292 -Annual Ueport for 1887 of the Qonsidting EniomologiH. 
of the barley crop was destroyed by it at various places ia the 
east of England. 
The injury is caused hj this corn-fly — the Chlorops tceniopus 
(which is a stumpy-made, two-winged fly, black and yellow in 
colour, and only about one-eighth of an inch long) — laying its 
egg on or near the lowest part of the ear, and the maggot which 
hatches out gnawing a channel down one side of the stem to the 
uppermost knot. This blackened furrow, and the ear often 
injured at the lowest part, and frequently unable to free itself 
from its sheath, are the special signs of Chlorops' attack. 
Various recipes are given for checking this attack, but I 
believe that a healthy growth where the plant is neither gorged 
by damp in the water furrows, nor dried and un manured on bad 
ground, where I have specially seen it, is the best method of 
preventing loss from it. But judging by records and my own 
experience for fifteen years or more, I know no reason to 
expect a recurrence of this, which has been our worst corn 
attack of the last season, unless we have again a season of 
exceptional heat and drought. 
Corn saw-fly attack (that of the Cephus ])y(]mceus) was also 
unusually observed last season, and was certainly very injurious 
in some localities, though not nearly as much reported to me as 
Chlorops. This saw-fly is a small black-and-yellow, four-winged, 
and somewhat wasp-like fly, and does harm by its maggot 
feeding within the corn stalks, travelling up through the knots, 
and then down again, and ending by biting the stem nearly 
through in a ring just about ground level when the corn 
is nearly ripe. As a matter of course, the stem falls easily, 
and in common circumstances may pass as storm-broken, but 
in last year's alarms the fallen straw attracted unusual atten- 
tion. 
This attack, like that of Chlorops, has long been here. I 
have had personal knowledge of it myself as long as about 
eighteen years ago ; it has been recorded as abundant as far 
back as the year 1835, and though widely distributed on the 
Continent of Europe, I am not aware of it being recorded 
amongst the injurious insects of America. I mention the above 
points in consequence of great alarm having been expressed 
as to this being a new attack now being imported from 
America. 
As the maggot goes into chrysalis at or below ground level, 
in the stump which it has itself sawn the top off", there is not the 
slightest fear of it being imported in either seeds of any kind or 
straw, and any recurrence of last season's attack from the chrys- 
alids now in the stumps may be easily and surely prevented by 
skimming and dragging the roots and stubble, or collecting 
