THE GREEN MUSCARDINE FUNGUS. 23 



{Tomaspis vnria). p]]itomologifsts and others (1, ;3, -t. 9. 10. 13, 3!)) 

 <'Oiine('t('d with the awricultural work of that Island have also as- 

 sisted in the tests. In the preliminary experiments adidt t'roghop- 

 pers in wire (-ages were inoc^ulated by spraying, and a high percent- 

 age of iiioi-tality resnlted. Resnlts w<M-e also obtained in infecting 

 the nymphs. A tield ('xi)eriment, using u mixture of flour and 

 spores, in which over one hund)'ed (-ane plants were dusted, resulted 

 very favoral)ly in the death 1)y the fungus of a large number of the 

 insects. 



Work was then commenced on the j)roduction of spore material 

 in great quantities so as to permit of the dusting or spraying with 

 si)ores of entire fields. Vov this purpose large cabinets capable of 

 being sterilized by steam were devised. The manner of construction 

 of these cabijiets and the course of procedure in producing the spore 

 material have been fully described by Rorer. The results obtained 

 were sufficient to cause these spore-producing plants to be erected 

 on a number of the sugar estates. These are operated at such times 

 as <-onditions seem favorable for rapid increase of the froghoppers. 



Tlie experiments in Java have been carried on in several sections 

 of the Island by diffei'ent workers l)ut iiave ;ill beim confined to tests 

 on a small scale, mostly in breeding cages ai)parentl\'. Groenewege 

 (11) infected soil with the spores and then added larv;ii of various 

 insects, varied proi)ortions of which were killed by the fungus. He 

 concludes that since most of them were killed near the close of the 

 larval period, and aft<i' the full damage to the host would have been 

 caused, that the mctliod is not efficacious. He furthenuore stated 

 that the cost wonid be ])iohibitive for field operations. 



Rutgei's CU ) eari-ied out experiments at praeticallx' the same 

 time, nsing culluics obtained tVoni Hawaii. For infection he em- 

 ployed spores mixed with ;i donble (jnantity of floui'. The insects 

 used were Lciicapliiliis rorida and locusts {('ijrlac(iiil}iacns nigri- 

 cornis). In one expei-iment a moi-tality rtf eighty per cent was ob- 

 tained, but sneeeeding tests gave only slight results. It was found 

 that infeetion. excM when the insects wei'e enclosed in a small space 

 and wei-e in in1ima1e eonlaet with (|uantities of s])0i-es. was dependent 

 upon exiernal conditions, particularly the moisture .content of the 

 air. Foi' litis reason and since Mvlarrliizium is found under natural 

 conditiojis attacking a wide i-ange of insects he concluded that it 

 is a dangei-ous parasite oidy under favorable conditions, and that 

 attempts to spread the fungus artificially would be useless. 



