352 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 15 



of the grain. Accordingly, a series of standard Blackhull kafir tests 

 were planted, using uninjured grain as controls with 100 seeds in each 

 test. These results are found in Table I. 



Table I. — Percentage of Germination of Seeds Injured by Aphis Maidis. 



Test number 

 1 

 2 

 3 

 4 



9 

 10 

 11 

 12 



Average 34.50 30.58 



Several thousand germination tests made by the writer in connection 

 with studies of the insects attacking the seed of sorghums have shown 

 the percentage of germination to be very low in check plots. The 

 results of Table I show wide discrepencies, but an average of 12 plots 

 shows a reduction of nearly four percent in vitality of the seeds. Such 

 a reduction in seeds with naturally low vitality must be considered im- 

 portant. 



, Corn Earworm. — Sorghum plants are generally regarded as inciden- 

 tal food plants of Chloridea obsoleta Fab. and little is found in the 

 literature concerning it. Mally (1893, p. 18) found volunteer sorghum 

 plants riddled by insects. He attributed some of this injury to the 

 corn earworm, but thought most of it was due to cutworms. Quaintance 

 and Brues (1905, p. 17) mention the corn earworm eating the tender 

 central bud arid green seeds of sorghums. Aside from such scanty refer- 

 ences, no large amount of injury to sorghums has been charged to this 

 species. 



During the past summer (1921) the earworm was unusually abundant 

 on sorghum plants, feeding at first on the leaves and curl and later on 

 the green heads. No variety of sorghum was noted to have escaped 

 the attack of the worms. In 1911 the earworm appeared in injurious 

 numbers on kafir plants at Herington, Kansas, at which time as high as 

 8 to 10 worms could be found feeding on the green heads, and many 

 moths were noted flying around the plants at night. 



CoREiDAE — As a minor pest attacking the head before maturity, 

 Leptoglossus zonatus Dall. may be mentioned. It was noted sucking 

 the sap of a green kafir head. Forbes (1905, p. 197) reports injury to 



