138 



Illinois Natural History Survey Bulletin 



Vol. 27, Art. 2 



species occur. In 1932 Morgan Hebard 

 of the Academy of Natural Sciences of 

 Philadelphia offered to prepare an account 

 of the Dermaptera and Orthoptera of 

 Illinois. For this project staff members 

 made additional collections in areas of the 

 state not previously covered for the group. 

 The report appeared 2 vears later (Heb- 

 ard 1934). 



Aphids. — This group was one of the 

 first emphasized in studies by the Natural 

 History Survey's parent organizations. 

 Thomas, one of the leading early investi- 

 gators in the taxonomy of this group, pub- 

 lished a synopsis of one of the tribes and 

 described many new forms from Illinois 

 (Thomas 1878). About the same time 

 Nettie Middleton (1878) described an- 

 other species, and several years later C. 

 M. Weed (1891) published the results 

 of his studies on the life histories of a 

 number of species. Little more was done 

 with this group until J. J. Davis started 



further taxonomic investigation of the 

 aphids about 1908. In the Bulletin, Davis 

 (1913) published a commentary on the 

 Cyrus Thomas collection and in addition 

 20 papers on aphid taxonomy in various 

 entomological journals. Most of this 

 work he did while an assistant in the 

 State Entomologist's Office. 



In 1928 Prison and F. C. Hottes, the 

 latter now at Grand Junction, Colorado, 

 took up a study of Illinois aphids. This 

 was the first study to be based on a com- 

 bination of intensive collecting for one 

 group and opportunities for rapid travel 

 to all parts of the state. Field investi- 

 gations were made during the summers of 

 1928-1930. Each year collecting parties 

 started in the southern part of Illinois and 

 worked north and then reversed the pat- 

 tern so that each locality was collected at 

 different seasons. A complete set of slide 

 mounting equipment was taken into the 

 Held, and temporary headquarters were 



An Illinois Natural History Survey entomologist making held notes relating to insects he 

 has collected. The association of insects with their host plants is an important phase of the work 

 of Survey entomologists. 



