26 FIRST ANNUAL REPORT OP 



war. It occurs alike, though not to such a marked degree, on all 

 other Cicadas, and if people must have an omen let them rather lake 

 the two AV's for warm weather, and it will not be likely to disappoint 

 them. 



ENEMIES OF TUE CICADA. 



Upon leaving the ground to transform, the pupae are attacked 

 by different quadrupeds, by birds, by cannibal insects, such as 

 Ground-beetles, Dragon-flies, Soldier-bugs, etc.; while hogs and 

 poultry of all kinds greedily feast upon them. In the perfect fly 

 state they are attacked by at least one insect parasite ; for dip- 

 terous maggots (the larva 1 , probably, of some Tachina fly) may oc- 

 casionally be found in their bodies. In this state they are also otten 

 attacked by a peculiar fungus, which was first described by Dr. Leidy, 

 in the Proceedings of the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences 

 for 1S51. Dr. W. D. Hartman, of Westchester, Pa., speaking of the 

 occurrence of this fungus, in 1851, says: 'The posterior part of the 

 abdomen, in a large number of male locusts, was filled by a greenish 

 fungus. * * * The abdomen of the infected males was unusually 

 inflated, dry and brittle, and totally dead while the insect ivas yet 

 Hying about. Upon breaking off the hind part of the abdomen, the 

 dust-like spores w r ould fly as from a small puff-ball." One male speci- 

 men received the present year from Pennsylvania was affected by 

 the same, or a similar fungus, the internal parts of the abdomen being 

 converted into what appeared to be a brown mould. 



R H. Warder, of Cleves, Ohio, in speaking of this mould says: 

 It seemed to be a drying up of the contents and membranes of the 

 abdomen, generally of a brown color, and dry and brictle. I found 

 that in many cases the male organs of generation remained so firmly 

 attached to the female during copulation that the male could only 

 disengage himself by breaking away, leaving one or two posterior 

 joints attached to the female, and it is these mutilated males which I 

 found affected by the peculiar fungus mentioned, and therefore con- 

 cluded that the "dry rot" might be the result of the broken mem- 

 branes. I never found one thus affectedin the very early part of their 

 season, and I never found a perfect male thus affected. But this is not 

 positive proof. 



THE STING OF THE PERIODICAL CICADA. 



It is astonishing what a wide-spread fear exists of the Cicada 

 on account of its stinging powers. There is scarcely a paper in 

 the United States but published some account of a " locust" sting 

 las! summer, while unpublished accounts were equally numerous. 

 One of the editors of the St. Louis Republican was kind enough to 

 clip out for me all accounts of such stings, which he found in 

 their numerous exchanges, and the number which had accumulated, 



