94 



machine, stated that in some places in that vicinity uniin was veiy 

 badly infested, 



November 13, 1901, Mr. C. S. Scofield, of the Bureau of Plant Indus- 

 try, exhibited specimens of wheat badly infested ]>y the Ang-oumois 

 ^rain moth, received from Mr. Charles Dunwoody, Philadelphia, Pa., 

 who stated that his firm had handled through its warehouse about 

 30,000 bushels of this year's crop which showed the w^ork of this insect. 

 It was noticed that the insect had been gradually working a little 

 farther west each year. Early threshing had been the principal remedy 

 employed. All varieties of winter wheat and rye appeared to be infested 

 alike. The ravages of this insect had first been noticed about four or 

 five years previous to the date of writing, and had been increasing from 

 year to year since. Mr. Dunwoody stated that the greatest damage 

 was at that time reported from the counties of Delaware, Chester, and 

 Montgomery, in Pennsylvania; as well as in some sections of western 

 New Jersev. Nearly two-thirds of the grain in the regions mentioned 

 appeared to be infested, and it was estimated that the damage was 

 about 20 per cent of the value of infested lots. Mr. Dunwoody asserted 

 that field-threshed grain is seldom infested, l)ut that nearly all grain 

 which goes through the "sweat" in ])arns is more or less aflected. 



From Rev. J. F. Sheppard, Conshohocken, Pa., we received informa- 

 tion, under date of November 29, that this insect was ravaging granaries 

 in that vicinitj . 



December 10 Mr. Theodore C. Search, Philadelphia, Pa., reported 

 that this species was very destructive to the wheat crop of Bucks 

 County, Pa. In a badly infested sample from Chester County, Pa., 

 he stated that the wheat weighed only 3<S pounds to the bushel, and 

 was worth for feeding purposes 60 cents per bushel of 60 pounds on 

 our present market. This same variety of wheat, if sound and in 

 good condition for milling purposes, would bring 78 cents. Later he 

 wrote that one reason why the Angoumois grain moth is so destructive 

 in certain portions of Pennsylvania is the fact that in the vicinit}" of 

 Philadelphia the favmerHprefe?' to thresh their grain during the vunter 

 season at odd t tines. 



In one sample of wheat from Pennsylvania infested by this moth 

 many specimens of a parasite occurred; in fact, in this lot the moths 

 were almost completely killed off, only one breeding out in the course 

 of three weeks, the parasites occurring in the proportion of something 

 like .50 to 1. The parasite having a somewhat novel appearance, it 

 was referred to Mr. W. H. Ashmead, of the National Museum, who 

 states that it is undescribed. It is a species of Catolaccus. 



RECENT INJURY BY THE CIGARETTE BEETLE. 



More complaints were received of injury by the cigarette beetle 

 {Lasioderma serricorne Fab.) during the seasons of 1901 and 1902 than 



