State Museum of Natural History. 55 



are, upon examination, being made daily. A present range of about 

 eight miles is indicated. It is believed to occur throughout most of 

 the town of Hammond, and to extend into Alexandria. 



Just cause for alarm. — Without any desire to play the role of an 

 alarmist, I feel it my duty to say that, as the result of my observations, 

 this chinch-bug invasion of northern New York threatens to be the 

 most serious insect attack to which our State has ever been subjected. 

 The following are my reasons for this belief : 



. It has planted itself, maintained a footing, and has shown a rapid 

 increase under unfavoring, unpropitious and unnatural conditions, 

 such as these : 



First. It is regarded as a southern insect (extending farther north- 

 ward, as do most animal forms, in the Mississippi valley), yet it has 

 appeared in the most northern county of the State, and upon (if the 

 report be reliable) the St. Lawrence river. 



Second. Its attack has been made upon timothy. This seems to be 

 its most unusual food-plant, and, therefore, we infer, the least suited 

 to it. All previous accounts concur in giving it a preference for spring 

 wheat above all things else ; next in order, oats or corn, and last the 

 grasses. Timothy is only mentioned as occasionally attacked by it. 



Third. In all previous accounts, great prominence has been given 

 to its being a hot and dry weather insect, dependent upon these con- 

 ditions, not only for its multiplication, but for its existence. Heavy 

 rains have been claimed* to be invariably fatal to it. It could not 

 abound, it is stated, in a wet season. Dr. Fitch had even made rec- 

 ommendation of sprinkling it with water (an artificial shower), as the 

 best means for its extermination. In the present instance, the bug 

 obstinately persists in multiplying, contrary to all rule. The past year 

 and the present have both been years of excessive rainfall in St. 

 Lawrence county. Spring, summer and autumn have been exception- 

 ally wet. In the spring, I am told that heavy and continued rains 

 flooded meadows now showing the chinch-bug attack. At haying 

 time, when the bugs were young, and, according to all the statements 

 hitherto made, readily killed by wet, the rains were so frequent and 

 severe, that the grass cut could only be secured with difficulty. Upon 

 Mr. King's farm much of it was drawn in, upon favorable days, by 

 improving the opportunity of extending the labor into hours after 

 nightfall. At the present time grass is lying in fields in stacks, 1 which 

 could not be gathered, owing to continued rain, and fields of oats are 

 still un harvested. 



Persistence of the attack. — It is shown, by the above statements, 

 that the insect has rapidly increased and largely extended its area dur- 

 ing the present year, under conditions which should have been fatal 

 to it. Why it has been otherwise may perhaps find its explanation 

 in the fact that it is a new introduction into this part of the United 

 States, and that it is following the law well known to prevail in the 

 introduction from abroad (Europe, principally) of nearly all of our in- 

 jurious insects. With scarcely an exception, with their importation 

 they become far more destructive, causing greater ravages and often 

 attacking new food-plants. 



