460 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 14 



Mr. H. F. Willard, Bureau of Entomoltr}^ who has charge of the Honolulu office 

 of the Federal Horticultural Board, is investigating the bruchid pests of the lagaroba 

 bean as his inspection duties permit. When he sailed from San Francisco, July 20, 

 he carried with him several lots of pods of huisache ( Vachellia farnesiana) , secured by 

 Bridwell, in which was breeding the huisache weevil (Acanthoscelidessallaei) and its 

 parasites. Mr. Willard arrived in Honolulu July 27 and reported, on July 30, that 

 the parasites, Urosigalphus bruchi and Horismenus sp. were emerging in good numbers 

 on his arrival at Honolulu, and that between July 27 and 30 he had secured over 300 

 specimens of Urosigalphus and 1,000 specimens of Horismenus sp. On July 30, 94 

 females and 113 males of U. brauchi were liberated and immediately began searching 

 algaroba pods for bruchid larvae. On August 7, Mr. Willard reports having reared 

 from the Texas material, besides the two species mentioned above, Glyptocolastes 

 bruchivorus and Lariophagus texanus. The work in Honolulu is being done by Mr. 

 Willard in co-operation with D. T. Fullaway, entomologist of the Hawiian Board of 

 Agriculture and Forestry. 



The Mexican bean beetle caused larger losses this season than usual in the Estancia 

 Valley in New Mexico. Reports by county agents and several growers show that about 

 5,000 acres of beans were totally destroyed, and the amount of damage is conservative- 

 ly placed at $100,000.00. Reports by several of the growers and by Dr. Robert 

 Middlebrook, entomologist of the State Agricultural College, State College, N. Mex., 

 indicate that the insect was held in check to some extent by dipterous parasites. An 

 investigation of this report was made, but it was too late in the season to determine 

 absolutely whether a parasite had been at work. As a general rule, the Mexican bea n 

 beetle, in its occurrence in New Mexico, confines its attacks to the edges of the large 

 plantings that lie dose to the hills. During the present year severe damage resulted in the 

 middle of the Estancia Valley, many miles from the mountains, and the bean growers 

 are fearful lest the insect will repeat its attacks other years. The bean harvest in the 

 West was almost completed by September 10 and many of the beetles were in the fields 

 but none of them could be found in hibernation in the shrubbery in the foothills. 



A hearing was held in Washington, D.C., on October 11, at 10:00 o'clock, A. M., 

 before the Federal Horticultural Board to consider further steps necessary to prevent 

 the spread of the European corn borer, which has been discovered this summer along 

 the south shore of Lake Erie in Ohio and Pennsylvania, where it probably drifted from 

 the infestation north of the lake in Ontario. The States of Maine, New Hampshire, 

 Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, 

 Indiana, Michigan and Mississippi were represented. The following entomologists 

 were present :-W. C. O'Kane, New Hampshire; R. H. Allen, Massachusetts; W. E. 

 Britton, Connecticut; E. P. Felt, C. R. Crosby, New York, T. J. Headlee, C. H. 

 Hadley, New Jersey; J. G. Sanders, Pennsylvania; E. N. Cory, T. B. Symons, C. C. 

 Hamilton, Marj-land; H. A. Gossard, E. C. Cotton, T. H. Parks, Ohio; F. N. Wallace, 

 Indiana; R. H Lobdell, Mississippi; L. O. Howard, C. L. Marlatt, W. R. Walton, A. 

 L. Quaintance, J. A. Hyslop, L. H. Worthley, D. J. Caffrey, E. H. Siegler and J. S. 

 Wade of the Bureau of Entomology; Dr. E. D. Ball, Director of Scientific Research of 

 the U. S. Department of Agriculture. There were between 50 and 60 present, in- 

 cluding a number of plant growers, and representatives of State departments of 

 agriculture; the writer did not keep a list of all, but noticed Prof. L. R. Taft, Michigan; 

 Dr. G. G. Atwood, New York, Dr. A. W. Gilbert, Massachusets ; L. H. Healey, F. E. 

 Blakeman, Connecticut. The speakers were practically unanimous in asking that 

 the present system of Federal quarantine be continued and extended as may be nec- 

 essary to include the infested areas, but that no large uninfested territory be included 

 in the quarantined areas. 



