82 

 Mr. Fletcher next presented a paper entitled — 



INSECTS OF THE YEAR IN CANADA. 



By Dr. James Fletcher, Dominion E)itomologist. 



The season of 1903 in Canada has presented some unusual charac- 

 teristics in almost all parts of the Dominion. Until the middle of 

 June an exceptional drought prevailed from the Great Lakes to the 

 Atlantic coast. On the prairies spring conditions were most favor- 

 able, but a cool summer with a moist autumn delayed ripening of all 

 crops. These conditions had a marked influence on the prevalence 

 of insects. There Avere few outbreaks of cutworms and there was no 

 complaint of widespread injury. The pea weevil, which has done so 

 much harm in the pea-growing districts of the Province of Ontario, 

 was decidedly less destructive than usual. This, I believe, was to a 

 large measure due to a vigorous campaign instituted last year to 

 induce farmers and seed merchants to adopt the well-known remedies 

 and preventive measures of controlling this insect. The pea moth 

 was hardly mentioned in correspondence, but occurred to some extent 

 in the Maritime Provinces. Over the same area the carrot rust-fly 

 was the cause of some damage, j)articularly to red carrots. The 

 asparagus beetles, which are a somewhat recent introduction into 

 Canada, occurred over a rather wider area in Ontario than in pre- 

 vious years, and have now spread east as far as Toronto. 



Some of the important pests of the field, orchard, and garden were 

 conspicuously absent last season. There was a marked decrease in 

 the amount of injury by the Hessian fly. This insect was observed 

 in one or two localities only in western Ontario, where for some years 

 it has been the cause of excessive loss. A slight injury was reported 

 from Manitoba and the northwest territories, as well as from Prince 

 Edward Island. In the case of the northwestern records there is 

 no doubt that there was some confusion with injuries both by the 

 wheat-stem maggot (Meromyza americana) and the wheat-stem sawfly 

 (Cephas pygmcmis). There was hardly a complaint of injury by the 

 squash bug (Anasa tristis DeG.), and no mention whatever of the 

 tent caterpillars. Even those two redoubtable enemies of the fruit 

 grower the codling moth and the plum curculio failed to appear in 

 sufficient numbers to draw attention. The codling moth in the east- 

 ern part of the Dominion, where there is only one brood, scarcely 

 affected the crop at all, and west of Toronto, where there are two 

 broods, it was only late in the season when an}' injury was noticeable. 

 This exemption from injury is due undoubtedly, in a large measure, 

 to the nature of the season, but has been contributed to b}^ improved 

 orchard methods, including systematic spraying b} T most of our best 

 fruit growers. The double method of sprajdng in spring and band • 

 ing with burlap in autumn have been recommended, and fruit grow- 



