4 
BULLETIN 116. 
correspondence showed that the species were identical. Glover in 
1877 revived Fitch’s name of Lecanium acericorticis which had been 
overlooked up to that time. 
While this portion of the problem of synonomy was being thrashed 
out, Mr. J. Duncan Putnam was making a careful study of the life his¬ 
tory. Four articles came from his pen. The first three were printed 
under Walsh and Riley’s name of Lecanium acericola . (*). The 
fourth article is a very thorough study of the life history covering 
some fifty pages of text and accompanied by two plates. (**). In 
it the author, at the suggestion of Prof. Riley, restored the original 
name of innumerabilis and transferred the species to the genus Pul- 
v in aria. 
While this discussion appeared to clear the field to the point given 
it was far from doing so. It appears that Walsh and Riley, Putnam 
and other writers had collectively confused at least three distinct 
species. This state of affairs was discovered by Dr. Howard and unraveled 
by him in 1900. (***). In their original article Walsh and Riley had really 
included two species in both the cut and description; one in which the 
female reached the adult stage on the twigs and corresponds to P. 
innumerabilis Rathv., and a second which matures on the leaves and 
receives the name P. acericola W. & R. A third form, P. maclura 
occurring on osage orange had been considered synonymous with P • 
innumerabilis by some writers. Prof. Cockerell has since examined 
this and considers it entirely distinct. To the western form the latter 
writer has given the varietal name of occidentalism If this should prove 
to be a distinct species it will raise again the question of its introduction. 
Some of the scales found on food plants widely separated from maple 
may yet be found to be distinct from P. innumerabilis. 
§ 
DISTRIBUTION 
This insect is a native of the United States and our literature 
dates from its discovery by Dr. S. S. Rathvon in Pennsylvania. It 
has, however, long been widely distributed over the country. (See 
Fig. 1.) Mr. Sanders calls attention to the fact that the insect is 
preeminently an inhabitant of the upper austral zone, though some¬ 
times it penetrates the transitional. In other words it is found in the 
middle zone of states extending from the Atlantic coast to the Rocky 
mountains. Outside of this range it is found northward in New York, 
Michigan and Wisconsin. To the south, branches appear to follow 
the highlands into Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina and at the 
western extremity into Texas. Mr. Gossard found it on pecans in 
Florida, where in some cases, it was doing considerable injury. In the 
western states the pest is reported from Washington, Oregon, Idaho 
and California (both northern and southern) where it is believed to be 
an introduced insect. 
*(Prof. Davenport Academy of Nat. Sci.,Vol. I., p. 37, 1876; Davenport Daily 
Gazette, June 5,1877; Trans. Iowa Horticultural Soc., 1877, pp. 317-324.) 
**(Proceedings Davenport Acad. Nat. Sci., Vol. II, Part V., pp. 297-347,1879.) 
***(U. S. Dept. Agr. Division of Entomology, Bui. 22, n. s.) 
