93 



Elasmus websteri Ashmead MS. now sp. I am not certain whether this came from 

 the stems of Elymus canadensis or from wheat stubble, but in either case it is from 

 Princeton, Ind. 



Xanthoencyrtus nigroclauus Ashmead MS. now gen. et sp. Princeton, Ind. 



Elipsocus sp.? One of the Psocids. 



Fordan. sp.? A root louse closely allied to if not identical with one found also 

 about Urbana, 111., on the roots of cheat, Bromus striatus, in July. 



*Brachytarsus aUematus Say. One individual from stems collected near Champaign, 

 111. 



*Cathartus advena Waltl. This was reared in considerable numbers from stems of 

 both E. canadensis and E. virgin lens collected in various localities in Illinois and 

 Indiana. Just what the larwe feed upon is not clear, as the stems in all cases were 

 stripped of leaves and the heads were invariably removed, leaving only the bare 

 stems with, in some cases, the enveloping sheath. 



Besides the foregoing a Coccid occurred quite commonly under the 

 enveloping sheaths and the larva? of some species of Lepidoptera were 

 frequently to be found. I failed to rear the moth from these larva?, 

 but they feed within the stems, not infrequently gnawing out the cen- 

 ter of the joints so that the stem is hollow from bottom to top. 



It must be stated in connection with this list of the insect inhabitants 

 of this species of grass that I have made no attempt at an exhaustive 

 study. The prime object in collecting the stems from several and 

 widely separated localities was for the purpose of studying the species 

 of Isosoma infesting them. Elymus appears to be unusually attractive 

 to these insects, but I have invariably found the larvae vastly more 

 numerous in E. canadensis than in E. virgtnicus. This might afford 

 the basis for a discussion of the question as to which of the two species 

 of grass was the older; but, in the language of Kipling, * 4 that is 

 another story." I have little doubt that a further and more extended 

 research will develop a still greater number of insect inhabitants of 

 this grass, and the fact that the new genera and species brought to 

 light may be considered in this case as a sort of by-product from the 

 study of the Isosomas, ought at least give zest to a further study in 

 other localities. 



SOME INSECT NOTES OF THE YEAR. 



By F. M. Webster, Urbana, III. 



In going about in several States of the Middle West, one of the 

 most striking features of insect attack observed out of the ordinary 

 was the great number of leaves of plants and grasses that had been 

 attacked by leaf miners, seemingly for the most part belonging to sev- 

 eral species of Diptera, though, as 1 failed to rear anything hut great 

 numbers of parasites from affected leaves, it is of course impossible to 

 give definite information relative to the host insect. Verbena plants 

 brought from Ohio in June and planted in the open in Urbana were 



