446 The American Naturalist. [May, 



cidids ; How the Chalcidid larva lives ; How fast does it develop ; 

 How the larva transforms; How many develop in a single host; 

 Proportions of sexes in issuing ; Phytophagic habit ; Parthenogen- 

 esis ; How large is the family. 



Mr. How;:; ruing the number of species in the 



family will be a surprise to many entomologists. They indicate how 

 much yet remains to be done in the field of descriptive entomology 

 in America. The author says : " In this country (America, North of 

 Mexico) the latest list (Cresson's, 1887) records only 41 3 species, while 

 I have recorded (Bull. V, Div. Ent.), in addition to those, 128 species 

 from Mexico and the West Indies. For the purpose of this papev I 

 have gone carefully over the collection of the National Museum and 

 c.-timate the number of species of this family contained in that one 

 collection at something over I'OOI), nearly all from America, North ot 

 Mexico. According to my best judgment this represents a very small 

 proportion of the species yet to be found within these geographical 

 limits, as almost no effort at gent -nil collecting has been made, and 

 these 2000 species are very largely the result of. accidental breeding. 

 When a single sweep of the beating net on the Department grounds at 

 Washington will result in the capture of five new species what will he 

 the result -when the entire country shall have been collected over by 

 sifting, beating and the many other devices known to experienced col- 

 lectors? I fully believe that to estimate the number of species of this 

 one family in North America as exceeding the number of described 

 North American species of the entire order Hymenoptera would be far 

 below the truth. When we consider, as shown in a previous section, that 

 these small hymouopten us parasites live upon or within some one or 

 several of the stages of perhaps the majority of insects of all orders. 

 then we no longer wonder at their numbers or at the great variety 

 exhibited among them." 



The Gypsy Moth.— A recent issue of the Salem (Mass.) G-isctfe 

 contains the following account of the Gypsy Moth developments in 

 that region : 



Amidst all the hue and cry against the importation of foreign con- 

 tract laborers, foreign paupers and foreign fevers it is to be considered 

 to what an extent this country has been victimized through the impor- 

 tation of foreign weeds, birds and bugs. A field of daisies may be ao 

 attractive sight from an aesthetic standpoint, but to the farmer it is 

 simply a lot of undesirable white weed, spoiling a crop of good Bngti* 

 hay. The little plant which rightfully bears the, title of the royal 



