ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF ONTARIO. 



47 



counties, was usually confined to small areas in each case, so that on the whole, the loss 

 was not great. 



The army worm (figures 45 and 46) is not at all a rare insect, and, from time to 

 -time, appears in Canada and the Northern States. We find it referred to as far back as 



Fie:. 45. Eggs, larva, pupa, imago of 

 the army worm (Leucania unipuncta). 



1743, 1861 is known as, "the army worm year," in the United States. During that 

 year it received considerable attention and study. In 1869, it was quite common, also 

 in 1872 ; 1875 was a bad year, and in 1880 it attracted much attention. The years 

 1861, 1875, 1880, are those in which the insect seems to have demanded most attention. 



The moths are hatched from small, round white, eggs laid on wild, or cultivated 

 grasses, and sometimes on grain along the inner base of the blades, where they are doubled, 

 or, between the stalk and its surrounding sheath. The rankest tufts of grass seem to be 

 preferred, but, in some cases, the eggs are found on pieces of cornstalk, and they have 

 Oeen found upon spring and winter grain. 



In one of the worst attacked oat fields, at the College, there were many old corn- 

 stalks from last year's crop ; these, likely, afforded a suitable place for eggs, and this ex- 

 plains the sudden appearance of the caterpillars in all parts of it. This . field was the 

 first attacked, and from it many of the catterpillars appeared to have come, in this they 

 were not confined to the edges, as was usually the case in the other fields. The eggs ap- 

 pear to be laid in the evening, or early night. They are deposited in rows, 15 to 20 in a 

 row, on the folded leaf, which serves to conceal them. One female may deposit from 

 500 to 700 eggs, and seldom takes longer than two or three nights to do so. 



