X.—Museum Notes. 
I. ZOOLOGICAL. 
On the Fungus Parasites of Insects. 
The following notes have been communicated by 
Professor Roland Thaxter of Harvard University, who 
has made a considerable study of this interesting subject 
for many years past. During the last two years small 
collections of likely insects have been made by Malays 
under directions received from Professor Thaxter and 
sent to him for study. He reports that a variety of 
fungus forms have been obtained from these insects 
and that many of them are entirely new to science. 
Bearing in mind the enormous extent of insect life 
in Borneo and the fact that it has not been collected 
here or examined so far for this particular study,, 
except in a very few instances—an infinitesimal portion 
of what might be done—I would like to call the 
attention of any Sarawak readers interested in botany 
or entomology, to this untouched field of work, which,, 
as Professor Thaxter points out, has a great economic 
value. We know that plants are affected by insects- 
and that whole crops are often completely destroyed 
by their agency, but it maj’ not have occurred to 
some that these insects are liable to disease, which, 
in the form of fungus-parasites, can completely destroy 
any insects thus infected. Now, it is possible to 
infect these noxious insects (harmful to crops), with 
some of these diseases, kill off the insects and thus 
save the crops. The immense value to agricultural 
science of an extensive knowledge of this subject is 
obvious; but the study at present is practically in 
its infancv and more material is urgently required 
to assist this study. If any reader would communicate 
with me or with Professor Thaxter, instructions and 
apparatus for collecting would be gladly supplied, and 
the collector would have the satisfaction of knowing 
that in all probability he would be making an important 
contribution to science. 
There are few more curious natural productions 
than are to be found among the fungus parasites of 
insects which, although they are seldom recognized even 
Sar. Mus. Journ., No. 2, 1912. 
