80 
PARASITES OF GIPSY AND BROWX-TAIL MOTHS. 
hymenopterous parasites either in the field or from the thousands of 
larva? reared in rearing frames. It became apparent that the con- 
ditions were unfavorable for the purposes in mind of assembling 
parasites for export, and it was decided to shift our headquarters to 
a more promising locality. 
On June 5 a new base of operations was established at the town 
of Bendery on the Dniester River. Quarters were selected in the 
principal hotel, the Petersburgia, and in a remote corner of the exten- 
sive grounds of the hostelry a temporary laboratory was constructed 
in which several tiers of rearing frames were erected. The forest 
conditions in this district were much more diversified than at Gau- 
chesty. To the northeast of the town at a distance of 7 versts was 
the' forest of Gerbofsky, occupying a dry elevated area of about 
5,000 acres and consisting almost exclusively of mature oak trees. 
To the southward, on the banks of the river, was the forest of Kitz- 
kany, composed largely of black poplar, maple, and willow. In both 
of these forests the caterpillars of the gipsy moth were found in 
immense numbers, and evidence of attack by both hymenopterous 
and dipterous parasites was readily obtained, although nowhere in 
the abundance hoped for. For two weeks the two forests, as well as 
the extensive orchards in the vicinity of Bendery and the neighboring 
town of Tiraspol, were scoured for parasites. A number of Russian 
boys were pressed into service and trained to assist in making collec- 
tions, at which they became quite expert. Except for a few clusters 
of cocoons derived from Apanteles fulvipes Hal., the only hymenop- 
terous parasite to appear in considerable abundance was Apanteles 
solitarius. Caterpillars of the gipsy moth attacked by this species 
crawl down to the trunk or lower branches of the tree and collect in 
colonies on the lower side of the branches, under bark, in cavities 
and other sheltered places. Here the larva of the parasite emerges 
and spins its cocoon beneath the body of its host. The task of col- 
lecting these scattered cocoons was a tedious one, since it was neces- 
sary to remove each one carefully from the bark without undue 
pressure and also to disentangle it from the hairy body of its host. 
In the forest of Kitzkany, where the conditions were favorable for 
bacterial infection owing to excessive dampness, the caterpillars of 
the gipsy moth were swept away in vast numbers by a bacterial 
disease before any extensive defoliation took place. . The search for 
hymenopterous parasites in this district soon become a vain one, 
since very few of the caterpillars appeared to have escaped the 
infection. 
The forest of Gerbofsky, owing to its being elevated, open, and 
well drained, was not favorable for bacterial infection and no trace 
of disease was observed. This forest was therefore almost com- 
pletely defoliated by the caterpillars, and multitudes of the insects, 
failing to find any further nourishment upon the oaks, descended to 
the ground, where they died in great numbers, apparently from 
starvation. Hymenopterous parasites seemed to play a relatively 
small part in the destruction of the caterpillars, since the attacks of 
AjHinielcH so/.Jfarius were of the most scattering character. In the 
shrubbery growths adjacent to the main forest, where new planta- 
tions had been recently established by the forester in charge, a con- 
siderable number of Calosoma were found at work destroying the 
caterpillars, but their operations did not appear to extend into the 
