74 GYPSY AND BROWN-TAIL MOTHS. [Jan. 



lished themselves, and notably the predatory beetle {Calosoma syco- 

 phanta) has been found in numbers. At least seven species have been 

 found under conditions which indicate their establishment. 



There have been imported, in all, 23 species of Hymenopterous para- 

 sites, of which 16 are European, 6 are from Japan and 1 at least is 

 common to both regions. Eleven of these have been reared from the 

 gypsy moth, 6 from the brown-tail moth and 6 from both insects. 



A number of species of secondary parasites have been reared and 

 have been killed. 



Of Dipterous parasites, at least 29 distinct species have been im- 

 ported, of which nearly all are parasitic upon both gypsy moth and 

 brown-tail moth. 



Of Coleoptera, 5 species have been imported, all of which will feed 

 upon both gypsy moth and brown-tail moth. 



This makes a total of 57 beneficial species, enemies of gypsy moth 

 or brown-tail moth, or both, that have been brought over in the course 

 of this work. 



All visitors to the laboratory at Melrose Highlands have been im- 

 pressed, not only with the large size of the undertaking, but with the 

 extreme care with which all operations have been conducted. Scientific 

 men have been practically interested in many of the extremely novel 

 discoveries that have been made in the life histories of the parasites 

 and in practical methods of breeding. The whole subject of the proper 

 operations in order to secure the best results proves to be more com- 

 plicated than any one had supposed before this large-scale experiment 

 was undertaken, and discoveries are being made almost daily of abso- 

 lute novelty in the field of biological science. 



Co-operative assistance in the work of carrying on some biological 

 investigations suggested by the practical work, and for which the ma- 

 terial is present in great quantity at the laboratory, has been gained 

 through the kindness of Profs. E. L. Mark and W. M. Wheeler of Har- 

 vard University. It has been considered most desirable that the workers 

 at the laboratory, whether they are paid by the State or by the United 

 States Department of Agriculture, should devote their time exclusively 

 to the immediate practical end of the investigation ; but what appears to 

 be the purely scientific aspect must not be neglected, since its study 

 will in the future, as it has constantly done in the past, indicate points 

 of practical value to the progress of the rapid establishment of the 

 parasitic species. The writer considers himself and the State of Massa- 

 chusetts particularly fortunate in securing the co-operation of the men 

 just mentioned. 



On the date of the present writing the cheering news comes from Mr. 

 Eiske, in charge of the parasite laboratory at Melrose Highlands, that 

 the European Pteromalus has emerged in gratifying numbers from 

 brown-tail moth nests collected in the vicinity of one of the last spring 

 colonies. The outlook is now more favorable than at any period during 



