254 Forty-fourth Report on the State Museum 



sequently came in possession of a female which had been captured 

 near New Holland, about ten miles east of Lancaster. The largest 

 specimen that I have ever seen from this state, was taken within our 

 city limits in 1870. This one, a male, I kept alive in a wire cage for 

 several days, but he eventually forced some of the wires apart and 

 made his escape and was never recovered. 



In 1873, in a wood about three miles northwest of Lancaster city, 

 just where one tree had fallen across another — both much decayed — 

 under the bark in the rotten wood, I secured three very large speci- 

 mens of larvae, which I believed to belong to Dynastes. Not being 

 otherwise prepared, I put them in the outside pocket of a skeleton 

 summer coat, filling it with the debris. When I reached home, 

 two hours or more later, I found a hole cut through 

 the pocket and the larvae had escaped, nor were they 

 to be found in the vehicle. As the skirt of the coat 

 hung outside of the seat, they had doubtless fallen to the ground 

 somewhere on the road. I feel pretty sure that they were not the 

 larvse of Gopris, Osmoderma, or any species of Lachnosterna, nor yet 

 Fassalus. They were the largest Lamellicorn larvae I had ever seen; 

 too large, also, I think, for Lucdnus. 



Its Occurrence in New York. 



In my previous notice of this insect, its occurrence in this state was 

 inferred from Dr. Fitch having given it place in his Third Report on 

 the Insects of New York, among the insects of the cherry tree. But 

 upon referring to what he had written of it, this appears: "I have 

 specimens of it from Pennsylvania, but know not of its ever having 

 been found in New York." 



For my first knowledge of its occurrence within our state, I am 

 indebted to Mr. Berthold Fernow, who has informed me, that one 

 evening in the latter part of July, 1889 — the precise date was not 

 noted — as he was sitting by an open window, at Kingston, a large 

 female Dynastes flew in and alighted on his table. It was captured, 

 and a few minutes thereafter, a male entered through the window, 

 evidently drawn by the presence of the female, of which it may have 

 been in pursuit. 



There is no record of Dynastes Tityus being attracted to light and 

 entering houses, but Mr. Lugger has mentioned as a singular habit 

 of the beetle, that " the males had a fashion of flying into the chim- 

 neys of cabins. He had found remains of as many as fifty in a single 

 deserted cabin." Where this occurred, was not stated. 



Query : What can be the attraction of chimneys to the Dynastes? 

 Possibly it is the same with that which sometimes, according to 

 *' Walsh and Eiley," leads the larvos of the Hellgrammite fly, Gorydalis 

 cornutus (the Dobson, of flsherman) to leave the water and the bank of 

 the stream and wander some distance away that it may "crawl up the 



