State Museum of Natural History. 53 



which are specially fitted by structure of bill for removing the skin 

 from our hairy caterpillars previous to swallowing the uicely prepared 

 tid-bit. 



The Chinch-Bug is Northern New York. 



Another insect attack, which has claimed my attention during the 

 past season, presents so many interesting features, and threatens to be 

 of so great importance to the agricultural interests of our State, that I 

 beg leave to present to your board a report of my personal observations 

 upon it. That it might be given the immediate publicity which, in 

 view of the approach of winter, seemed so desirable, it was communi- 

 cated to the Albany Argus, and was published in the issue of October 

 10. It is as follows : 



During the last week in September a package of insects was sent to 

 the State Agricultural §ociety, with the following statement in regard 

 to them, from Mr. M. H. Smith, of Eedwood, Jefferson county: " I here- 

 with transmit specimens of (to us) a new and formidable grass-destroy- 

 ing insect, together with portions of grass destroyed by them, and also 

 some of the soil, for the purpose of examination. If the insect is 

 known to you and there is any known way to exterminate it, please 

 inform us at once. The evidence of its destructive work was first dis- 

 covered in June of 1882 by Mr. H. 0. King, of Hammond, St. Law- 

 rence county. At haying-time, about the middle of July, he noticed 

 about three acres of his timothy grass to be apparently prematurely 

 ripened. In the fall he observed that there was no aftergrowth, and 

 that the stubble was as dead as if it had been boiled. Search was made 

 among the dead roots without any discovery. The following spring 

 the field was entirely barren of timothy, but some clover, weeds and 

 thistles occupied the ground where at least one and one-half tons of 

 timothy to the acre, under favorable circumstances, would have been 

 cut. In June of 1883 Mr. King discovered other fields to be affected 

 in the same manner, and instituted a search which has recently re- 

 sulted in the discovery of myriads of the insect, not in the dead grass, 

 but at the edge of the live grass, where they may be scraped up by 

 handfuls. They have destroyed about fifteen acres for Mr. King and 

 several acres for each of several other farmers of his vicinity. They 

 are causing extreme alarm, and if you can give any relief from this 

 calamity it will be gratefully appreciated. This is an important graz- 

 ing locality. In addition to the timothy, June grass and wire grass 

 are also destroyed." 



The insect identified. — The insects being submitted to me by Secre- 

 tary Harison, of the State Agricultural Society, I was compelled — 

 although almost distrusting the evidence of my eyes — to recog- 

 nize them as the notorious chinch-bug of the Southern and Western 

 States. I had never before seen a ~New York specimen, nor had I 

 knowledge of its occurrence within our limits, other than the record 

 of Dr. Fitch, of his meeting with three individuals during the winter 

 time upon willows. Dr. Harris, the eminent Entomologist of New 

 England, had seen one specimen in Massachusetts. In each instance 

 the occurrence was deemed of such interest that the date of observa- 

 tion was given. 



