Dee. 1896.] 



INJURIOUS INSECTS AND FUNGI. 



275 



by these creatures and proved very efficacious. It was observed 

 also that a dressing of soot and lime was of considerable value, 

 applied early in the season, to a piece of wheat suffering from a 

 bad attack of wireworms. After it had been put on, the wheat 

 was rolled, and, rain coming on soon after, the wheat grew rapidly. 

 A dressing of 6 or 7 cwt. of kainit has also been found useful in 

 the attacks of wireworms and " thousand-legs." 



There have not been so many complaints as usual with respect 

 to the turnip flea-beetle, or " fly." Turnips failed to come up in 

 many districts, or did not come up until late in the season after 

 rain had fallen, so that the beetles were starved out. The same 

 remark applies in a degree to the mangel-fly (Anthomyia 

 betcB). Mangels were very late in coming up and in forming 

 plants, the flies, therefore, found no fit places for depositing their 

 -eggs, and the usual generations were not produced in rapid 

 succession. 



Statements were received that peas were injured by a species 

 of Thrips. Upon examining peas that were unhealthy a Thrips 

 was certainly present in the pods, but not nearly in sufficient 

 numbers to cause the disorder. Species of the Thripida? have 

 been extraordinarily abundant everywhere this summer, and 

 have caused much annoyance to many persons by running over 

 their hands and face. They sometimes cause considerable injury 

 to wheat and oats by sucking up the juices of the swelling 

 grains. One species is troublesome to beans in Germany. A 

 piece of barley was noticed on the 13th of July to be of a 

 different colour from the neighbouring fields, and ripening too 

 fast. Thrips and their yellow larvae, which also feed upon the 

 juices of the grain, were found in most of the ears, but they 

 were principally confined to the lower part of the ear, and were 

 hardly in sufficient numbers to account for the changed colour 

 of the crop. 



The " Army Worm " {Leucania unipuncta). 



The Board have received information through the Foreign Office 

 of great damage caused last summer to crops of timothy grass, 

 rye, and maize in the state of New York by the " army worm." 

 This " worm," the caterpillar of the moth Leucania unipuncta, 

 is always to be found in the United States, and in some years in 

 such quantities that they move like an invading host, and the 

 mischief caused by them is disastrous. On the present occasion 

 the devastation caused by them was noticed early in July ; the 

 caterpillars were first seen at the begiuning of June, but owing 

 to their habit of feeding chiefly at night their numbers were 

 not suspected to be considerable until much damage had been 

 done. They will eat almost any green food, and it is estimated 

 that in New York State, to which the attack was confined, 

 they have this year ruined, crops to the value of several million 

 dollars. 



