144 



worms were not visible on the snrface of the ground, but burrowiug a conple of 

 inches deep I found them in some places very thick, in other places scarce. Mr. 

 Lamon stated that a few days before they were observed in great numbers crawling 

 on the surface. The worms entered the field from an alfalfa field on the south line 

 of the wheat field. In this field the alfalfa maintained a very poor, thin growth, 

 and the same cutworms were found working in it. Went to next farm south, where 

 there was a large field of alfalfa about 1 mile from the first field. Here the worms 

 were much thicker in the alfalfa than in the first field mentioned. Here, also, they 

 were to bo found just below the surface of the ground at the base of the alfalfa 

 stems. Found manj^ worms under cattle chips aiul other refuse. The worms evi- 

 dently originated in the alfalfa and -proceeded to the wheat. Visited four or fiv^e 

 alfalfa fields around .lewell City, east and north, and fouud the cutworms in every 

 field. 



My son brought a large number of tlie worms to our laboratory, and 

 in due time an Agrotis niotb, wbicli proved upon comparison with 

 specimens in the Agricultural Department at Washington to be A(/ro- 

 tis introferens Gr. I was informed by Mr. Theo. Pergande that spec- 

 imens of this moth had been received by him in 1893 from Stillwater, 

 Okla., and from Lucerne, Kans., but no information had been received 

 with reference to the habits of the larva;. Making several trips to 

 different points in central and western Kansas duriug the month of 

 May 1 found the motbs of this xVgrotis exceedingly abundant, gather- 

 ing about the electric and other lights at night and almost darkening 

 the windows of barns and other outhouses. This invasion of central 

 and western Kansas by an Agrotis, which, during twenty years of dili- 

 gent collecting in Kansas, had never obtained an entrance into my cab- 

 inet, was certainly rather remarkable. 



Mr. Smith reported that the noctuid larva referred to by Mr. Snow- 

 had been, on the authority of Mr. Gillette, very abundant in Colorado; 

 and Mr. Howard referred also to its occurrence in enormous numbers in 

 Nebraska, where the alarm created by it had not been due to the 

 larvae, but to the presence of enormous swarms of the moths. 



On motion, the following committee was appointed by the President 

 to nominate officers for the ensuing year: Messrs. Lintner, Ashmead, 

 and Hopkins. 



Mr. F. W. Rane, of Morgantown, W. Va., was proposed for active 

 membership by Mr. Hopkins, and duly elected. 



