270 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SECTION. 



Director R. S. Shaw: 



Dear Sir — Following is a brief report of I lie work of the Section of 

 Entomology for the year ending June 30, 1919. 



The season has brought out a number of unusual insects, among which 

 is the clover jassid or leaf-hopper, which occurred in the southern part 

 of the State on clover, at Centreville it destroyed from half to three- 

 quarters of the crop in some fields. This creature (Agallia sanguine olenta) 

 did its worst work on high, dry land in the southern part of the State, 

 and was fairty w^ell distributed. 



A jassid on potato, which caused tip-bui'n was fairly common during 

 the latter half of the summer of 1918. This tip-burn which has, heretofore, 

 been attribut'.'d to weather conditions was controlled by a spray of 

 nicotine sulphate wherever the spraying was done before the leaf-hoppers 

 acquired their wings. The insects pass the winter in hiding, under 

 rubbisli, and the destruction of all rubbish in late fall after the cold 

 weather sets in, is the one way to gain permanent control, since spray- 

 ing for them is only a half measure after all. 



A spittle insect on clover is reported as being very plentiful at Chatham 

 in the Upper Peninsula Sub-station fields. This creature *{Philaenus 

 leucopthalmus var. fasciatus) deposits its masses of fermenting spittle- 

 like excretions all over the clover, and while the clover does not seem 

 to be destroj^ed yet the presence of the frothy mass is distinctly disagree- 

 able and must injure the clover somewhat. 



The corn root-aphis was present in unusual numbers, due to the up- 

 setting of our regular established rotation. It is always liable to ap- 

 pear in Michigan when corn follows spring-plowed grass sod. This is 

 because the ants are able to establish themselves in the grass sod and 

 the ants foster the aphids. Land which has been under intensive cultiva- 

 tion, that is, which has been constantly stirred, is much safer for corn 

 because the constant stirring does awaj^ with the ants. 



The army worm appeared in several southern counties and many 

 cases were reported — some of the real army worm and some which tm-ned 

 out to be other insects. The cold, wet spring favored army worms as well 

 as cut worms and the latter were present in very unusual numbers all o^'er 

 the Stajte. The Erratic Army Worm (N odua fennica) appeared in cut-over 

 districts in the north where it was confused with the true army worm. 

 Being confined to non-agricultural land it did very little damage except 

 to gardens that had been put in here and there in the cut-over land. 



A Crambid or grass web-worm has been troublesome in young corn, 

 where the larvae bore through the roots and stalks, at the same time 

 spinning webs aijout the roots. These Crambids are found normally, in 

 grass sod and establish themselves on corn whenever infested grass sod 

 is plowed in the spring and corn is planted. Our unusual labor con- 

 ditions, together with the up-setting of the established rotations in the 

 attempt to grow grains, has led farmers to plow meadows late and to put 

 in corn which has been followed by web-worm injury, often mistaken for 

 injury due to the European Corn-borer. 



' Identified for us by Edmund A. Gibson, National Museum. 



