Article beginning on page 243.
Psyche 4:243-244, 1883.

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Several species of microlepidoptera which are stiil undetermined are very abundant on Bef~la &a, about Cambridge, Mass. Among
them may be mentioned a case-bearer (?
Coleophora), a species having a ridged co- coon (? Bucculatriv), a species the larva of which has a case made of successive rings of leaf-epidermis arranged in the form of a cor- nucopia, and a large leaf-miner beionging to some genus allied to Lithocolletis; the larvae of the last two species are found very late in the season, just before the leaves nre de- stroyed by the frost. A
O@opktera bureatu Hiibn. (Samml.
europ. schmett., Spanner, 176, fig. 413-4341. Kaltenbach {Pflanzenfeinde, 1872, p. 590) gives Beiula and Fagus as food-plants of this species. Packard (Mon. geom. moths, 1876, p. 199) quotes Newman's description of the larva of this species,
Rheama$tera liastata Linn. (Sy3t. nat.,
1758. ed 70, p. 527). Schmiedein (Nitturges. deutsch. schmett., &s, p. 101-102) describes the larvae of this species, which he states live socially upon birch between the leave6 which they spin together. Packard (MOD.
geom. moths, 1876, p. 165-166) quotes New- man's description of the larva, in which it is stated to feed upon Betula ub3a and Sfyrica ~ale. KnItenbach (Pflanzenfeinde, 187.2, p. 4x3 and 599) complies authorities for the foi- Sowing additional food-plants of this species : Rhododendron hirsuiwm, Salii, and Vaccin- ittm u//g<kosiim. A Inrva of this species, taken on Betula allin, at Belmont. Mass,, 4 Aug. 1883, pupated 14 Aug., and appeared as imago 17 May 1884. This is one of the upecieu of lepidoptern seen in swarm's in parts of the White tits., N. H., where specimens were taken from 8-14 July 1874 in the greatest abundance.
(To be cdinfttd.)
SYSTEMATIC POSITION OF THE GENUS APIOCBRA. BY HAMEL WILLIAM COQUILLETT, ANAHEIM, CAL. In the Berliner entom. zeitschrift for
1883, 1). 387-294, Barun &ten Sacken
gives his reasons for placing the genus
Apiocera among the vsi/idae. I am strong- ly ofthe opinion, however, that its proper place is among the therevidae-an opin-
ion which the following facts would
appear to fully justify.
In the Monographs of the diptera of
North America, part 1, pi 22 and ti. 24, Dr. Loew defines the families asQidae find themftdae in the following words :
''å´Asilidae.-Thre basal cells much
prolonged. Third longitudinal voiu of
tile winga furcate, the two intercalary
veins always prestiiit. Third joint of the antennae ~irnple; under lip forming a
horny sheath; empodium similar to a
horny bristle."
b6 There'uiflae.--Three basal cells inncli prolonged ; the two intercaiary veins
present ; third longitudinal vein f urcate. Antennae with a terminal style of varia- Me form, sometime^ wanting. Iso ein-
podiam. Under lip fleshy ."
In many of the larger therevidae the
empodium, or third pulvilliis, is present in the form of a slender bristle. The
only character of importance, therefore, whereby either of these families may be
distinguished from the other is the strnet- tire of the under lip or prottoscis, which



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is horny in the asilidw and fleshy in the tion is not based upon a supei-flcial re- tlierm~dae; in other words, in the there- semblance, but upon the preaeuce or vidae the proboscis terminates in two absence of certain well-marked cliarac- fleshy lips, while in the aOTKdae it is des- ters. Were we justified in placing the
ti tute of lips. genus Apiwera in the farnib- asilidae The genus Apiwera possesses all of the
it would 'become necessary to remove all characters which Dr. Loew assigns to the of the therevidae to this family ; Imt usilidae except that the proboscis ends such acourse is not at all desirable, as is) two fiesliy lips ; am.1 as this is the only the family asilidae is already a very ex- character of importance wherein the tensive one, and the presence or absence l1t̤rcvi(la differ from the asilidae, it of lips at the tip of (.lie proboscis is a naturally follows that this genus mufit character of very enas application. 1)e referred to the therevidae. There is not au entomologist living The characters which the Baron found
whose opinion on any stiibject relating
over, the ffierevuhie agree with Ap/wera I not convinced bevond a do
majority of the IfwevMae have a very relationshi11 of are long and slender, instead of king
being scai-ceiy any
short and robust. So that, if Apiown ed exactly alike) t is closely related to the asflina, it is still know whether to re



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