Janiian', 1921. 



SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE 



23 



birds and mammals. Dr. Hopkins, of Washington, 

 has extended our knowledge of the Bioelimatic Law 

 and has sjiowu how it may be utilized hj' the eco- 

 nomic entomologist in solving some of his problems. 

 (See Article in 1919 Report of Out. Ent. Soc). 



The recent study of tropisms appears to show that 

 the movements and conduct of insects are often the 

 result, of stimuli proceeding from the inorganic 

 world, such as light, gravitation, heat, electricity, 

 moisture, pressure, and chemical substances. Al- 

 ready many interesting obsei'vations have been made 

 and a few of t'lese have an economic bearing. 



It seems to me tlliat this field of study, viz.: the 

 reactions of in.sects to .stimuli, is full of great pos- 

 sibilities for the economic entomologist. In the 

 future, when our knowledge of tropistie responses 

 has greatly increased, we ma>; expect to see the iu- 

 troduetion of many modifications - of our present 

 methods of control. 



He who studies attentively any common plant or 

 animal may form a conception, often an imperfect 

 one, of the widely extending lines and cross lines of 

 inter-relationship with other plants and animals. 

 T,he work of science is to cla.ssify and describe these 

 inter-re! at ioiif"-, and iu this line mudh progress has 

 been made since Darwin's dav. The economic ento- 



mologi.st and botanist, who are specially interested in 

 the control of injurioiLS insects and plants, must 

 keep constantly in view this idea of relationships in 

 Nature if they would deal successfuJly with the pro- 

 blems confronting them. 



At the recent meeting of the American Association 

 of Economic Entomologists at P)iiladelphia many 

 prominent leaders emphasized the necessity for a 

 more thorough biological .study of all injurious forms. 

 In other words, more attention should be given to 

 oeeologic or bionomic relations : that is. to the study 

 of the "Web of Life. 



A knowledge of inter-relation.s, even in depart- 

 ments not usually considered in close alliance, is 

 often essential in unravelling the intricate pattern 

 of life's web. 



"Over a ploughed field in the summer morning 

 we see the spider-webs in thoiisands, glistening wit.h 

 dew-drops, and this is an emblem of the intricac.v 

 of the threads in the web of life — to be seen more 

 and m^re as our eyes grow clear. Or, is not the face 

 of Nature like the surface of a gentle stream, where 

 hundreds of dimpling circles touch and influence 

 one another in an intricate complexity of action and 

 reaction beyond the ken of the wisest? — (Thomson). 



Grasshopper Situation in the Prairie Provinces 



Synopsis of Talk Given by Mr. Arthur Gibson, Dom- 

 inion Entomologist, Before the Eastern Ontario 

 Branch of the Canadian Society of Technical 

 Agriculturists, December 11, 1920. 



Mr. Gibson iu his opening remarks referred in gen- 

 eral to grasshopper control which had been conduct- 

 ed in the United States and Canada, mentioning part- 

 icularly that poisoned baits had proved most effective. 

 He mentioned that as far back as 1885 a mixture of 

 bran and ai-senie with sugar had been used in Cali- 

 fornia, p.articularly under orchard and vineyard con- 

 ditions. In Canada, such a mixture was used with 

 success at Ottawa, in 1888, by the late Dr. Fletcher, 

 Entomologist and Botanist of the Dominion Experi- 

 mental Farms. The first record, however, under acre 

 conditions doubtless refers to work conducted in Man- 

 itoba in 1901, when under the direction of ilr. Norman 

 Criddle extensive areas were treated with remarkable 

 success. 



Iu 1913 as a result of serious infestations in the 

 State of Kansas a similar mixture was used with the 

 addition of lemons and oranges. The addition of these 

 fruits had proved attractive to the grasshoppers and 

 they were killed in enormous numbers. 



During the years 1914-1 ■") the Entomological Branch 

 conducted numerous experiments in Eastern Ontario 

 and portions of Quebec Province and had an excellent 

 opportunity of testing the value of the Kansas form- 

 ula, and also new poisoned baits devised by our own 

 officers. In the latter year particularly, experiments 

 conducted with formulae in which sawdust was used 

 largely, as a substitute for bran gave most promising 

 results, as also did formulae containing salt as an at- 

 traetant instead of molasses, lemons and oranges. In 

 that year applications in which bran had been used as 

 the carrier for the poison cost twenty-seven cents per 

 acre whereas with mixtures in whii-li sawdust alone was 



used as a carrier for the poison, the cost was reduced 

 to seven cents per acre. 



In 1915, working in co-operation with the parish 

 priests of the Province of Quebec, 33,000 acres of 

 growing crop were treated with remarkable success. 

 Previous to this year the grasshoppers had caused ex- 

 tensive damages in these parishes resulting in the 

 abandoning of many farms. 



Speaking of the outbreaks in the Prairie Provinces 

 during the last two years it was stated that the one in 

 Manitoba developed rather suddenly and no active 

 organization was prepared to meet the emergency. 

 However, our federal officers, particularly Jlr. Nor- 

 man Criddle in ^Manitoba, and Dr. A. E. Cameron in 

 Saskatchewan, at once got into close touch with prov- 

 incial officers and, acting in close harmony, farmers 

 were advised promptly as to the means of control and 

 large sections of infested land were saved by the 

 prompt application of poisoned bait. 



In working with such an insect as the grasshopper 

 prompt community action is essential for success. From 

 ob.servations made in the fall of 1919 by our federal 

 officers stationed in the Prairie Provinces, lai-ge num- 

 bers of eggs were found to have been laid by des- 

 tructive species of locusts and there was, therefore, 

 eveiy prospect of a serious outbreak in 1920. This 

 uufortiniately was realized, but owing to a definite plan 

 of organization which had been arranged by the Prov- 

 inces of ^Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Federal and 

 Provincial officials were at once able to cope with the 

 situation as soon as grasshoppers hatched in enormous 

 numbers last May and June. 



In ifanitoba, Mr. Criddle visited practically every 

 section of the Province which was infested : he addressed 

 a large number of meetings, frequently in company 

 with Mr. A. V. Mitchener of the ilanitoba Agricultural 

 College and gave expert advice as to the mixing of the 

 poisoned bait at mixing stations established through- 



