— 107—- 



Dr. Maury of Goshen stated that the larva of Agrotis messoria and 



a Wire-Worm had done great injury to the Onion Crop in his vicinity, 

 and asked whether any serviceable remedy had been discovered. 



Prof. Riley referred him to the recent Reports of the U. S. Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, where all the known remedies as applied to this 

 species were Heated in detail. 



On motion of Prof. Cook the Club adjourned to 9 A. I\L, Friday, 

 August 1 2 th 



Friday, Angus/ 12II1. — The Club met pursuant to adjournment, 

 Prof. ( !omstock in the chair. Prof. Riley gave a short history of the dis- 

 covery of the 9 °f Phengodes. To his idea they represent the most 

 thoroughly undeveloped 9 that we have any knowledge of. He knows 

 pfno instance in which it is so difficult to distinguish between the beetle 

 and the larva than in these cases. He showed figures of the various 

 forms of 9 9 an d larvae known to him. Between the 4th and 5th seg- 

 ments, and on all the others to the last, there are spiracular openings, 

 which seem to be glands of some kinds, since they have no internal 

 opening. What they are, he cannot tell. Another point is, that the in- 

 sect probably requires only one year to go through its transformations, 

 and the reason it has been so seldom found, is that it is subterranean, 

 feeding on lulus and Pohdcsmus and only comes to the surface when it 

 has attained the adult form. The natural history of Phengodes and Zar- 

 hipes is yet very incomplete. Of the 9 tne imago and the small larva as 

 well as the egg is known, but no young of the ^J 1 . * 



Prof. Riley also spoke on Pronuba and its connection with the pol- 

 lination of Yucca. He has published nothing on the subject since the 

 paper in the Proc. A. A. A. S., but he has experimented annually since 

 then and he emphasizes the fact that Pronuba is the only creature that 

 does and can fertilize the plant. One interesting fact : — while in the be- 

 ginning he was led to believe, and in fact suggested, that many of the 

 actions of the moth were selfish and unconscious, he is now convinced 

 it has no reason save the desire to propagate. It does not derive any 

 benefit from the liquor. Trealease showed there was no nectarine in the 

 Stigmatic liquor. What there is of that nature is secreted and empties 

 outside of the flowers. His own observations confirm all Trealease has 

 published. Of the insects found on the flowers Chauliognathus with its 

 snout-like mouth would seem well fitted for possible fertilization, but it 

 gets its food outside of the pistil. Pronuba gets the pollen in a lump 

 anil trusts it in. He finds that it is possible to fertilize the (lowers artifici- 



* Prof. Riley read a communication on the same subject before the Biological 

 Se< tion of the Association, in which details of the discovery of the , were given. A 

 complete paper on the subject is also in course of preparation by Prof. Riley. 



