ya | 
NATURAL REMEDIES. 
The ordinary natural checks upon the undue multiplication of in- 
sects are birds, other insects, and the vicissitudes of the weather. 
Against birds this species is of course completely protected in all its 
stages, except that of perfect beetle; and although fragments of the 
latter would be very easily recognized in the food of a bird, I have 
never seen a trace of a single specimen in the thousand or more 
stomachs whose contents I have examined. Indeed, at the season 
of the year when these beetles breed, birds are not merely extremely 
scarce: in corn-fields, but almost entirely absent, most of the insec- 
tiverous species being at this time attracted to other haunts by the 
ripening of the autumn fruits. It is, therefore, altogether unlikely 
that birds have any effect whatever to restrain the increase of the 
corn root-worm. 
Unfortunately, we have as little evidence of any insect enemies of 
this pest. It is true that Prof. Riley remarks, in the article in the 
American Entomologist, already cited, that he has invariably found 
it in conjunction with a real wire-worm, which from its having been 
found preying upon locust eggs, he supposes to frequent the corn- 
roots for the food afforded by the Diabrotica larve. In all the 
collections of these larve, made from the Laboratory, however, only 
a single wire-worm was found, although everything occurring in the 
ground with the root-worm was preserved for examination. This 
wire-worm, upon dissection, was proved to contain only vegetable 
food, and but a mere trace of that. A number of other dissections 
were made of insects occurring in the same situation, for the pur- 
pose of determining whether any of them might possibly be feeding 
upon either the larve or the eggs. 
Ten specimens of an abundant small beetle, Agonoderus comma, 
numbers of which were found, August 3, under the clods and in the 
eround about the roots of corn in a field which was suffering from 
a serious attack of the corn root-worm, proved to have taken both 
animal and vegetable food, but no traces of these larve were appa- 
rent. In fact, from the contents of their stomachs it was evidently 
impossible that they should have eaten any of the corn root-worms. 
Another specimen of this species, taken in a similar situation, but 
at a later date (August 20), gave similar results. Two minute pre- 
daceous beetles (Tachys incurvus and Blechrus lineatus) found on the 
7th of November among the roots of corn where eggs of Diabrotica 
abounded, were likewise innocent of any attack on the pest. The 
stomach of the first contained a few minute fragments of an insect 
crust, and that of the second was empty. All the other carabid 
beetles captured at this time and place were found without food, 
having doubtless gone into winter quarters. 
Thousand-legs (Myriapoda) were especially abundant here, more 
- so in fact than any insect, but these, upon dissection, proved to 
have fed only upon fungi and decaying vegetation. It is possible 
that some of the eggs, and perhaps the larve also, may be destroyed 
by insects in spring when their appetites are more active, but of 
this we have as yet no proof whatever. 
There is equally little indication of ,any seriously injurious effect 
exerted by rain or drouth. While it is true that the worm is said 
