February, '17] Phillips- isosoma investigations 139 



President C. Gordon Hewitt: I will now call on Mr. Kelly to 

 read his paper. 



THE TOXOPTERA OUTBREAK IN 1916 



By E. O. G. Kelly, Bureau of Entomology , Wellington, Kan. 

 (Withdrawn for publication elsewhere) 



President C. Gordon Hewitt: Is there any discussion? 



Mr. T. J. Headlee : I want to ask Mr. Kelly what evidence he has 

 that the artificial introduction of parasites has accomplished little? 



Mr. E. O. G. Kelly: I think the evidence was in the total de- 

 struction of all those fields into which parasites were introduced. 



Mr. T. J. Headlee: That is like the chinch bug fungus. Its 

 artificial introduction is apparently useless. Why is it not practical 

 to kill the green-bug with spray? 



Mr. E. 0. G. Kelly: It might in ordinary years be all right to kill 

 them with a spray. I indicated in my paper that Mr. McColloch 

 arrived in Wellington on the 30th of April at which time Toxoptera was 

 scarce. On the 15th of May, just fifteen days later, there were several 

 hundred thousand acres of oats devastated in that locality, as I beheve 

 Mr. McColloch can corroborate. It would be impossible to get spray- 

 ing material and machines into action to cover the territory where the 

 pests spread so rapidly. It was just like a fire starting in a dry heap. 

 Nothing could stop it. 



Mr. G. a. Dean: It might be of interest to know that at Bedford 

 where these parasites were taken, they occurred in enormous numbers. 

 In one field covering a considerable area, they were present by millions, 

 far beyond a number any one could think of introducing. Just across 

 the road, there was a field in which Toxoptera had totally destroyed 

 the greater part of the grain. 



President C. Gordon Hewitt: I will now call for the paper by 

 Mr. W. J. PhiUips. 



REPORT ON ISOSOMA INVESTIGATIONS 



By W. J. Phillips, Entomological Assistant, Cereal and Forage Insect Investigations, 

 Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 



The Division of Cereal and Forage Insects of the Bureau of Ento- 

 mology began to gather data on the species of Isosoma infesting grains 

 and grasses in 1904. From 1904 to 1906 inclusive, collections of mature 

 infested grain and grass stems were made in most of the states east of 



