Vol. VII. SEPTEMBER 1890. Whole No. 53. 



NEW COCCIDS FROM CALIFORNIA, AND ONE 

 OF THEIR CHALCID PARASITES. 



In the West American Scientist for October, 1889, I re- 

 corded three species of Dactylopius as occurring in this State, and 

 gave descriptions of two of the species which were new to science; 

 since the publication of that paper I have detected two other species 

 of Dactylopius: D. longifilis, and a new species which I found in 

 this (Los Angeles) county. I append herewith a detailed descrip- 

 tion of this new species. 



Dactylopius ephedrae. n. sp. Adult female elongate-ellipsoidal, 

 from two and a half to three times as long as broad, dark olive, 

 almost black, thinly covered with a snow-white mealy powder 

 not entirely concealing the ground color; cottony appendages 

 confined to posterior end of body, the longest less than half the 

 length of the body; legs and antennae yellowish-brown; antennae 

 eight-jointed, joint 8 the longest and of nearly an equal width, 

 the apex bluntly rounded; joints 2 and 3 are sub-equal in length, 

 and each is but slightly shorter than 8; joint 5 is but slightly 

 shorter than 3. but is nearly twice as long as 7, and is 

 lour times as long as broad; joint 6 is next in length, and 

 is but slightly longer than joint 1, which is nearly as broad 

 as long; joints 4 and 7 are sub-equal in length, shorter than any 

 of the others, each about half as long as joint 8; when laid back- 

 ward the antennae reach the posterior side of the front coxae; 

 tarsi scarcely one-third the tibiae in length, claw destitute of a 

 tooth below, digitules not knobbed; length of body 4 m. m. 



In the table of species given in the paper above referred to, this 

 species will fall in with crawii, from which it is easily distinguished 

 by the length of the fifth antennal joint, which is four times as 

 long as broad, instead of being only twice as long. 



Lives on the stems of Ephedra californica, as kindly determined 

 for me by the Editor. 



The adult female secretes a layer of white cottony matter from 

 the lower part of her body, and this is gradually extended upward 

 until finally the entire insect is enclosed in a cottony sac. The 

 young are brought forth alive, and in one of the sacs I counted 

 fifty-three young ones. 



The recently hatched larva is pale yellow in color, elongate- 

 ellipsoidal in outline, being three times as long as broad, the 

 posterior end truncated and bearing three small tubercles, and 

 from each of the outer ones issues a short brush of a white cot- 

 tony matter; a bright red spot on underside of abdomen near 

 the front end; antennae six-jointed, joint 6 the longest, being three 

 times as long as 5; joints 3, 4 and 5 sub-equel in length, each 

 somewhat shorter than 2; upper and lower tarsal digitules very 

 prominent, but not knobbed. 



At the same time and place mentioned above I also found on 

 the leaves of Yucca whipplei a coccid so closely resembling a 

 Dactylopius as to be easily mistaken for one; the antennae of the 



