36 
PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 
Mr. Wallace exhibited a fine new longicorn beetle, Acanthocinus sp. ? from 
California, and a splendid butterfly, Zenonia Octavius, Fab., from Para. 
Mr. Smith exhibited two wasps’ nests, one formed in a bee-hive and the other in 
a cask ; and he also exhibited a cell of Anthophora retusa, containing a larva of 
the bee, and several females of its parasite Anthophorabia; and stated, that the 
duration of the life of the males he had observed was seven weeks. Since the last 
meeting of the Society, Mr. Walker had informed him that he had described the 
Anthophorabia retusa of Newport, as far back as 1839, in his monograph of the 
family, under the name of Cirrospilus Acasta. 
Mr. Westwood, referring to his remarks upon Anthophorabia at the last meeting, 
said that Mr. Smith having afforded him an opportunity of viewing the insect 
under a high magnifying power, he was convinced that Mr. Smith was correct in 
saying it possessed true ocelli. 
Captain C. J. Cox laid upon the table a block of wood perforated by larvae of 
Cossus ligniperda, and pieces of the wood and bark of elm and ash, illustrating the 
different ways of mining pursued by the larvae of Scolytus destructor and Hylesinus 
Praxini. For several years he had devoted his attention to these insects, especially 
the Scolyti, and he was convinced that their ravages were so extensive as to be of 
great importance. Some of the oldest and finest elms in the parks had been de¬ 
stroyed, and young, sound trees were not exempt from their attacks. In opposition 
to several distinguished entomologists, he was convinced that Scolytus destructor 
attacked sound trees, and caused them to become diseased, partly through the 
influence of a poison contained in the excrement of the insect; and a course of ex¬ 
periments had not only assured him on this point, but had also enabled him to state 
to the Office of Woods and Forests that the damaged trees might be saved and the 
pest prevented from spreading, if they would adopt his plan of partially barking the 
trees in the places attacked, and removing and destroying the portions cut off. 
Once, when in a ship-timber yard, where he had a yacht building, he saw an ash 
tree so covered with these insects, that he calculated there were not less than 
280,000 of Hylesinus Fraxini in it; the Scolytus was certainly quite as prolific, 
and unless some such steps as he had pointed out were speedily adopted to check 
the evil, he would venture to say that in sixty or seventy years there would not be 
an elm tree in or about London. The damage caused by Cossus lipniperda was 
very great, and he also attributed a poisonous quality to the excrement of the 
larvae; but he found that if the larvae were followed up and cut out, the trees 
soon recovered. He said that in the Royal Botanic Society’s Gardens, Regent’s 
Park, out of two hundred and forty trees, only ninety had escaped being attacked, 
and out of eighteen operated upon, all had done well except one. 
Mr. Westwood said his late lamented friend, Audouin, who had paid great at¬ 
tention to this subject, had once, when he was visiting Paris, pointed out to him that 
a female Scolytus first attacked a tree for food, and then other females followed to 
lay their eggs on the perforated and exposed place. 
Mr. Edward Sheppard said he had found the insects alive in old elm rails. 
Mr. Curtis had never known young trees attacked ; but at St. John’s Wood his 
attention had been called to some old elms, which had completely lost their bark 
from the attacks of Scolytus ; and he thought that only trees in an unhealthy state, 
which frequently happened from many causes, or old trees decaying, became the 
prey of this beetle. 
Captain Cox replied to these objections:—1. That he was sure, from observation, 
that the females laid their eggs on sound trees, to which they went for that purpose. 
2. That he had known the insects eat down into the solid wood, but only when they 
had deprived the bark and alburnum of their nutriment. And, 3. That the ma¬ 
jority of the trees in the Regent’s Park were growing vigorously, even to the ter¬ 
minal shoots, when attacked. He added that the efficacy of the plan he recom¬ 
mended as a cure, was proved by the fact, that trees rapidly in process of destruction 
by Scolytus and Cossus had, after the operation, become quite healthy. 
The President, in concluding the discussion, said that the society was greatly 
indebted to Captain Cox for his lucid explanations on a subject of such great 
importance and general interest. Without wishing in the slightest degree to under¬ 
value those exhibitions of rarities, or those descriptions of genera and species which 
