44 Studies in Kansas Insects. 



terially reduced and practically controlled, so that late in September few 

 eggs were to be found." 



MITES. 



The red grasshopper mite, Trombidium locustarium, has probably re- 

 ceived too much credit for destroying grasshoppers. According to my 

 observation in the field, this mite settles mostly on the tegmina and wings 

 of the grasshopper; seldom on the body of the insect. I have found as 

 many as fifty to eighty mites on a single specimen, with no noticeable 

 effect except that they seem to cause the grasshopper considerable dis- 

 comfiture, and in attempting to rid himself of these mites the grass- 

 hopper tears his wings and tegmina into shreds by scratching them with 

 his hind tibia. The mite very likely weakens the host to some extent, 

 whether enough to kill it seems rather doubtful. 



BEETLES. 



Beetles and the larvae of beetles are known to be predaceous upon the 

 grasshoppers or their eggs. Of these the blister beetles are probably the 

 most important. Although the blister beetles, in the adult stage, become 

 serious pests to such crops as potatoes and sugar beets, in the larval 

 stage many of them are beneficial in destroying grasshopper eggs. The 

 eggs of the blister beetles are laid in the ground. The newly hatched 

 larvae are very active, and at once begin to search for food, which in 

 several species consists of grasshopper eggs. Whenever one of these egg 

 pods is found the larvae "remain in camp" until the supply is exhausted. 

 In digging up grasshopper egg pods I have found as many as eight larvae 

 of the blister beetle, directly under the egg pod. Thus, while one pest is 

 suppressed, the other is increased, and in the beet fields the blister beetles 

 are not much to be preferred to the grasshoppers, and can be controlled 

 only by spraying the plants with an arsenical poison. 



FUNGUS DISEASES. 



There are several fungus diseases which attack grasshoppers, and at 

 times kill thousands of them. Most important of these are Empusa grilli 

 and Spprotrichum globuliferum, the latter being the same as the one that 

 attacks chinch bugs. These fungus diseases, however, attack the grass- 

 hopper only during damp, warm weather, and are therefore of little value 

 during a hot, dry season. 



BIRDS. 



More than a hundred species of birds are known to feed upon grass- 

 hoppers to a greater or less extent. Of these, according to Webster, the 

 following are the most important: quail, prairie chicken, sparrow hawk, 

 Swanson hawk, loggerhead shrike, all cuckoos, all blackbirds, the cow- 

 bird, the catbird, the meadow lark, and the red-headed woodpecker. 



DOMESTIC FOWLS. 



Chickens will eat a large number of grasshoppers and thrive upon 

 them. Turkeys are very fond of grasshoppers, and a drove of turkeys 

 will keep a large field free from 'hoppers. 



OTHER ANIMALS. 



Snakes, lizards, toads, skunks and pigs have been observed to catch 

 grasshoppers and feed upon them. 



