536 



ants ha^'e gained a I'oothold in the southern and eastern United States as 

 house pests. Of the native North American ants of temperate regions 

 only one, Solenopsis molesla, Say, has become a true house-dweller. 

 The carpenter ant, Camponotus hercnleanus, L., subsp. jjennsylvanicus, 

 de G., usually found in logs or dead trees, sometimes occurs in wooden 

 houses. This is, however, probably more or less accidental, and 

 damage attributed to it may have been caused by Leucotermes flavipes. 

 Four native and one imported species of garden and lawn ants have 

 become house pests, notably Monomorium yninimum, Buckley, and 

 Lasitis niger, L.. var. americamis, Emery. 



In the case of M. pharamiis and other imported species nesting in 

 woodwork, where the nest can be reached, it may be destroyed by 

 injecting a little bisulphide of carbon, kerosene, or gasoline into the 

 opening by means of a syringe. Where the nest cannot be reached, 

 precautions must be taken to isolate all attractive food. In certain 

 cases repellents such as camphor or naphthaline may be used to drive 

 the ants away, though their use is limited, as they cannot be placed 

 near food, and less powerful repellents are of little use. Attractive baits, 

 such as sponges moistened with sweetened water or a syrup of sugar 

 and borax, are sometimes effective. A syrup made of one pound of 

 sugar dissolved in a c[uart of water, to which 125 grains of arsenate of 

 lead are added, is a more efficient remedy, as not only will the ants 

 feeding on it eventually die, but from their storing it for food, the 

 inmates of the nest also die. The addition of a little honey increases 

 its attractiveness. Care must be exercised in the use of this remedy, as 

 it is poisonous to man and animals. A similar remedy used against 

 the Argentine ant consists of : — Granulated sugar, 15 pounds ; water, 

 7| pints ; crystallized tartaric acid, I ounce ; boiled together slowly 

 for 30 minutes and allowed to cool. Sodium arsenite is then dissolved, 

 l oz. in 2~ pint of hot water, and when cool, added to the syrup and 

 thoroughly stirred, 1 1 pounds of pure honey being also added to this 

 mixture before use. The usual methods against termites may be used 

 for the carpenter ant. The best measures are preventive, such as using 

 only timbers previously impregnated with kerosene in the foundations 

 of houses. Timbers not so treated, which have become infested, may 

 be sprayed or soaked with kerosene. 



Ehrhorn (E. M.). Report of the Division of Entomology of the Board 

 of Agriculture and Forestry for the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 1916. 



Hawaiian Forester & Agriculturist, Honoliihi , xiii, no. 8, August 

 1916, pp. 286-288. [Received 27th October 1916.] 



The work carried out embraced the inspection of fruit, vegetables 

 and plants, the dissemination of advice and information relating to 

 insect pests and plant diseases, and the collection, breeding and dis- 

 tribution of parasites of various pests. On all the main islands of the 

 Hawaiian group a total of 239,012 parasites were bred and liberated, 

 of which 186,512 were those of the fruit fly [Ceratitis capitata] and 

 52,500 those of the horn, house and stable fly. All the introduced 

 parasites have been reared from materials collected in the field, except 

 Dirhinvs gijfardi and Galesits silvestrii, which parasitise the pupa of 

 the fruit fly. 



