1 62 Control of Parasites 



footless, and never leave their bags, depositing the eggs 

 within them, and then dropping out to die, the eggs winter- 

 ing in the bag. 



This is a dangerous enemy of conifers as well as of decid- 

 uous trees, mainly in southern latitudes. 



The collection of the bags is the readiest means of control- 

 ling them, besides spraying with arsenate of lead (fifteen 

 ounces to forty gallons of waterj in Alay and June. 



Gypsy Moth. This imported insect, in apjiearance some- 

 what like the Tussock-moth, so far almost harmless in its 

 native country, Europe, has here become injurious, and 

 that extremely so, although only in a very limited locality in 

 Massachusetts. It is peculiarly interesting because of the 

 fruitless efforts to exterminate it, in which the Slate of Mas- 

 sachusetts has spent so far more than one million dollars. 



The coloration in all stages is of a darker or lighter brown- 

 ish or yellowish brown tint, the caterpillar, two to two and 

 a half inches long when full grown, dotted with long hair 

 tufts on colored blue and red tubercles; the egg masses laid 

 anywhere on limbs, fence rails or other objects, are covered 

 with buff-colored scales, giving them a sponge-like appear- 

 ance. It is in this stage that the insect winters, the cater- 

 pillars issuing from the end of A])ril until the middle of June, 

 and feeding on the leaves of elm, maple, oak, indeed on 

 almost all deciduous trees and shrubs, some continuing until 

 the middle of July, doing their work in clusters by night, 

 and hiding in crevices by day. The moths emerge from 

 the pu])ce in June and July, and deposit their eggs, wliich 

 winter. Sometimes two broods occur. 



The most effective remedy is the collecting and burning 

 of the conspicuous egg masses, or else crushing and daubing 

 them with creosote oil, hot if possible, during the fall, winter, 

 and spring. Trees may be banded with burlap or insect 



