56 THE EEPOET OF THE No. 36 



the Division of Entomology from material collected in the Baskatong District, we 

 have reason to hope that the Spruce Bud-worm will not next year continue to 

 any serious extent its work of destruction. Undoubtedly, too, birds will help 

 materially to reduce the numbers of the hibernating caterpillars. 



In the forthcoming annual report of the Division of Entomology of the Dom- 

 inion Experimental Farms, covering the injurious insects of the year 1909, it is 

 purposed to give a much fuller account of the injury done to spruce and balsam 

 trees by the above insects not only in the Upper Gatineau country of the Province 

 of Quebec, but also in British Columbia. 



THE SNOW-WHITE LINDEN MOTH. 



(Ennomos SiLbsignarius, Huhn.) 

 By a. F. Winn, Westmount, Que. 



Poor as the summer of 1909 has been for most species of butterflies and moths 

 in the neighborhood of Montreal, conditions must have been favourable for this 

 White Geometrid Moth, for during August swarms of them about the electric lamps 

 in our streets attracted the attention of many persons who do not usually take 

 much heed of insects that do not sting them. 



For at least twenty years, prior to 1908, the moth might well be considered 

 a rarity and my captures of it in that period did not exceed an average of one 

 specimen per annum, and these were all taken in the woods flying among linden, 

 beech and maple trees. In 1908 there were great numbers of larvse in June, in 

 the woods at the eastern end of Montreal Island, feeding on the leaves of the 

 trees above mentioned, as well as birch, completely stripping the lower branches 

 of their leaves, the dropping of the frass on the leaves and ground sounding like 

 the patter of a smart shower of rain. 



I was out of town the last two weeks of July, during which time the principal 

 part of the flight of the moths occurred, but scores of dead moths in store windows 

 and spider webs, and broken-off wings in little heaps at base of electric light poles 

 and in gutters, showed plainly that the flight must have been one of myriads. The 

 Entomological Eecord for 1908 tells of the occurrence at Ottawa, July 23rd. : Dr. 

 Felt's 24th Eeport records its abundance through New York State and Massachu- 

 setts, with figures of larvae and pupge and plate of eggs and imago; and Mr. W. 

 H. Broadwell in the Canadian Entomologist (XL. 327) gives, under title of "A 

 July Blizzard," an interesting account of the flight of swarms of moths at Newark, 

 N.J. The last writer has again an article in the November number of our maga- 

 zine mentioning that the 1909 crop of moths was even greater than that of the 

 previous year. The same thing has occurred here and doubtless in many other 

 places, and as Mr. Broadwell aptly remarks, it is " very unusual for an insect 

 ordinarily rare to appear in great numbers for two succeeding seasons." If this 

 insect's periods of visit in swarms are always separated by such a long term of 

 years it cannot have many parasites peculiar to itself, or they would surely starve 

 during all the lean years. Toads, bats, cats and sparrows undoubtedly had a 

 sumptuous repast in the cities, but they have quite a choice of diet. It will be 



