291 



Chittenden (F. H.). The Pink Corn-Worm : an Insect destructive to 

 Corn in the Crib. — U.S. Dept. Agric, Washington, D.C., Bull, 

 no. 363, 8th May 1916, 20 pp., 7 figs., 4 plates. 



Batrachedra rileyi, Wals. (pink corn-worm) is most abundant in 

 Mississippi but also inhabits the States bordering the Gulf of Mexico, 

 Arkansas, Tennessee, South Carohna and Georgia. It has also been 

 recorded in Hawaii. The first reports of serious injury were made in 

 Mississippi in 1914, when maize was severely attacked. This moth 

 appears to be confined to maize and sorghum among cereals ; cotton 

 bolls that are more or less open may be slightly damaged, and in 

 Hawaii it has been recorded on lantana, palm, Pcmdanus, banana, etc. 

 On maize, the worm attacks the kernel, the husk and the cob. Injury 

 begins in the field and continues after the maize has been stored. 

 When the stored product is husked, infested ears show accumulations 

 of webbing and excreted matter. The eggs are deposited in the field 

 in ears which are more or less open at the tips owing to previous injury by 

 Chloridea {Heliothis) obsoleta (corn-ear worm). Larvae hatching from 

 the eggs penetrate the seeds at the point of attachment, destroy the 

 embryo, and emerge through the exposed portion of the seed. This 

 species usually follows the attack of C. obsoleta, F. The following have 

 been found associated with B. rileyi : — Calandra oryza, L. (rice weevil), 

 Sitotroga cerealella, Zell. (Angoumois grain moth), Caihartus gemellatus, 

 Duv. (square-necked grain beetle), Contarinia sorghicola, Coq. (sorghum 

 midge), the Arctiid moth, Celama {Nigetia) sorghiella, Riley, Catliartus 

 advena, Walt, (foreign grain beetle), Araecerus fasciculatus, de G. (cofEee- 

 bean weevil), and the Ortalid fly, Euxesta anonae, F. 



The natural enemies of B. rileyi are probably predaceous nocturnal 

 birds and bats and an Ichneumon, Pimpla sp., was bred from larvae 

 in cotton bolls in Texas. As a preventive of injury, maize should not 

 be left in the field longer than is necessary for drying it ; the husks 

 should then be removed as soon as possible, infested ears destroyed or 

 fed to swine or poultry and the remainder fumigated with carbon 

 bisulphide (2 or 3 lb. per 1,000 cubic feet of space). Bins should be 

 fumigated before being filled with new material. Cooperation among 

 growers should be secured so that future losses may be prevented. 



S.A.CHAROV (N.). KapaflpMHOBaii mjim nowiMflopHan coBKa m Mtpbi 

 6opb6bl C"b Hew. [Laphygma {Camdrina) exigica. Hb., and its 

 control.]— «CenbCKO-Xo3flMCTBeHHbiii BtcTHMKij IOro-BocTOKa.» 



[The Agricultural Herald of the South East], Saratov, no. 3, 14th 

 February 1916, pp. 5-9, 4 figs. [Received 9th May 1916.] 



The Noctuid, Laphygma {Caradrina) exigiM, Hb., occurs in southern 

 Europe, England, the western and south-eastern governments of Russia, 

 America, Egypt, the Sudan, India, Asia Minor, S}'Tia, Armenia, Japan, 

 China and the Canary Islands. In southern Europe, the caterpillars 

 injure maize and potatoes ; in America, cotton, maize and beet ; in 

 Egypt, cotton, lucerne, maize and sugar-cane ; in the Sudan, lucerne ; 

 and in India, lentils, cabbages and indigo. In Russia, it has been 

 reported to attack onions, and in Turkestan lucerne, cotton and sugar- 

 beet. In Astrachan, it is a very serious pest of market gardens, 

 injuring tomatoes, capsicum, onions, egg-plants, peas, salad,beet, summer 



