-'73— 



The following were then numinated and elected officers of ihe Club 

 ,for the ensuing year. 



President, Prof J. H.C\)mstock, Ithaca. N. \'. 



Vice President, Prof. v^. A. Forbes, Champaign, '111. 



Secretary, Mr. E. Bayncs Reed, Londt)n. Canada. 



Prof Forbes submitted a few notes on the life histor}- of insects in 

 jurious to agriculture, which he had been cultivating. Among these are 

 the Hessian fly, the wheat-bulb worm, the common wire worms, the cur- 

 rant worm, the corn-root worm, and the corn-plant louse. Concerning 

 the latter insect, one of the worst infesting corn, he announced an espec- 

 ially important observation, showing that Indian corn may be protecletl 

 against it by a regular and frequent rc)tation of crops. 



An account was first given of an irregular and unequally retarded 

 metamorphosis of A'cina/us veufricosus, — a ho'mogeneous iot of half- 

 grown larvae collected early in May emerging partly in June and julv of 

 the same year, and partly in April and May of the year following. 



A detailed description was given of the earth-nest of 0'(/W(5«5s^d'//fc... 

 and of the method and character of the injury done to corn b\' this spec- 

 ies. This Crambus hibernates as a larva, pupates within its tubular nest 

 in June, and emerges in June and July. It is commonly a grass insect, 

 ^!— corn infested being almost invariably on sod. The larva is attacked 

 by a Microgasler and by a TaihiiM fly. It is easil}' killed b\- kerosene 

 emulsion poured on the earth containing it, and would probably be poi- 

 soned by Paris green dusted upon the lower corn blades. 



The larva of Crambus exsiccahts was this year also found injurious 

 to corn planted on old grass land. 



The Hessian fly {Cecidomyia destructor) has lately been found to hi 

 bernate sometimes, in Southein Illinois, as a naked w^hite larva, not 

 forming the puparium until the following May. and then emerging be- 

 fore harvest, as far as known. These naked winter larvae are believed to 

 be the offspring of a midsummer brood which develops in \olunteer 

 wheat, and yields the imago early in autumn. 



The clover seed midge {Cecidomyia leguminiiola) was observed in 111. 

 as early as 1879, a fact which makes its eastern origin doubtful. A new 

 chalcid parasite {Tetrastichus) of the larva was reported; but its worst en- 

 emy so far observed in Triphleps insidiosus. The young of this species 

 are often so abundant on the clover heads as to be mistaken for the au- 

 thors of the injury to clover; but experiments showed that they attack 

 the midge larvae promptly and soon destroy it by piercing the body and 

 sucking the blood. 



Some observations of the summer indicate that Meroviyza americana 

 Entxmologica Anieiicana. 24 December 18S6. 



