New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 533 



to do serious injury, is burning over tlie infested section, or deep plowing 

 late in the fall. In case the burning is to be resorted to, the localities 

 where the insects are hibernating should, If possible, be sought out 

 and the infested locality burned over early in the winter if the season 

 will permit. Where possible it is well to follow the burning by deep 

 plowing and harrowing. Dr. S. A. Forbes, Staite Entomologist for 

 Illinois, who for some years has given special attention to the chinch 

 bug, states in his last report that the bugs may be trapped during the 

 summer season when about to leave the fields of ripening grain. This 

 is done by plowing a strip from four to six feet wide around the infested 

 field. This strip should be thoroughly and deeply pulverized. A deep 

 furrow should then be made lengthwise through the middle of the strip, 

 much pains being talien to keep the sides pulverized as fine as dust. The 

 furrow may be conveniently made by dragging a log endwise back and 

 forth through the strip. Holes a foot deep should be made in the fur- 

 rows at intervals of about twenty feet. The chinch bugs, leaving tlie 

 fields in great numbers, will fall into this trap and may be killed, or if 

 unable to get out, will finally die of exhaustion. Many of the bugs will 

 fall into the holes and thus be securely caught. One of the most im- 

 portant points connected with this method is keeping the sides of the 

 furrow thoroughly pulverized. Few of the bugs are able to fly at this 

 time, else the furrow method would not be practical. 



The Station will be glad to receive notice of the appearance of the 

 chinch bug in any section of the state. When possible sucli letters should 

 be accompanied with a number of specimens of the bugs, 



Geneva, N. Y., September 14, 1S96. 



A Little-known Scale Insect. 



This scale insect was first observed by us in December, 1894, 

 on a young plum tree at Rochester. We sent specimens to Dr. 

 L. O. Howard, entomologist of the United States Department 

 of Agriculture, who identified the insect as Aspidiotus ancyhis 

 Putnam. Since that time we have observed this scale on young 

 plum trees in the nursery and on bearing plum and apple trees. 



The only references to Ibis species which we have at command 

 are found in " Insect Life " as follows: In Vol. VI, page 231, Dr. 

 L. O. Howard records that a parasitic insect, CoccopJiagus au- 

 rantii, n. sp. was reared from Aspidiotus micylus Put., found on 

 linden, District of Columbia. In Vol. VII, page 210, Mr. T. D. A. 

 Cockerell mentions this species in a list of New Mexico insect 

 pests, including it in the list of imported species, and states 

 that it infests the box-elder trees planted along the streets of 

 Santa Fe. i 



