236 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



Last year the so-called forest tent caterpillar, Clisiocampa disstria 

 Hiibn., was very injurious in certain parts of the state, stripping the 

 foliage from hundreds of acres of maples and other trees in Delaware 

 county and in other portions of the state. It was hoped that the ravages 

 by this species would not be repeated the present season, but such was 

 not the case. Examples of this caterpillar were received from Glens 

 Falls, N. Y., on June 2, with the statement that they were very numerous 

 and injuring the maples seriously. At Trenton Falls, N. Y., the cater- 

 pillars were very abundant, and injurious in the woods, though the 

 trees were only partially defoliated. At Russell, St Lawrence county, 

 the leaves were stripped from 125 acres of maple-trees, most probably 

 •by this species. It was also reported to me as very injurious this year in 

 Otsego, Delaware and Greene counties. 



Mamestra picta Harris. A remarkable abundance of larvae in 

 timothy hay was brought to my notice on July 13. Mr W. C. Browning, 

 of Alexandria Bay, states that he had been putting in hay from a 20-acre 

 lot and the next morning found the surface of the mow literally alive with 

 caterpillars, identified from' examples sent as those of this species. Large 

 numbers must have been present in the field, as they had probably been 

 gathered up with the hay accidentally. In response to an inquiry, Mr 

 Browning informed me that the caterpillars had not been observed except 

 on this field. Last year they had entirely destroyed his crop of oats, and 

 this season they were much more numerous than before. 



Xylina antennatta Walker.^ One of the most interesting and 

 remarkable outbreaks of the year occurred at Schenectady, N. Y.. 

 when hundreds of silver maples were defohated by the caterpillars 

 belonging to the species named above. My attention was called 

 to the insect by a young man bringing me about J- pint of larvae 

 with a story of their destructiveness. On visiting the city, it was 

 found that the reports were true. The soft maples were practically 

 stripped. Numerous larvae were seen on the trunks, in some cases 50 to 

 100 on a single tree. Many were seen along the walks and in the road- 

 ways bordered by the maples. Even were one deprived of sight, the 

 olfactory organs could easily detect their presence from the peculiar odor 

 emanating from the hosts of caterpillars. There were no indications of 

 the insects' work in Albany, though only 17 miles distant, but along the 

 Mohawk river as far west as Herkimer, on the Raqueite river in St Law- 

 rence county and in Schoharie county many soft maples were defoliated, 

 indicating the work of the same insect, possibly, though the species 

 could not be determined because no examples were submitted. The 



a Determined by Drs H. G. Dj-ar and J B. Smith. 



