206 Fiftieth Keport ox the State Museum 



commensurate gain to itself. Of the cultivated crops, wheat and oats 

 appear to be the favorites. Corn is perhaps less frequently attacked, for 

 the reason that its method of cultivation is such as to discourage the 

 insect breeding in fields of it, while, as shown before, the attack of any- 

 field after marching has begun is determined largely by chance. Rye 

 and barley are eaten, but apparently with less relish. When pressed by 

 hunger, the army-worm can readily accommodate itself to circumstances 

 and devour many plants differing widely in character from its chosen 

 forage. The most important of these are : flax, clover, beans, peas, 

 strawberry, leaves of fruit-trees, watermelon, cucumber, rag-weed (^w- 

 Irosia arfemisice/o/ia), cva.-nherry, wild Solanum, capsicum pepper, Amar- 

 antus, asparagus, and onions. There are a number of other plants upon 

 which the caterpillars have been successfully reared, and upon which they 

 would probably feed in nature, if nothing else was convenient to them. 

 Some of the food-plants mentioned above, have been reported as not 

 eaten by the army- worm, while others report them as occasionally injured. 

 It is probable that the caterpillars are guided largely by the demands of 

 nature for sustenance, and in proportion to their necessity do they turn 



to whatever is at hand. 



Pupation, 



Many accounts of the army-worm record its sudden disappearance, 

 " as if by magic." A field may be swarming with its hosts, and in a day 

 or two none will be seen. But if one will examine the loose surface soil 

 in a recently infested field or will look beneath the brush and dried grass 

 on its borders, the mahogany-brown pupse will readily be found. The 

 caterpillars have simply entered the ground for pupation and will soon 

 reappear as moths. The duration of the pupa state is governed largely 

 by the temperature; in July of last year, it was about 20 days in this 

 State, while in September it was lengthened to about 30. 



Number of Generations. 

 In this State there were three broods the past season, which is probably 

 the usual number. No observations were made on the first generation, 

 therefore it is safe to assume that it was quite a limited one. It 

 was the second that attracted attention throughout the State during the 

 first two weeks of July. They completed their growth and pupated 

 before the end of the month. The first of August moths were emerging, 

 and by the 7th, no pupae could be found in searching in what had been a 

 badly infested field, although pupal shells were abundant. Numbers of 

 moths were seen in Washington Park, in Albany, on August 14th and 

 17th, but a week thereafter they had all disappeared. 



