New York State Museum Bulletin 



Entered as second-class matter November 27, 1915, at the Post Office at Albany, N. Y., 

 under the act of August 24, 191 2 



Published monthly by The University of the State of New York 



No. 202 ALBANY, N.Y. October i, 191 7 



The University of the State of New York 

 New York State Museum 



John M. Clarke, Director 

 Ephraim Porter Felt, vState Entomologist 



THIRTY-THIRD REPORT OF THE STATE 

 ENTOMOLOGIST 



1917 



Dr John M. Clarke, Director of the State Museum 



I have the honor to present herewith my report on the injurious 

 and other insects of the State of New York for the year ending 

 September 29, 19 17. 



The cold and, in some sections of the State, excessively wet spring 

 produced an unusual condition and many of the insects nonnally 

 destructive were conspicuous by their absence, while a few com- 

 paratively unknown fomis caused serious losses, though a portion of 

 these, notably in connection with the work of the seed corn maggot, 

 was due largely to climatic conditions and the employment of methods 

 poorly adapted to the abnormal conditions prevailing. The apple 

 tent caterpillar has almost dropped out of sight as a serious pest, 

 though late in the season a niunber of leaf feeders, such as the red- 

 humped apple tree worm, the yellow-necked apple tree worm, the 

 fall web worm, the hickory tussock moth caterpillar and some related 

 species were uncommonly abundant and destructive. 



Fruit tree insects. An unusually interesting discovery was that 

 of the recently established apple and thorn skeletonizer, H e m e r o- 

 phila pariana Clerck, near Irvington and Nyack. This 

 insect was so abundant in some localities as to skeletonize practically 

 all the foliage, even in orchards of considerable size. The Ento- 

 mologist made a study of the situation, worked out the life history 

 of the species and in cooperation with agents of the State Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture determined the approximate extent of the infested 



[7] 



