78 SECOND REPORT OF THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



leaves have been skeletonized, or so riddled that they wither, dry, and 

 drop to the pavement. 



On fruit-trees. — Dr. Le Baron, has recorded that " on the second 

 day of September my attention was called to an orchard a few miles 

 from my residence [at Geneva, Illinois], in which all the trees in one 

 corner of the inclosure, to the number of fifteen or more, had been 

 entirely stripped of their foliage by these caterpillars, whilst they were 

 at the same time well loaded with fruit." 



Dr. Fitch states that in 1863, in Albany, they completely stripped large 

 plum trees of their leaves, and rose-bushes were similarly defoliated. 

 {Qth to 9th Eejjts. Ins. N. York, 1865, p. 199.) 



On Cape Cod, Mass., in 1884, when the larvae generally were less 

 abundant than usual, they are reported by Mr. J. B. Smith as stripping 

 the leaves everywhere. {Canad. Entomol., xvi, p. 183.) 



Some plum trees that were under my almost daily observation were 

 nearly stripped of their leaves before the attack was noticed. 



In Central Parh, Neiv Yorh. — During the summer of 1883 the in- 

 sect was very prevalent in many portions of the State of New York and 

 in adjoining States. In New York city the extensive defoliation of the 

 shade-trees in midsummer was felt as a public calamity. In Central 

 Park the ravages were particularly noticeable. When they had reached 

 a point that threatened the destruction of many of the infested trees, 

 the park commissioners were compelled to take action to arrest, if 

 possible, the attack. The collection and destruction of the eggs was 

 ordered. The work was undertaken under the direction of Mr. E. B. 

 Southwick, in charge of the inspection of trees and shrubs, and, as the 

 result, as he has informed me, between the 13th of August and the i6th 

 of October, the four men engaged in the work, armed with hooks and 

 scrapers of various kinds, steel brushes and brooms, went over the en- 

 tire park and collected thirteen bushels of the Orgyia eggs and cocoons 

 and burned them. 



Parasites. 



Upon one occasion Dr. Le Baron found the cocoons of this species, 

 which were very abundant upon some apple-trees, extensively infested 

 by the pupa of a Tachina fly, which was named and described by him 

 as Tachina orgyi(B {1st Rept. Ins. 111., p. 16). Very few of the cocoons 

 examined were free from the Tachina parasite ; two, three and sometimes 

 four were contained in them. Of the myriads of the cocoons observed, it 

 appeared that scarcely one out of a hundred had escaped the fatal visita- 

 tion of this parasite. 



From one of the caterpillars Dr. Fitch bred a number of minute para- 



