ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 
119 
volume deals witli part of the Geometry. It is too late in the day to 
praise the plates, the excellence of which is known to every entomologist. 
The volume concludes with a list of parasites bred from larvae or pupae 
included in this part ; of these there are more than one hundred. 
Larvae of the Higher Bombyces.* * * § — Mr. HarrisomG. Dyar describes 
the larval setae of the Bombycides (this older name must be used instead 
of Noctuina or Agrotides), and applies his results to taxonomic purposes. 
He gives a genealogical tree of the family, and appends a synopsis of the 
superfamilies of Lepidoptera. 
Mandibular Glands of Cossus ligniperda.f — M. Maurice Henseval 
describes the mandibular glands enormously developed in the larvae of 
Cossus ligniperda. They open at the internal angle of the mandible ; they 
include a secretory portion, a reservoir, and a duct ; and they probably 
correspond to the coxal glands of Peripatus. The secreting part is lined 
by a cuticle like that in Gilson’s glands in the Trichoptera. Like these, 
they secrete a substance oily in appearance, containing an aromatic 
nucleus, and composed of carbon, hydrogen, and sulphur in the propor- 
tions C 22 H 35 S. The substance does not attack wood, nor is it toxic ; 
but it is perhaps protective against certain fungi, and against insects 
with parasitic larvae. In another paper J the author discusses more 
fully the physical and chemical characters of the secretion. 
Structure of Nuclei in Spinning Glands of Caterpillars.§ — Dr. F. 
Meves finds that the nuclei of these glands are extraordinarily rich in 
chromatin. This is in the form of small, almost equal-sized granules 
(Korschelt’s microsomes), and exceptionally in clumps. But the nuclei 
also contain an unusual number of nucleoli (Korschelt’s macrosomes), 
often several hundreds. These are frequently irregular in form, an- 
gular, spindle-shaped or rod-like, and may contain a large vacuole or 
several small vacuoles. 
Abdominal Appendages.|| — Herr R. Heymons shows that there is 
very little evidence — either anatomical or embryological — in support of 
the opinion, held by Verhoeff for example, that gonapophyses are 
derivable from locomotor appendages. The styles seem to be skin 
processes replacing appendages ; the cerci and the antennae are on a 
higher level retaining vestiges of their appendicular nature. But what 
Heymons makes clear is that no strict line can be drawn between hypo- 
dermic processes and appendages. The facts of nature will rarely admit 
of rigid distinctions. 
Cynips Calicis.^f — Herr M. W. Beijerinck discusses the formation of 
galls and the alternation of generations in the case of Cynips calicis. He 
has shown that the Cynips calicis of the Stielleiche ( Quercus pedunculata ] 
has as its second generation Andricus cerri of the Zerreiche ( Quercus 
cerris'). He describes what he has observed of this heterogenesis and 
the development of the galls. A digression is then made to discuss the 
* Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., xxvii. (1896) pp. 127-47. 
t La Cellule, xii. (1897) pp. 19-29 (1 pi.). 
X Tom. cit., pp. 169-83. 
§ Arch. f. Mikr. Anat., xlviii. (1897) pp. 573-9 (1 pi.). 
|| Biol. Centralbl., xvi. (1896) pp. 854-64. 
Verh. K. Akad. Wetenschap. Amsterdam, v. (1896) pp. 1-43 (3 pis.). 
