WIEEWOEMS ATTACKING CEEEAL AND FOEAGE CEOPS. 29 



Bierkander obtained through a correspondent a Filaria from a 

 wireworm. 1 The author found a skin of a Melanotus larva firmly 

 attached to the pupa case of a hymenopteron from which the parasite 

 had emerged. The case was very similar to that of Typhia sp. 



Several records have been made of elaterid larvae being attacked 

 by fungous diseases. An interesting note is made by Girard 2 in 

 which he records Cordyceps attacking wireworms in Trinidad. A 

 note in the files of this office 3 records a larva of Agriotes sp. received 

 from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and placed in a rearing cage in the in- 

 sectary at Washington, as being found later dead and filled with the 

 mycelium of a fungus which Dr. Flora W. Patterson, of the Bureau 

 of Plant Industry, determined as Penicillium anisoplice Viull. This 

 fungus is known as a parasitic disease of other insects and without 

 doubt killed the larva in question. Comstock records 4 larvae in his 

 rearing cages being killed by Metarrhiz'mm anisoplice. 



The writer found a larva of C orymbites inflatus in a rearing 

 cage at the laboratory in Pullman, Wash., which had evidently been 

 killed by a parasitic fungus. It was filled with white mycelium, which 

 distended the body and even grew out between the segments. The 

 specimen was sent in to Washington, but was received in too poor 

 condition for determination. 



Early in June, 1913, a large amount of the culture of the white- 

 grub fungus (Metarrhizium anisoplice) was sent to the writer by 

 Mr. J. J. Davis. This material was introduced into a field at Nisbet. 

 Pa. On revisiting the inoculated field on July 14 of that year, a 

 larva of Melanotus was found dead and completely covered with a 

 green fungus. This specimen was sent to Mr. Davis, who tentatively 

 determined the fungus as M. anisoplice. From this culture material 

 the insectary room at the Hagerstown Laboratory became infected, 

 and during the past summer, despite all precautions, at least one- 

 half of the Elateridse in our rearing cages were killed by this disease. 



REMEDIAL MEASURES. 



Remedial measures have been given with each of the more impor- 

 tant wireworms treated in this paper. Here we wish to report on a 

 number of measures that have been suggested from time to time as 

 efficient in combating these insects. We have actually tried most 

 of these measures, and to prevent repetition of these more or less 

 costly experiments we publish here the results. 



1 Gardner's Chronicle, London [v. 3], p. 433, June 24, 1843. 



2 Girard, A. Une nouvelle espece d'Entomophyte. Cordyceps hunti, n. sp. (Cham- 

 pignon), parasite d'une larve d'Elateride. In Ann. Soc. Ent. Prance, Bui. des seances, 



1895, p. CLXXXI-CLXXXII. 



3 U..S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Ent.. Webster Note No. 4751. 



4 Comstock, J. H., and Slingerland, M. V. Wireworms. N. Y. Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. 

 Sta., Bui. 33, p. 211, November, 1891. 



