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REPORT OF THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST I914 29 



and was indicated by the leaves falling quite generally. An exami- 

 nation showed that a five-inch band of bark under the burlap had 

 died and become loose. In some instances it was stated that 80 per 

 cent, presumably referring to the circumference, were girdled. An 

 attempt is to be made to offset this dangerous condition by bridge 

 grafting. 



The main point we wish to emphasize is that the application to 

 the bark of dormant trees, especially sugar maples, of an oily sub- 

 stance is dangerous and very liable to be followed by disastrous 

 results. If it is necessary to apply such bands, the trunk of the tree 

 should be protected by an underlying layer of tarred paper or some 

 other impervious material and the band removed as soon as it has 

 served its purpose which, in the case of forest tent caterpillar out- 

 breaks, would mean within four or five weeks. A safer and fully as 

 satisfactory a material for banding purposes is the tree tanglefoot 

 which has been so extensively employed in portions of New England 

 nfested by the gipsy moth. 



BROWN-TAIL MOTH 



Euproctis chrysorrhoea Linn. 



Last winter a number of the hibernating webs of the brown-tail 

 moth were found upon Fisher's island, a few. upon Gardiner's island 

 and a nimiber on the eastern end of Long Island, especially in the 

 vicinity of Easthampton. The distribution of this infestation strongly 

 suggests that the moths were carried by northeast breezes from the 

 adjacent mainland, since this insect is known to occur on the Con- 

 necticut shore near Fisher's island. The distribution is so peculiar 

 that one can hardly attribute it to any transportation agency or the 

 shipment of infested nursery stock. 



Significance of this infestation. The invasion of Long Island by 

 this moth means its establishment in a section where there is an 

 abundance of oak, one of the preferred food plants upon which this 

 noxious and pestiferous insect thrives. If this pest is allowed to 

 multiply unchecked it will shortly spread over the entire island and 

 many extremely desirable localities may be rendered almost unin- 

 habitable by the abundance of the caterpillars and the severe and 

 distressing annoyance caused by the irritating hairs of the larvae. 

 The experience in New England is that summer resorts badly in- 

 fested by this insect are avoided and in some cases almost deserted. 

 It is unnecessary to add that such a condition wotdd mean serious 

 losses to many localities, not to mention the depreciation in value 

 of many estates in which large sums of money have been invested. 



