12 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



cularia Linn., in East Aurora. This European insect appears 

 to be abundant and generally established there. It is best known 

 because of its annoying habits rather than on account of the injury 

 it causes. It was probably introduced with infested plants and is 

 another illustration of the gradual dissemination of species with 

 habits which lend themselves readily to distribution through 

 commercial agencies. 



Flies and other pests. The necessity of controlling these insects 

 has been greatly emphasized by the extensive mobilization of troops, 

 particularly as more than half of the deaths in armies during recent 

 wars have resulted from diseases rather than from wounds. The 

 almost constant demand for information relating to household 

 insects had practically exhausted the edition of State Museum 

 Bulletin 136 dealing with the Control of Flies and Other Household 

 Insects, and with the above facts in mind an extended and almost 

 entirely rewritten edition entitled Household and Camp Insects, 

 was issued as State Museum Bulletin 194 and widely distributed 

 among sanitary officers of the army as well as to those specially 

 interested in work of this kind throughout the country. 



Insect pest survey and information service. This special war 

 activity was organized last May in cooperation with the New York 

 vState Food Supply Commission, the State College of Agriculture, the 

 farm bureaus, the State Experiment Station, and other agencies 

 cooperating with the State Entomologist. An additional stenog- 

 rapher was engaged in this work from May 23d to July 31st. This 

 service, since its organization and up to September 1st, sent out 

 729 letters, 4763 copies of circulars, 1729 copies of the fifteen weekly 

 digests prepared, 1754 report blanks and 12,174 pages of circular 

 matter. It has received 606 reports from over 100 correspondents 

 located in all parts of the State, mostly representatives of the New 

 York State Food Supply Commission. 



The main purpose of the survey was to secure early and accurate 

 reports from all over the State, to summarize the information thus 

 obtained, distribute it promptly, and thus promote the checking 

 or prevention in large measure of the numerous losses naturally 

 inflicted by insect pests. Particular emphasis was laid upon the 

 initial signs of injury in order that the insects might be controlled 

 before material damage had been inflicted. The survey was closely 

 articulated with the control work in the field under the supervision of 

 Messrs Crosby and Matheson of Cornell University. The more 

 important crops received first attention, especially the insect enemies 

 of potatoes, fruits (such as apples, pears, peaches and cherries), 



