February, '15] 



WEISS: RECENT INSECT IMPORTATIONS 



133 



"the Association approve the substance of the proposed bill and that 

 a committee be appointed by the chair to consist of five members to 

 approve the final wording of the bill. Said committee to have power 

 to act." The committee appointed by the chair consisted of Messrs. 

 Marlatt, O'Kane, Worsham, Gillette and Sanders. 



SOME RECENT INSECT IMPORTATIONS INTO NEW JERSEY 



By Harry B. Weiss, New Brunswick, N. J. 



Inasmuch as the state of New Jersey imports from the various 

 countries of Europe, Asia and South America, an average of 12,000 

 parcels of nursery stock every year, it is not surprising to find injuri- 

 ous forms coming over and in some instances becoming established. 

 Scale insects are the most numerous of these importations, chief 

 among which are Coccus hesperidum Linn, occurring on bay trees from 

 Belgium, Chrysomphalus dictyospermi Morg. on palms from Belgium, 

 Hemichionaspis aspidistrce Sign, on aspidistra and ferns from Bel- 

 gium, Diaspis hoisduvalU on orchids from England, Targionia hiformis 

 Ckll. on orchids from Venezuela and the United States of Colombia, 

 Pseudaonidia pceonice Ckll. on azaleas from Japan and Diaspis penta- 

 gona Targ. on peach stock from Japan, also Lepidosaphes ulmi Linn, 

 on boxwood from Holland. 



Except in the case of greenhouse species which were established in 

 New Jersey, all infested plants were destroyed. During the fall of 

 1911 ants were taken from the packing in a case of roses imported 

 from Germany. Unfortunately they were overlooked until the spring 

 of 1914 when they were sent to Dr. W. M. Wheeler who identified them 

 as specimens of the Argentine ant, Iridomyrmex humilis Mayr, which 

 has been such a plague in the southern states and in California and 

 which has recently been introduced into South Africa and Portugal. 

 Dr. Wheeler was at a loss to understand its occurrence in Germany 

 unless it had happened to be living in greenhouses. It is a tropical 

 species and of course unable to maintain itself out of doors in the 

 northern states or in Germany. Systematic collections of ants were 

 made in several of the largest greenhouses in the state especially where 

 imported stock had been received in large quantities but no Argentine 

 ants were discovered. 



Another interesting capture was the taking of Eucactophagus graphi- 

 pterus Champion during April 1914 in an orchid house at Summit, 

 N. J. This large member of the family Calandridse is a native of Costa 

 Rica and the United States of Colombia. Mr. Schwarz who deter- 

 mined it said that only three specimens were known, one of which had 

 been taken in a Connecticut greenhouse by Dr. Britton. 



