REPORT OF THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST I9II 



III 



Diseased or dying hickories are to be found in many places in 

 the Hudson valley. A personal investigation of conditions in the 

 vicinity of Tivoli showed that a number of trees had been 

 killed by this borer during the past two or three years, and 

 that many, possibly the majority, in that section were so seri- 

 ously infested that it was only a question of a few months be- 

 fore they must also succumb to the attack. The severe 

 droughts of the last two or three years have undoubtedly been 

 favorable to the development of this pest, since the vitality oi 

 many trees has been lowered and they have thus been rendered 



3cu:xL 



Fig. 4 Hickory bark borer from above and side view of the posterior extremity of the male 

 (author's illustration) 



more susceptible to attack by insect enemies. It is also possi- 

 ble that the extremely cold weather of several years ago had 

 a deleterious effect upon the trees. The insect is now so 

 abundant in many sections that unless radical measures are 

 adopted, many trees will be destroyed another year. 



The preliminary signs of injury, such as wilting leaves and 

 dead twigs in midsummer, are exceedingly important because 

 they indicate serious trouble before it has passed the remedial 

 stage. Examination of injured trees in the fall or during the 

 winter may show particles of brown or white sawdust in the 

 crevices of the bark, and in the case of some trees a few to 

 many circular holes appearing as though they had been made 

 by number eight buckshot. The recognition of this sawdust 

 is quite important, since the dark brown or black, rather stout, 

 cylindrical parent beetle about one-fifth of an inch long inva- 



