El ONOMIC ZOOLOGY — E2TTOMOLOG1 . 



plowing in the tall <>r early spring or bj Bpraying with an arsenical insecticide such 

 as arsenate of lead, arsenite of lime, Paris green, or London purple. 



Bee1 army worm [Caradrina exigua) resembles beel web worm quite closely. The 

 injuries caused by this pest are also quite similar to those of the \\el> worm. Appar- 

 ently the insect may winter over in the adult condition, bul as the larvae are in the 

 ground immediately after the removal of the beets they may be destroyed by sur- 

 face elevation. During the growing season they may be killed with arsenical sprays. 

 Notes are also given on cutworms, with a brief account of their habits, life history, 

 parasites, and artificial remedies. 



The destruction of locusts, ( '. W. M \u.v | Agr. Jour. Capi Good Hope, :•■ I 1905), 

 No. 3, pp. $06-480, figs. ?).— Attention is railed briefly to the natural enemies of 

 locusts, particularly of Pachytylus mlcicollis. 



The artificial means of destroying these locusts consists in the collection of eggs, 

 the dest met ion of the young nymphs, the use of poisoned bail containing arsenic, Boda, 

 and sugar, the use of con tad insecticides such as soaps and other washes, and various 

 kinds of traps, some of which are described in detail in connection with illustrations. 

 When hopperdozers and other kinds of locust traps arc used, large quantities of the 



insects are usually captured, it should be remembered that the f 1 value of locusts 



is considerable, and they should, therefore, not be destroyed. 



Poultry raisers and ostrich farmer- are glad to pay a reasonable price for such 

 material, and locusts are also readily eaten by horses, sheep, and pigs. No single 

 method is sufficient to control entirely the locust plague. The newly hatched locusts 

 maybe destroyed by spraying or by the use of poisoned baits, and the cultivated 

 fields may be protected by the use of locust fences. 



The biology of the brown-tail moth and an account of its ravages, A. V. 

 Gbevillius I Bot. Cenlbl., Beihefie, 18(1905), No. .'. .'. Abt., pp.2£l-S£2, Jigs. 8) .—This 

 paper constitutes an elaborate and detailed monograph of the brown-tail moth. 



An account is presented of the development of the insect, its appearance in the 

 various stages, its food plants, and the injuries caused by the pest to various culti- 

 vated plants. A long series of feeding experiments was carried out for the purpose 



of determining so far as possible the preferred f 1 plants of this insect. A large 



variety of plants was used in these experiments and the results are presented in a tab- 

 ular form. It appears that the number of caterpillars present in any locality is one 

 factor in determining the choice of food plants. 



Analyses were made of a large number of leaves to determine their content of tan- 

 nin. It appears that tannin is another important factor in the problem of f 1 plant- 

 oft he brown-tail moth. This insect does not voluntarily eat leaves which d I 



contain tannin. This was noted particularly in the case of SteUaria media. When 

 the leaves of this plant, however, were sprink led with tannin they were eaten by the 



caterpillars. 



Light and heat as well as moisture of the air exercise considerable influence upon 

 the brown-tail moth. Asa rule, larva' preferred to eat in bright light The cater- 

 pillars ate quite actively at a temperature of 40° C, but ceased eating in some cases 



and were killed by a temperature of 45° 0. In an atmosphere saturated with mois- 

 ture they appeared to lost' appetite to a considerable extent. 



Experiments undertaken to show the effect of cold upon the brown-tail moth indi- 

 cate that when exposed the caterpillars endure temperatures as low as -lt)° C. 

 without serious loss; about 4(1 per cent of the caterpillar- resist a temperature of 



—21° C. for a period of l'.I hours. Caterpillars in winter nests were able to with- 

 stand a temperature of !>:; to 31° C. for 24 hours, but were destroyed when the 

 temperature reached —35.5° ('. The winter nests appeared to protect the caterpil- 

 lars on account of their nonconductivity. A bibliography of the subject is appended 

 to the article, 



