THE AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



87 



ENTOMOLOGICAL JOTTINGS. 



[Wc propose to publish from time to time, iiuUcr 

 the aljove heading, such extracts from the letters of our 

 correspondents as contain entomoloijical facts wortliy 

 to l)e recorded, on account cither of their scientitic or 

 of their practical importance. We hope our readers 

 will contribute each their several mites towards the gen- 

 eral fund, and in case they are not perfectly certain of 

 the names of the insects, the peculiarities of whicli are 

 to be mentioned, will send specimens along in order 

 that each species may be duly identified.] 



The Handsome Digger Wasp as a Horse 

 Guard — Clarksville, Texas, Aug. 10, 18G9. — I 

 send you a large solitary wasp which is called 



[Fig:, .'-.7.] 



Colors— Uhick and Crraiii-clor. 



here the " Horse-Guard." They are true to 

 name, for they play around horses and cattle, 

 and catch the horse-flies, which they take to 

 their burrows to feed their young. I dug out 

 a nest this afternoon which had five horse-llics 

 and but one larva. A. 11. K. Bi;yakt. 



[Tlie specimen sent was the Handsome Dig- 

 ger "Wasp (Stizus speciosus, Drury), a figure of '' 

 which we reproduce above (Fig. 57). It is the 

 habit of Digger wasps to deposit but one egg 

 in each of their burrows. Tlie species in ques- 

 tion has long been known to provision its 

 nest with Grasshoppers, but we believe that 

 no species of the genus (Stisits) has hith- 

 erto been recorded as using Horse-flies for 

 this purpose. There is, however, a more com- 

 mon genus of Digger "VVasps (Bembex) which 

 does provision its nest exclusively with Afheri- 

 cerous Diptcra (Horse-flies, etc.), and as sotne 

 species of Bembex are marked much like theV 

 Ilaudsome Digger "Wasp, we have our suspi- 

 cions that Mr. Bryant has confounded these 

 insects, and has sent us one that was not really 

 doing this Horse-guard business. At all events, 

 we shall be glad to hear from Mr. B. again on 

 this subject, because in a scientific sense it is one 

 of great importance. "We have strong faith in 

 what has been called the Uniti/ of Habits in 

 insects, and the only two N. A. species of Sti- 

 zus, the habits of which are known {grandis and 

 speciio.s«s/ provision their nests with Harvest- 

 flies {Cicada) and Grasshoppers.] 



A ''Locust Year'' for Tennessee — Snran- 

 nah, Tenn., Dec. 2, ISCi). — "NYhile digging in an 

 Indian inound to-day I unearthed three Gicada 

 pupa;. The)' were about nine inches below the 

 surface, and each had for himself a neat little 

 room about the size of a quail's egg. All were 

 as perfect and as lively as if just ready to shed 

 their coats. J. P. S. 



[Unless the pupaj seen by our correspondent 

 were those of some species which makes an an- 

 nual appearance, we strongly suspect them to 

 belong to that brood of the lo-year Cicada which 

 is to appear in 1872. This is the Brood "V. of 

 the Am. Entomologist (see Vol. I, p. 68), but is 

 equivalent to Brood VII. of our Missouri Ento- 

 mological lleport, where, on the authority of the 

 late Dr. Smith, of Baltimore, Md., it is recorded 

 in Dc Kalb, Gwinnett and Newton comities, 

 Georgia, in 184G and '59 ; in the northern part 

 of Tennessee also, in 1846 and "59 ; in the whole 

 eastern portion of Mississippi from tlic ridge 

 which is forty-five miles from the river, on the 

 west, to the eastern boundary, iu 1820, '33, "46, 

 and "59; in Carrol Parish, Louisiana, iii 1859; 

 and in Philips county, Kansas, in the same year. 

 The growth of this insect is so very gradual that 

 the pup;e appear full grown for several years 

 before they really issue from the ground. AVe 

 dug up a number in the fall of 1868, in Union 

 county, Ills., which evidently belonged to this 

 same brood, and will not consequently issue 

 from the ground till 1872 ; and yet they could 

 then scarcely be distinguished from stich as had 

 been dug np in other parts of the State in the 

 spring of the same year, and which weie just 

 ready to transform. — Ed.] 



Parasitic Mites on the Hoi'SE-it.Y — Vine- 

 land, IST. J., Oct. 22d, 1869.— I found a Mouse-fly 

 the other day almost covered with minute red 

 parasites. They were under the wings, on the 

 abdomen and legs, and even in the cavity of the 

 mouth. I put the fly in a box, where it soon 

 died. I then introduced another fly, and after 

 a few hours, on opening the box, I found that 

 many of them had fastened themselves to this 

 second fly. I could see them distinctly with the 

 naked eye crawling about the box, as well as 

 on the fly. Mtts. Mary Treat. 



The To.mato-worm — Vineland, N. J., Sept. 

 2(',th, 1869.— The other day I found a full-grown 

 tomato-worm (Sphinx 6-maculata) feeding upon 

 Ground Cherry {Physalis viscosa); and last 

 summer I found one feeding upon Matrimony- 

 vine (Lgcium barbarum) . This makes at least 

 five different plants belonging to this Family 

 that I have found this larva feeding upon. 



Mrs. Mary Treat. 



