LXXXVI REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. 



invaded. Had an earlier report of the difficult}- been made to the 

 office, a prompt application of known methods of control would have 

 prevented this loss. A special report of this investigation will soon 

 be published. The damage occasioned by this hickory bark beetle 

 seems to be quite general throughout the Northern United States, and 

 will receive considerable attention in the future, especially now that 

 Dr. Hopkins has been regularly appointed to the Division of Ento- 

 molog}^ as expert in forestry insects. A study of the insect enemies 

 of Eastern, Southern, and Western pine forests has been begun to 

 determine, if possible, the primary causes of the serious insect damage 

 now being done to pine timber of western North and South Carolina, 

 northern Georgia, southern Florida, the white pine or silver pine of 

 the Pacilic slope, the Monterey pine, California, and the pines of 

 Arizona and Colorado. The regions designated have been given a 

 preliminar}- surve}' to determine existing conditions, and it is expected 

 that by the close of the next fiscal year it will be possible to have a 

 report ready for publication on the principal pine insects of North 

 America, which will include brief popular descriptions of the more 

 important insects, with illustrations, and recommendations for pre- 

 venting losses. 



Work on Scale Insects. 



The important work of the year on scale insects has been the inves- 

 tigation of the San Jose scale in China and Japan, referred to under 

 "Work on insects from abroad." The experimental work on the San 

 Jose scale at home has been continued, and a circular (No. 42) describ- 

 ing the methods of controlling this insect has been revised to include 

 the results of the latest information on methods of treatment. 



The Division of Entomolog}' of this Department is looked upon as the 

 chief source of information upon scale insects, few of the experiment 

 stations having collections or literature sufficient to enable the deter- 

 mination of specimens; hence much work is done every year in deter- 

 mining material for station entomologists and for private individuals 

 throughout the country. In addition, man}" large collections of scale 

 insects have been received for study and determination from foreign 

 countries, notabh^ from Australia, New Zealand, the Bermudas, and 

 Italy. 



In the course of the trip of exploration made b}" jNlr. Marlatt in Japan 

 and China, Java, and other countries in the Orient, a particular study 

 was made of the scale enemies of citrus and other fruit trees, and large 

 collections of this class of pests were brought home from the countries 

 visited. The knowledge gained from this study will be of great prac- 

 tical importance. It will acquaint us with the scale pests of these 

 countries, which are being brought into closer commercial relations 

 with the United States, a knowledge which is desirable because these 



