428 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



Report of the Entomologist. 



To the Committee on the Gypsy Moth. 



Gentlemen : — The gypsy moth is an exceedingly dan- 

 gerous and destructive insect pest, for the reason that it is 

 very hardy and prolific, and feeds upon nearly all kinds of 

 vegetation. 



Possible Damage. 



The question naturally arises, how much damage is this 

 insect liable to do if allowed to spread over the Common- 

 wealth of Massachusetts. The value of the agricultural 

 products of this State, as given in the census for 1895, is 

 $52,000,000 in round numbers. About half of these prod- 

 ucts in value are at the mercy of the gypsy moth and may 

 be entirely destroyed by it, while the remaining products 

 will be indirectly affected to a greater or less extent. 

 Although this insect has been uniformly destructive every 

 year since our attention has been called to it, and, so far as 

 we can learn, the same has been true since its first intro- 

 duction, yet it is not impossible that in time, after it has 

 spread over the State, it may become less destructive in 

 some years than in others, just as now occurs in Russia, 

 because of its natural enemies. We do not know that this 

 would ever occur in this country ; but, even if it should do 

 so, a very conservative estimate of the average annual loss 

 caused by this insect in this State alone is $1,000,000. We 

 have no data from which to estimate the number or value 

 of the ornamental trees and shrubs in the parks and private 

 grounds throughout this Commonwealth, and therefore no 

 estimate is made of the cost of protecting them against the 

 attacks of this pest. It is certain, however, that the annual 

 appropriations thus far received for the extermination of 

 the gypsy moth are a mere bagatelle compared with the 

 amount that would be required to protect the ornamental 

 trees and shrubs throughout the State of Massachusetts. 



