206 
Journal New York Entomological Society. 
[Vol. V. 
Prof. D. S. Martin spoke on insect inclusions in fossil resins. He stated that 
many years ago he was an insect collector and collected in what is now the heart of 
the city. He said the subject of fossil insects had been well studied in Europe, and 
that the resins and insects had been found in many geological epochs. The resins 
being an excellent preserving medium, the insects were usually in good condition. 
Fossil resins begin to appear in the Cretaceous but insects are not found in them ; 
it is only when we come to the Eocene that insects begin to appear in the resins. 
1 he resin is a product of Pinus succinefera. He gave a history of the formation and 
Us distribution and said that the African resins are of the latest Tertiary or Quaternary, 
and are found near the equator, that copal is not so hard as amber, and that Zanzibar 
is very rich in insects, but that they have not been well studied. The Zanzibar 
gum is found thirty to forty miles from the present beach, and is from a tree called 
Tricolobium zanzibariense which still grows in Zanzibar, and as the tree is a beach 
lover, it shows that the sea has receded that much. 
Fossil resins, he said, are also found at the Magdallen River in South America* 
Professor Martin exhibited many specimens, which included beetles, flies, ants, 
and bees, some like the Termes (white ants) were like those still found in the West 
Indies. After discussion, adjournment. 
Meeting of May 18, 1897. 
Held at the American Museum of Natural History. 
President Palm in the chair. Fourteen members present. 
The Auditing Committee reported the accounts of the Treasurer as correct. 
Dr. G. H. Horn presented four of his recent papers on Coleoptera to the 
Society. 
Mr. BeWenmuller exhibited a number of hybrid moths, among which were 
crosses between Actias luna and selene , P. ceanothi and cecropia , P. gloveri and 
cecropia , P. gloveri and Columbia. He also showed the cocoons of the hybrids 
w hich partook of the characters of both parents. 
Dr. Dyar gave a few notes on his studies of the larvae of sawflies, and called at¬ 
tention to their large thora ic and small abdominal feet, just the opposite to the Lepi- 
doptera. He said they were suhject to dipterous and hymenopterous parasites in the 
same proportion as the Lepidoptera but of different species. He also spoke of the 
setae and their arrangement, but had not carried his studies to completion. 
Mrs. A T. Slosson gave a few notes on her winter collections at Biscayne Bay 
and Miami, Florida, and said that the flora and fauna were entirely different to those 
of Lake W< rth. 
Dr. Prime gave a graphic description of the environs of Miami, Florida, and 
mentioned that there was a solid foundation of coral covered by vegetable mould in 
the hollows, and that the solid land extends along the coast in a strip about four miles 
vide, the bay being on one side and the everglades on the other; insect life is con¬ 
fined to this narrow strip and to the rows of keys that extend along the coast three to 
five miles from the main land. He gave an amusing example of landscape gardening 
around the hotel, which was to cut down every tree, shrub and bush to the ground, 
leaving a barren clearing surrounded by virgin forests. 
