THE 



CANADIAN NATURALIST 



(fymxtwty §ounwt oi $t\mt. 



NOTES ON THE LOCUST INVASION OF 1874 IN 

 MANITOBA AND THE NORTH WEST TERRITORIES. 



By George M. Dawson, Assoc. R. 8. M., F. G. S. 



The ravages of the western locust, or devastating grasshopper, 

 have of late years been very great, over all the eastern fertile 

 region of the plains, and the insect has forced itself on the atten- 

 tion not only of the farmer, who directly bears the loss, but also 

 on that of all interested in the western spread of settlement and 

 civilization : liability to its inroads constitutes in fact, at the 

 present time, the greatest difficulty in the way of the rapid occu- 

 pation of a vast tract of otherwise desirable country. 



While a member of the British North American Boundary 

 Commission, I had the opportunity of passing over a great part 

 of the region subject to the ravages of the locust ; and it was 

 intended to include in my first report as complete an account of 

 the locust raid of* 1874 as I could compile. For several reasons, 

 however, this proved impracticable. Though by circulars, with 

 a list of specific questions, issued for the purpose, much infor- 

 mation was obtained from various parts of British North 

 America, and the Western States, much of it was of a some- 

 what indefinite character. Mr. C. V. Riley, Entomologist to 

 the State of Missouri, has also since published a pretty lull 

 account of the invasion in so far as the Western States of the 

 Vol. VIII. g No. 3 



