﻿592 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  l)lateau 
  of 
  the 
  Eocky 
  Mountains 
  led 
  Professor 
  Hayden 
  to 
  urge 
  me 
  to 
  

   give 
  special 
  attention 
  to 
  these 
  points, 
  I 
  shall 
  devote 
  a 
  good 
  deal 
  of 
  

   space 
  to 
  a 
  description 
  of 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  this 
  insect, 
  whose 
  ravages 
  have 
  

   been 
  and 
  are 
  still 
  destined 
  to 
  be 
  so 
  calamitous. 
  

  

  I 
  will 
  first 
  give 
  an 
  account 
  of 
  my 
  own 
  observations 
  in 
  the 
  Western 
  

   Territories, 
  and 
  then 
  give 
  a 
  general 
  account 
  based 
  on 
  the 
  facts 
  observed 
  

   by 
  ditferent 
  entomologists, 
  and 
  close 
  Avith 
  suggestions 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  remedies 
  

   to 
  be 
  employed 
  and 
  measures 
  that 
  should 
  be 
  taken 
  by 
  Governmeul 
  and 
  

   State 
  and 
  Territorial 
  authorities 
  to 
  anticipate 
  future 
  invasions. 
  I 
  have 
  

   not 
  attempted 
  to 
  give 
  a 
  full 
  historical 
  sketch 
  of 
  locust 
  invasions 
  in 
  the 
  

   line 
  of 
  States 
  lying 
  directly 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  Eiver, 
  beginning 
  

   with 
  Minnesota 
  and 
  ending 
  with 
  Texas, 
  forming 
  the 
  eastern 
  limits 
  of 
  

   the 
  locust 
  region, 
  since 
  this 
  has 
  already 
  been 
  done 
  by 
  Professor 
  liiley 
  

   in 
  his 
  seventh 
  and 
  eighth 
  annual 
  reports 
  on 
  the 
  injurious 
  insects 
  of 
  Mis- 
  

   souri, 
  and 
  the 
  facts 
  given 
  by 
  him 
  and 
  others 
  are 
  epitomized 
  in 
  the 
  tab- 
  

   ular 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  locust 
  migrations 
  inserted 
  near 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  

   report. 
  Mr. 
  Allen 
  Whitman, 
  in 
  his 
  valuable 
  " 
  Eeport 
  on 
  the 
  Rocky 
  

   Mountain 
  Locust, 
  for 
  1876," 
  has 
  given 
  an 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  locust 
  invasions 
  

   in 
  that 
  State, 
  with 
  valuable 
  notes 
  on 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  insect. 
  From 
  the 
  

   data 
  he 
  has 
  there 
  published 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  correct 
  the 
  tabular 
  view 
  

   of 
  locust 
  invasions 
  I 
  had 
  extracted 
  from 
  my 
  report 
  and 
  published 
  in 
  ad- 
  

   vance 
  in 
  the 
  American 
  Naturalist 
  for 
  January, 
  1877. 
  In 
  addition 
  to 
  

   what 
  is 
  stated 
  in 
  his 
  report 
  for 
  1876, 
  Mr. 
  Whitman 
  writes 
  me, 
  under 
  

   date 
  of 
  February 
  18, 
  1877 
  : 
  " 
  I 
  cannot 
  find 
  that 
  there 
  was 
  any 
  appear- 
  

   ance 
  of 
  locusts 
  in 
  Minnesota 
  in 
  1855. 
  The 
  only 
  authority 
  that 
  1 
  know 
  

   for 
  it 
  is 
  the 
  article 
  by 
  A. 
  S. 
  Taylor, 
  in 
  the 
  Smithsonian 
  Report 
  for 
  1858, 
  

   which 
  mentions 
  them 
  as 
  appearing 
  on 
  the 
  reservations, 
  or, 
  at 
  least, 
  

   among 
  the 
  Indians." 
  

  

  THE 
  LOCUST 
  IN 
  COLORADO. 
  

  

  I 
  first 
  saw 
  the 
  effects 
  of 
  the 
  ravages 
  of 
  this 
  locust 
  along 
  the 
  railroad 
  

   leading 
  from 
  Cameron, 
  Mo., 
  to 
  Kansas 
  City, 
  Jane 
  24, 
  1875. 
  It 
  was 
  

   stated 
  to 
  me 
  that 
  the 
  devastations 
  of 
  the 
  grasshopper 
  extended 
  over 
  an 
  

   area 
  of 
  300 
  square 
  miles, 
  beginning 
  at 
  a 
  point 
  about 
  50 
  miles 
  east 
  of 
  

   Kearney 
  and 
  extending 
  about 
  70 
  miles 
  west 
  of 
  Kansas 
  City* 
  At 
  this 
  

   date 
  the 
  locusts 
  had 
  left 
  the 
  country 
  two 
  weeks 
  iirevious, 
  but 
  a 
  

   few 
  feeble 
  stragglers 
  being 
  left, 
  with 
  red 
  mite 
  under 
  the 
  wings. 
  The 
  

   corn 
  and 
  wheat 
  fields 
  were 
  bare 
  ; 
  now 
  and 
  then 
  scattered, 
  half-eaten 
  

   corn-stalks 
  indicated 
  the 
  former 
  presence 
  of 
  a 
  flourishing 
  field 
  ; 
  rarely 
  

   had 
  a 
  field 
  been 
  left 
  untouched. 
  It 
  was 
  evident 
  that 
  the 
  swarms 
  were 
  

   local 
  in 
  their 
  attacks. 
  As 
  regards 
  the 
  devastations 
  of 
  the 
  locust 
  in 
  

   Missouri 
  in 
  1875, 
  the 
  reader 
  is 
  referred 
  to 
  Prof. 
  0. 
  V. 
  Eiley's 
  " 
  Eighth 
  

   Eeport 
  on 
  the 
  Noxious, 
  Beneficial, 
  and 
  other 
  Insects 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  

   Missouri," 
  1876, 
  where 
  ample 
  details 
  are 
  given. 
  

  

  At 
  Lawrence, 
  Kans., 
  the 
  town 
  and 
  surrounding 
  country 
  had 
  been 
  

   swept 
  by 
  vast 
  swarms, 
  leaving 
  scarcely 
  a 
  green 
  thing, 
  except 
  in 
  one 
  

   portion 
  of 
  the 
  toAvn 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  left 
  untouched. 
  Until 
  June 
  25 
  the 
  

   air 
  had 
  been 
  filled 
  with 
  locusts 
  flying 
  at 
  a 
  great 
  height, 
  but 
  after 
  that 
  

   date 
  they 
  were 
  not 
  seen, 
  and 
  but 
  a 
  few 
  stragglers 
  were 
  observed, 
  hop- 
  

   ping 
  feebly 
  about 
  the 
  roadside. 
  The 
  marks 
  of 
  their 
  jaws 
  were 
  apparent 
  

   on 
  the 
  fences 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  bark 
  of 
  apple 
  and 
  peach 
  trees, 
  in 
  which 
  rings 
  

   had 
  been 
  gnawed. 
  The 
  grounds 
  about 
  one 
  house 
  had 
  been 
  protected 
  

   by 
  tarred 
  boards 
  nailed 
  to 
  the 
  fence, 
  and 
  by 
  ditches 
  within 
  the 
  iuclo- 
  

   sure 
  which 
  were 
  emptied 
  as 
  fast 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  filled, 
  at 
  lenst 
  70 
  bushels 
  

   having 
  been 
  taken 
  out. 
  An 
  attempt 
  was 
  made 
  to 
  save 
  valuable 
  fir-trees 
  

   by 
  covering 
  them 
  with 
  blankets, 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  kept 
  down 
  by 
  

  

  