1951 -i Brues — Migrating Sciarid Larvae 75 
In the United States, a number of observations have been 
published, dealing with Nearctic species, at least one of 
which has been reared by Becker (’14) and described by 
Johannsen (’14) as Sciara congregata. 
The first references to migrating sciarids in our own 
country appears to be one by Glover in 1872. Another early 
record was published by Linter in his tenth report as State 
Entomologist of New York. Later Riley and Howard (’91) 
refer to two cases reported by a correspondent who ob- 
served two “snake-worms”, each some fifteen inches in 
length and half the diameter of a man’s little finger. Dur- 
ing the following decade Webster (’94) observed two in- 
stances at Lafayette, Indiana, of swarms a foot or two in 
length and from one-half to two inches in diameter. At 
about the same time, Jones (’93) saw at Oberlin, Ohio, a 
“rope of maggots” five feet in length and two inches in 
diameter. He was unaware of their identity, but shortly 
afterward Williston (’93) indicated that these were un- 
doubtedly Sciara larvae. Felt (’01) described several from 
parts of New York State, referring to several strings seen 
on successive days near Franklin, N. Y. These were about 
fifteen or twenty inches in length. He also summarized a 
number of previously published observations. 
Following the account by Becker, mentioned above, Not- 
man (’21) recorded an interesting case observed by him in 
eastern New York, applying the term “compound larvae” 
to the procession. 
Finally, after our return to America we found in the 
recently published book “High Jungle” by William Beebe 
(’49) an account of a parade of maggots which we surmised 
to be a migration of Sciara larvae in the American tropics. 
This is verified by the later description of Sciara ( Neosci - 
ara) beebei by Shaw and Shaw (’50) as the larva in ques- 
tion. Dr. Shaw has kindly identified the Philippine larvae 
as a species of Sciara , sens lat. 
It is therefore evident that this migratory habit is more 
widespread than had previously been supposed. 
Beebe’s account is the most careful and complete descrip- 
tion of the migrating behavior of Sciara which has been pub- 
