THE MELON PLANT-LOUSE. 
(Aphis cucumeris, n. sp.) 
Order HEMIPTERA. Family Aphidid^. 
[A minut6, very sluggish, green or greenish-black insect, occurring in immense num- 
spri i ng late summe r upon the under sides of the leaves and also upon the 
k Q u^uektnelons, watermelons, cucumbers, squashes, and other cucurbitaceous 
devefopm&^of^e^lanti] 111 and shnvel and lose their color, and greatly hindering 
1 
[Ttis plant-louse, coming from no one knows where, has clone, 
:mg the last two years, widespread mischief to the plants which 
ittacks. It was first noticed in the Farmers’ Review for Septem- 
’ 2, 1880, by Dr. Cyrus Thomas, then State Entomologist of Illi- 
i s, who says : 
‘ There has been great complaint among our gardeners this sea- 
i in reference to a plant-louse that is doing much injury to the 
limeg and muskmelon vines, and also to the cucumber vines. In 
re instances they have almost entirely destroyed entire fields of 
es.” 
le does not say definitely to what part of the State his remarks 
i r e reference, but implies in another part of the article that he is 
ting of Southern Illinois. 
n 1881, at Marengo, in Northern Illinois, where large fields of 
i| umbers are raised for the supply of a pickle factorv, this louse oc- 
'| red in great numbers, but disappeared before the end of the sea- 
i| ^ without doing any grave injury. It also appeared in numbers 
icient to attract attention upon muskmelons and watermelons in 
itral Illinois. Early in the spring of 1882 it made an overwhelm- 
attack in many localities upon both watermelons and muskmel- 
i . In a garden at Normal, for example, it appeared upon the 
i is when they had run about six or seven feet, soon literally cov- 
g and killing them, (the striped cucumber-beetle assisting to some 
1 rnt in this work), and the ground was plowed up and planted to 
f ther crop. About the 1st of July it again attracted attention in 
e fields of cucumbers at Normal, spreading rapidly and arresting 
growth of the worst infested plants. Where muskmelons and 
! imbers grew together, the latter were comparatively little injured, 
|j the melons were sometimes almost completely destroyed, the 
I amounting in some . cases to less than five per cent, of the 
;j); in fact, many of the hills in these fields did not run at all, 
