188 
Psyche 
[December 
Host: Myrmica ( Manica ) bradleyi Wheeler. 
Types in my collection and in the collection of Dr. W. M. 
Wheeler. 
The series of workers upon which this species is based 
was taken on the summit of Polly Dome (elevation about 
8600 feet), a small dome adjacent to Tenaya Lake on the 
Tioga Pass road in the upper part of Yosemite National 
Park, California. Because of glacial action the domes have 
precipitous sides planed to a high degree of smoothness. It 
is actually possible in certain lights to see a glaze on the 
surface, which resembles that of a polished terrazzo floor. 
Naturally, the domes themselves are not good areas for col- 
lecting since there is very little soil present and when any 
does occur it is usually in pockets of coarse gravel and sand 
not suitable for nest making. Despite such unfavorable 
conditions the nest containing the new species was found in 
one of these gravel pockets. When first discovered only five 
parasitica workers were taken since, at that time, the author 
had nothing with which to excavate the nest. These five 
workers together with a number of workers of the host, 
bradleyi, were taken back to camp alive and the relations 
between the two species observed. These were to every 
appearance perfectly normal, the parasitica workers taking 
their share of the activities and being treated as ordinary 
nest mates by the bradleyi workers. The following day the 
author returned to the nest site and excavated the entire 
gravel pocket, luckily a small one, down to bed rock. Eight 
more parasitica workers were secured but no queen of any 
kind was seen. I am of the opinion that she may have moved 
to a safer place following the initial disturbance of the nest 
since, due to the ease and completeness with which the 
gravel could be removed and sorted, it is curious that she 
should have been missed had she been present. The failure 
to find the queen is much to be regretted since her structure 
might have shed some light on the type of relation between 
the host and parasitica. As the matter stands at present it 
is impossible to state with certainty whether the new species 
