfectly dry. The material, if not dry, may be 

 placed in the tube, but a wad of cotton temporarily used in place of 

 the rubber stopper. 



V. Microscopical preparations. — Coccidte make good transparent 

 objects in Canada balsam, but they have to be clarified first by boiling 

 in a strong solution of caustic soda or caustic potash. They may be 

 boiled in a test tube or small dish over a lamp, washed in water, and 

 then examined in the ordinary way. Sometimes it is necessary to 

 Ijuucture the skin in order to allow the reagent free access to the body 

 cavity. I have quite successfully treated Diaspinfe by placing the 

 females in a little caustic potash solution on a slide, covering them 

 with a cover glass, and then boiling for a few moments over a gas jet. 



