362 



California Fruit Grower of December 10, 1892. the statement that 22 

 carloads of Mexican oranges infested by Mi/tilaspis gloverii had been 

 imported into California at Los Angeles, rather emphasizing the indig- 

 nation of the editor of the journal over the supposed negligence of the 

 Cjuarantine officers in allowing this importation. AYe recently received 

 a letter from Mr. John Scott. Horticultural Commissioner of Los An- 

 geles county, who states that the item upon which we based oiu^ note 

 was incorrect. Mr. Scott states that not a single carload of Mexican 

 oranges was brought to Los Angeles last year. A few boxes were sent 

 from San Francisco, which were at once returned and not a single 

 orange of this shij)ment was sold in the city of Los Angeles. We are 

 very glad to make this correction, but the onus of the misstatement^ 

 if misstatement there was. lies upon the California Fruit Grou-er. 



AN EXE3IY OF THE OYSTEE-SHELL BAEK-LOrSE OF THE APPLE. 



We have received from M. J. Lignieres. assistant professor at the 

 veterinary school at Alfort. France, a pamphlet extracted fi^om the 

 Memoires de la Societe Zoologique de France. 1893. in which he records 

 the first discovery in Europe of Tyroglyplius rnaJus (Shimer) in the 

 scales of the Oyster-shell Bark-louse. MytiJaspis pomorum. In this 

 country this species has usually been considered an enemy of the Oys- 

 ter-shell Bark-louse, but the author's exx)eriments. which have evi- 

 dently been very carefully conducted, seem to prove that it is not. He 

 finds that it does not feed upon the eggs of Mytilaspis, as supposed, 

 nor does it suck the juices of the tree, but lives only upon the cast skins 

 and Qgg shells of the bark-louse, and upon these only when they are 

 somewhat moist. A full redescription of the species is given, with 

 good outline figures and a more detailed anatomical account of certain 

 parts of the body. 



La the second part of the pamphlet, however, M. Lignieres describes 

 a new Acarian which is. he states, a true enemy oi Mytilaspis pornorurn. 

 From its striking resemblance to the Sarcoptidte he proposes for it the 

 generic name Semisarcoptes, with the specific name coccisugus. The 

 species is described and figured, and a statement given of the difier- 

 ences in mode of Life between it and Tyi^oglyi:)hus. It attacks the eggs 

 of Mytilaspis and is the most formidable enemy of the latter. 



A>' AETICLE OX SCALE-IXSECTS. 



Mr. T. D. A. Cockcrell, in the Agricultural Record, the official joiu'- 

 nal of the Central Agricultiu^al Board of Trinidad for December, 1892. 

 publishes a general article on the subject of Coccidae, or scale-insects, 

 which possesses more than x^assing interest. He defines the group, 

 discusses their destructiveness. the methods of destroying them, the 

 natural enemies, and how they are spread "oy human means. He con- 

 siders that while those who have attributed the death of the Cocoa Palm 

 to scale-insects have probably overestimated the influence of the 



