Second Annual Report. 



called were in the corn field of T. N. McFadden, of Waverly, Coffey county. 

 Two days after the infection was put into the field the bugs began to collect 

 in small heaps about the foot of the stalks, under clods or in depressions, but 

 only in that part of the field in which the infection had been distributed 

 The day was extremely warm, and the soil was dry. I visited the field twice 

 during the day, once at 9 a.m. and again at 1:30 p.m. At both times the 

 actions of the apparently sick bugs were in no wise difierent. The bunches 

 contained three sizes — the very small red bugs (larvpe), the larger brown, 

 wingless ones (pup!?e), and the black winged ones (adults). The second class 

 predominated. These bugs had neither "bursted" nor moulted, to ^ny no- 

 ticeable extent; only an occasional moult did I see near the edges of the 

 heaps, which did not generally exceed four or five teaspoonfuls to a place. 

 As to farther results I have received no word. 



The tenth day after the infection has been scattered is almost invariably 

 given by the farmers for the bugs to wholly disappear after bunching. This 

 interval is given without regard to the time of season. 



During the last week of July and the first week of August I saw thou- 

 sands of freshly moulted bugs in all fields, but these had pretty generally left 

 their skins in the axils of the corn blades. At this time I did not find a single 

 bunch of moulting bugs in either infected or uninfected field. But two re- 

 ports of bunching bugs in uninfected fields have reached me, and a close in- 

 vestigation failed to disclose any traces of these bunches, and the remaining 

 live bugs were not found in large numbers. These heaps were said to have 

 been in the low places — the furrows of the cultivator. 



Wherever I have observed bunching, the skins have mostly been those of 

 the wingless, large brown bugs ( pup?e), while the little red ones ( larvse) were 

 found dead in no small numbers, intact, among the open skins. Wherever 

 such bunching has occurred, a disappearance, if not by death then by migra- 

 tion, has uniformly resulted. The phenomenon of bunching has only been 

 seen and reported during the warm, dry weather. 



In numerous instances, the fact that chinch-bugs, regardless of the time 

 of the season, have scattered shortly after the infection has been placed in the 

 fields, has brought forth the question, "Did your infection cause them to scat- 

 ter? " The general consensus of opinion among the farmer-experimenters who 

 have perceived such results is an affirmative one. I have again and again 

 observed the above results, and in each case I have failed to find even traces 

 of Sporotrichum or Empusa. Small and large have apparently taken to trav- 

 eling from the same motive. I have only observed this in infected fields, un- 

 til the time when so many bugs were flying (during the last week of July 

 and the first week of August), when there seemed to be a general dispersal 

 in all fields. 



Near Marion, Marion county, M. C. Price, after securing infection from 

 our laboratory, used it, he says, with splendid results. Within two weeks his 

 bugs had "bunched, bursted, and died." Thereupon several of his neighbors 



