1915 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 83 



On mature corn the chief feeding was in the heart of the plant where the larvae 

 lay concealed. Where the corn was badly attacked when still young, it was 

 stripped to the ground. In the few fields of millet which came to the notice 

 of the writer the entire plants were devoured, so that no vestige of the crop 

 remained in the field. In most fields of barley the worms confined their feeding 

 to the awns, though there was some feeding on the leaves and some injury through 

 gnawing off the grain. Wheat and rye were both so far advanced that there was 

 little feeding upon them, though some lotss was occasioned through the larvae 

 gnawing off the grain from the heads. 



Loss TO THE Province Through the 1914 Outbreak. 



The loss occasioned through the feeding of the Army Worm is extremely 

 difficult to determine. Mr. Arthur Gibson, of the Dominion Entomological 

 Branch has estimated it at not less than a quarter of a mdllion dollars in Ontario. 

 In the opinion of the writer this estimate is not at all hijgh. Estimates have 

 been received from many of the District Eepresentatives of the Ontario Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture. These have all been based on injury to grain crops. A 

 great part of the loss to the Province, however, was through the destruction 

 of pastures and this is very difficult of estimation. Considera)ble loss also resulted 

 indirectly from the loss of pastures. Men were forced to sell beef cattle at a 

 sacrifice because of loss of pasture, and in some cases deterioration of the cattle 

 themselves through lack of food resulted. Many dairy farmers experienced a 

 decrease in the milk output as a result of loss of pasture, and some were even 

 forced to sell milch cows. Considerable loss resulted from destruction of new 

 seeding in many parts of the Province. 



The loss to grain crops and timothy wais, of course, very great, and if we 

 were to add to this the direct and indirect losses through destruction of pasture 

 and expense of time and materials vised during the campaign against the pest, 

 we would find Mr. Gibson's estimate. of a quarter of a million dollars not at 

 all excessive. 



Notes ox Life History. 



Mr. Gibson has discussed the life history of the Army Worm in his paper, 

 so it is not the writer's intention to say anything on the detailed life history 

 here. A few general points, however, may be of interest. One is the length 

 of time from the first appearance of the first brood of larvae till its last appearance 

 July 15th to August 15th — at Guelph, showing that eigg laying must have gone 

 on over a considerable period of time. The first brood seems on the whole to 

 have been later than in the outbreak in 1896. Egg laying in most cases was 

 apparently on rank grasses in low grounds, but several instances were found 

 where egg laying had clearly been on high ground. No egg masses were found 

 in the fall in the field and only two small imperfect egg masses were obtained 

 in the insectary from reared specimens. No individuals of the second or fall 

 brood were found nor were any reared in the insectary. Several reports of the 

 occurrence of a fall brood were received, but all proved unfox^nded. Cannibalism 

 was exhibited by starved larvsp in captivity as has been recorded by various 

 writers. ' 



Control Measures. 



1. Trenches. Where the worms were moving from one area to another 

 they were stopped by trenches placed across their line of march. Except under ideal 



