Genus Culex. 
95 
Alaska (T. Kincaird); St. Martin’s Falls, Albany River, Hudson’s 
Bay (Walker) ; California (Thomson) (?). 
Time of capture. —June in Alaska. 
Observations. —The above description is drawn up from 
specimens in Mr. Verrall’s collection. This mosquito is most 
troublesome in the northern regions, and occurs in abundance in 
the Arctic Circle. In Lapland it is a great source of annoyance 
to travellers, the bite being most poisonous. Hr. Neve, of the 
Mission Hospital, Kashmir, sends some specimens that are 
undoubtedly this species. They were taken by him whilst 
crossing the Heosai Plateau (between Kashmir and Shardo), 
height 13,000 to 13,500 feet. “I found,” he says, “the 
mosquitoes very troublesome in some places. It occurred to me 
that it might be of interest to ascertain the variety which can 
live and breed at such great altitudes, where it freezes at night.” 
(June 26, 1899.) Although the specimens were much damaged, 
enough remained to show strong resemblances to this Arctic 
species. 
A good series of this very distinct gnat was kindly sent by 
Professor Ploward; they were all taken by Mr. T. Kincaird of 
the Harriman Expedition to Alaska in 1899. 
Lt.-Col. Giles seemed to consider this species ( impiger ) identical 
with C. pipiens ; it is, however, clearly distinct, not on account 
of the white basal banding, but chiefly on account of the wing 
venation and the toothed ungues. I cannot see any difference 
between O. impiger and 0 . implacabilis of Walker, and consider 
them synonymous. The only differences I can see at all of 
importance between the European Arctic C. nigripes and the 
American C. impiger in the ’s are that in the American form the 
stem of the first sub-marginal cell is rather shorter than in the 
European, and the stem of the second posterior cell is about the 
same length as the cell. 
I have not seen any specimens from California, although it 
seems widely spread in North America. I have some doubt if 
the species described by Thomson as C. incidens is synonymous. 
Coquillett appears to think so. 
Other slight differences detected in the American forms are 
only those of colour, and cannot be considered specific, namely, 
the apical segments of the $ have sometimes white scales dotted 
all over them, the palpi are always deep black, and the thorax 
sometimes shows two broadish darker parallel lines in front and 
two behind, wider apart, due to the partial absence of scales. 
