THE BOOK LOUSE. 1 I 



injured by the stem eelworm 'see p. 3), also examples of Achorutes 

 armatus (Nicolet). 



Specimens of various species of Smintkurus have been received, 

 amongst which must be mentioned S. ntalntgreenii, Tulb., forwarded 



)y Mr. R. G. Sims, from Knowle, Warwickshire, which is the first 

 record for this country, Mr. A. D. Imms informs me. 



PREVENTIVE AND REMEDIAL MEASURES. 



Curtis* recommends sprinkling salt over the land after the seed 

 is sown, and then roll it well down, as these insects will not remain 

 in damp ground. Professor Carpenterf advocates soaking the 

 ground with a half per cent, solution of formalin. Theobald has 

 found that a dressing of soot and lime proved effective. 



All of these have been experimented with, and I have found 

 lime 01 soot and lime answer in all cases I have yet had to deal 

 with. 



THE EARWIG. 

 For-ficula auricular ia, Linn. 



Reports from gardeners throughout the Midlands testify to 

 the unusual abundance of this insect. Many state that they have 

 never seen it so numerous before, nor have they known it commit 

 so much damage. In a few nursery gardens it has been a veritable 

 plague, and very drastic measures have had to be adopted to stay 

 its depredations. 



The old-fashioned plan of placing inverted flower pots stuffed 

 with hay on sticks is now very often neglected, and I cannot help 

 thinking that the great increase in the numbers of this insect is 

 largely due to the neglect of this simple remedy. 



THE BOOK LOUSE. 



Atropos divinatoria, Fabr. 



This is one of those insects which from time to time appear in 

 sufficiently large numbers to constitute a pest. Two such cases 

 have been reported upon during the past year. In one instance 

 large numbers were found beneath the wall-paper of a room in a 

 dwelling-house, and in another amongst a series of curio-cabinets. 



From the fact that they are very often found in undisturbed 

 books, and their pale, wingless, louse-like appearance, many 

 species of the genus are known as the book louse. They are not 

 all frequenters of dwelling-houses; a number of species live out of 

 doors, some of which are winged. 



A. divinatoria is a wingless form, almost one millimeter in 

 length; it has well-developed mouth organs for biting, and is an 

 omnivorous feeder. It is particularly fond of the starchy paste 

 used in binding books, or that used by paperhangers. 



* Tom. cit., p. 433. 



f Econ. Proc. Roy. Dub. Soc., 1904, p. 253. 



\ Second Rpt, Econ. Zool., 1904, p. 158. 



