20 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



which could be given to the identification and arrangement of collec- 

 tions, though some progress has been made along these lines. 



The special work upon European corn borer authorized by the 

 last Legislature necessitated the temporary transfer of Mr Young tj 

 take charge of the work and the appointment of W. H. Hoffman to 

 fill the temporary vacancy. Hall B. Carpenter has been appointed 

 special assistant in corn borer work. 



It is impossible, as pointed out in the previous report, to build up 

 the state collections in a satisfactory manner without more funds and 

 assistance, since work of this character is very exacting and time- 

 consuming. 



Horticultural inspection. The nursery inspection work of the 

 bureau of plant industry, State Department of Farms and Markets, 

 has resulted as in former years in a number of specimens represent- 

 ing various stages of insect development, some in very poor condi- 

 tion, being submitted to this office for identification. 



The need of accurately identifying borers in weeds and corn found 

 in connection with European com borer operations of last summer 

 has resulted in the Entomologist giving much time to the study of 

 boring caterpillars for the purpose of distinguishing between the 

 destructive and comparatively innocuous forms. This was very 

 important since the boundaries of the infested territory were neces- 

 sarily determined by the identifications of all such material. 



General. The work of the office has been materially aided as in 

 past years by the identification of a number of species through the 

 courtesy of Dr L. O. Howard, chief of the Bureau of Entomology, 

 United States Department of Agriculture, and his associates. There 

 has been very effective and close cooperation with the State Depart- 

 ment of Farms and Markets, particularly the bureau of plant indus- 

 try, the county farm bureau, the State Experiment Station and vari- 

 ous public welfare organizations. A number of correspondents 

 have donated material and rendered valuable service by transmitting 

 local data respecting various insects and assisting in other ways. It 

 is a pleasure to record that there has been, as in the past, a most 

 helpful cooperation on the part of all interested in the work of the 

 office. 



ZOOLOGY 



The attention of the Zoologist, in the line of investigation, has con- 

 tinued to be directed to the study of the extensive Araneid fauna of 

 the State. Supplementing the general account of the spiders of New 

 York but preliminary to it, a revision of the family Pisauridae has 

 been undertaken, and is nearing completion. 



