1899] 



ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



NOTES ON INSECTS OF THE YEAR— DIVISION No. 3, TORONTO DISTRICT, 



By Arthur Gibson, Assistant Entomologist, Central Experimental 



Farm, Ottawa. 



Toronto and its vicinity have not, so far as I have been able to learn, suffered very 

 seriously from the attacks of injurious insects during the past year. 



The Tussock Moth (Orgyia leucostigma) caused some damage to shade trees, mostly 

 horse chestnut, along many of the streets in Toronto during the past summer, but was not 

 nearly so abundant as in the previous few years. One locality especially, however, 

 suffered seriously, namely, the St. James's Cathedral property. The horse chestnut trees 

 around the Cathedral were attacked and the foliage entirely destroyed in some cases. In 

 1896, the year Toronto was visited to such an alarming extent by this pest, many of 

 these trees, were perfectly stripped of leaves. The Toronto civic authorities ever since 

 1896 have been painting the shade tree on a large number of streets, with a mixture, 

 which I think is called " Caterpillarine," but this apparently has not been much of a 

 protection. No doubt many of these caterpillars which had fallen to the ground were 

 prevented by this sticky substance from climbing up the trees, but of course, it did not 

 have any effect on the great majority which were up in the trees and which were doing 

 the damage. I think if the civic authorities had taken this matter up at the proper time 

 and sprayed the trees sufficiently, before the caterpillars got too large, with one of the 

 standard arsenical mixtures, such as Paris green, or arsenate of lead, much of the foliage 

 would have been saved, and the pest to a much greater extent stamped out. Much good 

 work, however, was done by the destruction of large numbers of egg masses, which were 

 collected from the trees by school boys and others, at a small outlay by the City Council, 

 The Tent Caterpillars, as in many parts of Canada, caused considerable damage to 

 forest and fruit trees in the vicinity of Toronto. In early spring I noticed dozens and 

 dozens of " tents " on wild cherry trees close to the Humber River. Many of the fruit 

 trees in neighboring farms were also badly infected. 



The Onion Maggot (Phorbia ceparum) Fig, 

 60, was troublesome in certain market gardens, 

 Mr. Crew, in a conversation, mentioned that a 

 friend of his has had good success in fighting 

 this insect by the use of alum diluted in water 9 

 and sprinkled along the rows of onions with an 

 ordinary watering can. All of these root mag- 

 gots are difficult to treat, some experimenters 

 obtaining results with certain materials, which 

 in the hands of others appear to have been of 

 little value. The most successful experiments 

 recorded in Canada, mentioned in the Reports 

 of the Dominion Entomologist, have been with 

 carbolic acid, in some of its various forms, and 

 Fig. 60. white hellebore. Full details of these experi 



ments can be obtained from his reports. 



The Red Spider (Tetranychus telarius) Fig. 61, was reported as doing damage to 

 sweet peas on the property of Mr. Edward Leadley, of Robert Street, Toronto, who 

 stated that this insect had appeared in sufficient numbers during the past summer to 

 injure his crop of sweet peas. These little creatures although commonly called Red 

 Spiders are not real spiders, and are difficult to treat when they become once established. 

 As soon as they are noticed, if the plants are sprayed with kerosene emulsion, or 

 whale-oil soap, much good will result. Dusting with sulphur is also very useful. Sweet 

 peas in Toronto were also attacked by the Destructive Pea Louse (Nectar ophora destructor) 

 which has done so much harm this year in Canada, particularly in New Brunswick and 

 Ontario. Mr. Leadley writes that it was extremely injurious on his sweet peas. In 

 other places it has not only attacked this favorite flower but also done injury to field peas, 

 7 EN. 



