THE 



AMERICAN NATURALIST 



Vol. XLII 



September, 1908 



No. 501 



SOME RESULTS OF THE FLORISSANT EXPEDI- 

 TION OF 1908 



The fourth University of Colorado Expedition to 

 Florissant, in the summer of 1908, was only about three 

 weeks in the field. The earlier expeditions, in 1905, 1906 

 and 1907, obtained a very large amount of material from 

 the Miocene shales of this locality, and much of this still 

 awaits study and description. A general account of 

 Florissant appeared in the Popular Science Monthly for 

 August, 1908, while briefer statements, more or less in- 

 accurate, may be found in the current geological text- 

 books ;* so it will not be necessary at this time to give a 

 description of the place or the fossil-beds. It is pro- 



*In Dr. W. B. Scott's valuable "Introduction to Geology," 2d ed. 

 (1907), p. 756, it is stated that there were "very few palms." As a 

 matter of fact, there is no reason for believing that there were any. The 

 Rhus sp. on p. 755 is Weinmannia phenacophylla Ckll. Jn Vol. Ill (1906) 

 of "Geology," by Professors Chamberlin and Salisbury, Florissant is re- 

 ferred to the Oligoeene, following Scudder and others. It is stated that 

 "palms are barely represented," and yews are said to occur. We do not 



insects wer/desn-iU-d by S.-uddor; the actual number ^s 569. In Hand- 

 lirsch's admirable uv,rk " I >!■• l-'ossilen Insekten," which would naturally 



tions of Tertiary insects are cited, which certainly have no value. Thus 



PROFESSOR T. D. A. COCKERELL 



University of Colorado 



Dr. Folsom's " Entomology " (1906) mas 

 ur; the eggs in question were not from Flor 

 s at Crow Creek. 



569 



