340 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 
were found on the rocks on the bank a few inches above the sur- 
face of the water; the newly hatched larvae were just at the 
surface, and from this point there was a regular gradation in 
the size of the larvae down into the stream. The eggs were 
found abundantly on June 1. In the proceedings of the Boston 
Society of Natural History for January 1880, Dr Hagen de- 
scribed Simulium pictipes, a remarkably large species, 
the larvae and pupae of which were found in the rapids of the 
Ausable river, Adirondack mountains; and in mentioning the 
fact in the American Naturalist for April 1881, we stated that 
the larvae and pupae of presumably the same species were found 
by Messrs Hubbard and Schwarz in the rapids of Michipicoten 
river, north shore of Lake Superior. The larvae were there 
found to have the peculiarity of floating in long strings, at- 
tached to each other by silken threads, while the pupae, found in 
the quieter pools close by, resembled coral. We also hazarded 
the statement that these were the immature forms of the cele- 
brated black fly of the Lake Superior region. In reference to 
the probable identity of the Adirondack with the Lake Superior 
species, Dr Hagen, in comparison of the specimens of these lar- 
vae and pupae, received from Mr Hubbard, with similar stages 
of S. pictipes, remarked [Canadian Entomologist, 13:150-51] 
that, while the larvae and pupae did not differ materially, ima- 
gos from the Lake Superior, not raised from the pupae collected 
by Mr Hubbard, differed from S. pictipes in the much smal- 
ler size and in the color of the legs. 
The report of the United States entomologist for 1886 con- 
tains detailed account of the life history of two species, the 
southern buffalo gnat and the turkey gnat. This paper is the 
most complete record we have of any species of Simulium in this 
country. 
Economic importance. In the northern states the attacks of 
the black flies on domestic animals, though causing considerable 
loss to the stock raiser, is not of such a nature that accurate 
statistics can be obtained. Otto Lugger, late state entomolo- 
gist of Minnesota, in his report of 1896, p. 201 and 203, says: 
The losses caused by this insect are, in some years, very great, 
and the state of Tennessee alone lost in 1874 as much as 
$500,000. This southern buffalo gnat occurs as far north as 
Minneapolis, at least a few specimens have been found there. 
Here in Minnesota we have a number of other species of this 
family of flies, which cause more or less injury to our stock. 
