180 



THE AMERICAN 



taken in the house, were respectively the common 

 Cheese-fly {PeopTtila casei) and the common Urown 

 Spiee-beetle (Ptinus himneus). 



Food tor Trout— SefJi, G-reeii ifc Gollins, Mumfm-d, 

 N. T. — If you will send us specimens of the worm 

 which forms such desirable food for your young trout, 

 we may be able to suggest some method of propagating 

 it artificially. Without specimens we are entirely at a 

 loss as to the character of the worm in question. 



Irout £neiny — E. Stetii/ii/, Cleveland, Ohio. — See 

 a short article on the subject in this number. 



Best Practical Works on Entoniology^i'r. 



G. S. FranMin, Ch'Ucothe, Ohio. — Xo entomological 

 woric ever writteu, comlenses so much valuable in- 

 formation on the general facts and details of Ihe .Science, 

 asWestwood's Introduction to the Modem Classification 

 oj Insects. (London, 1888-40, two large octavos with 

 133 blocks of outline wood-edts, and colored plate.) 

 It is now out of print, but is occasionally to be had of 

 book-dealers. Kirby and .^pence's Introduction (Lon- 

 don, 1857, one stout duodecimo; no plates, price about 

 i{i2.00) is a pleasantly written work, fraught with much 

 valuable information on the general subject. Harris's 

 Injurious Insects is pi'eBminently the practical woi-k lor 

 the American student. (Orange Judd & Co., >'ew 

 VorU; price ^4.00 uncolored, -^6.00 colored). Next 

 we should advise you to get I'ackard's G((ide to the 

 Study of Itisects, which has often been mentioned in 

 our columns; and last, but not least, the Reports of 

 Kitch, Walsh, Sanborn, and Riley. If you are conver- 

 sant with the French or (rerman languages you may 

 find several desirable books by sending for catalogues 

 to 1!. Westermann & Co. or Balliere Bros of New York, 

 or to any othei- prominent book-dealers. AV'e have in 

 reality no good text-book on Entomology, for Dr. Pack- 

 ard has signally failed to give to his 6-uide that popular 

 character, which would have rendered it so much more 

 valuable as a text-book. It is a valuable scientific 

 work, and we doubt whether it is possible to make a 

 popular text-book that covers as much ground as does 

 the Guide. 



Hair-Smalies— .£". W. M., West Dummerston, ft.— 

 The popular belief that these so-called "Hair-snakes" 

 are ''animated hairs" is of course a fallacy. 2^either 

 are they "geuerated by the common field cricket," 

 though they are olten found protruding from the anus 

 of crickets and grasshoppers, in which they ai'c para- 

 sitic. The species you refer to was probably the ^^ary- 

 ing Hair-snake (Gordius -eurius, Leidy). Two species 

 ((?. rarius. Leidy, and G. aquaticus, Gmel.) are com- 

 monly found throughout tne country, but the former is 

 most abundant. Both species occur most abundantly 

 on the banks of fresh water ponds and sluggish rivers. 

 They are exceedingly prolific, and Prof. Leidy says 

 that a $ of ^. mrius laid 6,624,800 eggs. It is generally 

 believed that these eggs, which are extremely minute, 

 are drank in by insects and other animals, in whose 

 bodies they hatch and develop, but from which abiding 

 place they must finally depart in order to meet and 

 copulate with some mate. But from the toct that these 

 parasitic worms are found in many insects which .-ire 

 never known to frequent' water, such as many of the 

 Straight- winged Flies (Orthoptera) , Ground -beetles 

 (Carah'da), and even Spiders, this theory hardly sat- 

 isfies, and we are consequently .glad to inform yon that 



we expect shortly to publish an article on these curious 

 parasites, from Dr. Leidy himself. These hair-snakes 

 belong to the Intestinal Worms {Entozoa), which are 

 Ringed Animals (Articulata) , and have nothing 

 whatever to do with the true snakes, which are Back- 

 bone Animals (Vertebrata). 



Egg-sach. ot some unknown Spider— .i. En- 



[FiR. ion.] gelmann, Shiloh, Ills. — The curious egg- 

 sacks which Mr. K. W. AVest found 

 hanging from the twigs of an apple 

 tree, and which we illustrate here- 

 with (Fig. lOi)), are those of a spider 

 belonging, in all probability, to the 

 genus Epeira, and perhaps those of the 

 common Epeira culgaris. But we can 

 not tell until we hatch the eggs with 

 which the sack is now crowded. You 

 will doubtless find full grown speci- 

 mens of the spider on this same ti'ec 

 joior— Dark Rray. next May or June. 

 Do Worker Bees Stin§r tlie Drones to Deatli ! 

 —M. W. v., MiddUtoim, Ct.—lt is generally beheved 

 by apiarians that the workers do sting to death the 

 drones when the mission of the latter is ended. Many 

 careful observers assert that they have witnessed the 

 operation , and as it is also believed by many eminent 

 naturalists, we see no reason to doubt the say-so of 

 Milne Edwards in his Manual of Zooloijy, though wc 

 can say nothing from our own observation. 



iaed Spider— if. H. Warder, Spencer, Ind.—'She MeA 

 Spider (Tromlidium [Tetranychvs] telariwm, llerm.) is an 

 importation from Europe, and is a very minute species, 

 pale yellow when young, becoming darker when older. 

 It is best known in the green-house, but likewise does 

 much damage in dry seasons on trees (especially ever- 

 greens) in the open aii-. It thrives best in a dry atmos- 

 phere, and we have found no difliculty in getting rid 

 of it by a free use of its natural enemy— water. If a 

 little soap is mixed with the water it will be more effec- 

 tual, and we also recommend the insecticide used by 

 M. Cloez, and described on page 86 of this volume. 



PreserviBig Insects— /os . UcGuade, FoH Ripley, 

 1/mft.— We commence in this number a series of arti- 

 cles which will give you the desired information. 

 Meanwhile, if you need full directions immediately, 

 we will send you a small pamphlet containing an article 

 on the subject, upon receipt o( 30 cents. 



E. E. Whitney, Lamar, i/o.— Your query is answered 

 in the preceding paragraph. 



Insect Named— i/". Barrett, WauTc.esiia, IKe's.— The 

 flies you send are the Psocus tenosus of Burmeister, , 

 belonging to the Order of Net-winged Flies (Neurop- V 

 TBEA). They feed on the lichens found on the bark 

 of apple trees, as we have ocularly demonstr.ated, and 

 are therefore harmless. Certain minute species of the 

 same genus, however, and which are known as book- 

 lice, are very destructive to books and to insect collec- 

 tions. 

 v/ To Destroy Plant-lice— -S. F. Lazeav, Louisiana, 

 Mo.— It you cannot so cover your house-plants as to 

 give them a good smoking with tobacco, wash them 

 well with strong soap-suds, or quassia- water, or sprinkle 

 them with the fine tobacco- dust which can be obtained 

 from tobacco factories. 



