44 THE ACRIDIIDAE OF MINNESOTA 
a diminutive Hippiscus. It varies much in size and tegminal mark- 
ings.”” According to Hancock this species is mature in I[llinois by 
June 20. We have taken it in considerable numbers at Crookston, by 
June 25, when many were freshly moulted. Various writers, referring 
to the habits of this species in western states, have stated that it appar- 
ently dislikes or avoids alfalfa, but in our cages it has eaten this plant 
without any hesitation and observations in the field have convinced us 
that it will attack fields of alfalfa as readily as any of our other species. 
During the season of 1912 we found this insect abundant throughout 
the north part of the State and particularly in the relatively unculti- 
vated areas of the iron ranges, where it was generally the dominant 
species. From its abundance at these points and from the fact that 
it is a species capable of rather extended migrations, it is of consider- 
able economic interest, since a series of dry and favorable seasons may 
result in serious damage to crops from this insect. 
One fact worthy of notice regarding this species is that in the 
field it is apparently more free from the attacks of Trombidium and 
other parasites and less susceptible to fungous diseases than the Melan- 
oplt, although confined in our cages it died off largely from fungous 
troubles. Normally it is found on high, dry soil, and at times in 
some abundance even in the more open parts of forests. Its flight is 
swift and direct without marked aerial stridulation. From the two 
light lines on the tegmina it may be confused with Melanoplus bivi- 
tattus, and in one case we noted a trained entomologist confuse it with 
M. atlanis, from the narrow and sometimes faintly notched subgenital 
of the male. In the field this species oviposits during the latter part 
of August, the pods being rather short, stout, considerably curved, and 
not firmly cemented. These pods are deposited just below the surface 
of the soil, among the roots of grasses or in some cases even above the 
surface amid the dead grass. Pods examined by us contained from 20 
to 30 eggs each. During the season of 1911 we found this insect 
rather rare, except in the north part of the State, taking it only at 
Brown Valley and Pipestone and at points north of Crookston, while 
during 1912 it was found in some numbers at Fergus Falls, Granite 
Falls, Redwood Falls, Mankato, St. Cloud, Mahtomedi, Gray Cloud 
Island, and at every point visited by us north of a line drawn from 
Duluth to Crookston. 
HiLPPISCUS Sauss. 
The genus Hippiscus includes the largest and some of the most 
common of our Oedipodinae. ‘The species are usually of robust form, 
the head large and subglobose, the vertex usually more or less decli- 
