100 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Dear Sir, — 



As correspondence is invited respecting the habits, localities, occur- 

 rence, etc., of insects, I take the liberty to offer a few remarks on the 

 Doryphora io-lineata, and also to send you a list of the Geometridre that 

 I have thus far taken in this locality. 



Wishing to ascertain if the domestic fowl were likely to be of any 

 value in reducing the numbers of D. lo-lineata, I procured the assistance 

 of a neighbor who kept fowl (I do not keep them myself), and the follow- 

 ing is the result of our experiments : 



Our first experiment was to offer both larvae and beetles to the fowl, 

 but they refused to touch them, and acted as if somewhat afraid. Next 

 we mixed the insects with the corn and other food that was given them, 

 but they refused even to eat the corn for a time ; by-and-by, however, they 

 began to eat the corn and soon lost all fear of the insects, although they 

 still refused to eat any. After a few days, by keeping the insects in their 

 food all the time, some of the bravest of the hens began to eat a few 

 insects, and it was not long before the rest joined them, and in a few days 

 more they appeared to relish the beetles about as well as the corn. Up 

 to this time I did not observe any of the fowls eat a beetle from the potato 

 vines, but they now began to do so, and we were obliged to put them in 

 their food no longer. After this the beetles were so reduced in number 

 in this garden that they did no material damage. 



It would seem from the above that although the beetles were naturally 

 repugnant to the domestic fowl, yet an appetite for them may be acquired. 

 If the substance of the above has been published I was not aware of it, 

 and give it for what it is worth. 



I noticed in the last report of the Entomological Society of Ontario, in 

 the experiments on the Colorado Potato Beetle, by W. Brodie, the remark 

 that " it is very doubtful if Doryphora, either in the larva or imago state, 

 will feed on Solatium dulcamaia or Datura stramonium." I have found 

 the insect in both these stages plentifully on S. dulcamara, which grows 

 quite abundantly near this place, and they wholly consumed both leaves, 

 flowers and fruit of every plant in this vicinity. They were more abundant 

 on these plants than on my potato plants, which were not more than five 

 rods from some of the former. 



I took a few examples of Brephos infans Mos., March 23rd, which is 

 some two weeks earlier than I ever made a capture of them before. 



J. E. Bates, South Abington, Mass. 



