October, ’24] 
SCIENTIFIC NOTES 
603 
land near the woods, where there were many pieces of rotten wood in which the in¬ 
sects feed. Further observations showed that a few of the wireworms were on higher 
ground. 
Larval specimens submitted to Mr. J. A. Hyslop of the Bureau were determined as 
MelanoHis sp'. 
Various experiments in the control of this pest have been started. 
As far as known to the writers, this is the first report of wireworms seriously injur¬ 
ing sugar cane in Lousiana. It is believed that the land newly reclaimed from the 
swamp was naturally infested with them, and finding sugar cane at hand they turned 
their attention to this crop. They feed on the “eyes” of the planted seed cane, and 
bore into the young plants below the surface of the ground in a manner somewhat 
similar to the sugar cane moth borer, Diatraea saccharalis. 
It is to be noted that corn in adjoining fields appears to be free of attack. 
W. E. Anderson, Louisiana State Entomologist 
T. E. Holloway, Bureau of Entomology 
Wohlfartia vigil Walker Attacking Man.— A first stage larva about 0.6 mm,, 
long, presumably of this species of flesh fly, was removed, along with several others,, 
from the conjunctivae of a man affected with some conjunctivitis, and resident in 
Cattaraugus County, New York State. Avery small cyst was observed, which con¬ 
tained several living maggots. Walker (Journ. Parasit., 7:1-7, 1920) has recorded! 
two cases of infestation in 1920 and another in 1921 (Ibid. 9:1-5, 1922), all infants 
with the infestations characterized by boil-like sores on the exposed upper parts of 
the body, especially the neck and arms. This appears to be the first American 
record of adult infestation of the eye, such as is recorded for the European W. 
magnifica. Infestation is presumably most likely in heavy sleepers, especially some¬ 
what defenseless young children. 
E. P. Felt 
The Apparent Eradication of the Argentine Ant from Fayette, Mississippi.— During 
the summer of 1922 the Argentine ant was discovered at Fayette, Mississippi by one 
of the Plant Board inspectors, Mr. G. W. Alexander. 
A survey made during the late summer revealed the fact that the infestation 
covered only one and a half blocks. Realizing that the chances for eradication were 
remarkably good, the Plant Board advised the authorities to undertake successive 
fall campaigns for the purpose of eradicating the ants. The town authorities readily 
agreed to this, so in the fall of 1922 the writer and Mr. Alexander distributed 750 
cans of poison throughout the infested area. This was at least twice the amount 
usually put on blocks of the same size in larger campaigns. At the time the poison 
was put but, the ants were sufficiently abundant to be seen here and there without 
any particular search for them. 
The latter part of the next summer (1923), the writer visited Fayette and went 
carefully over the infested area hunting for ants, but only two small colonies were 
found. Conversations with people living in the infested area convinced the writer 
that the ants had become almost exterminated by the first poisoning. A second cam¬ 
paign was put on in the fall, the same amount of poison being used as previously. 
In June, 1924, the writer spent almost two days going over the infested area hunt¬ 
ing for Argentine ants but found none. Numerous native ants were present in the 
once infested territory, such species as the fire ant, Solenopsis geminata Fabr., the 
tiny black ant, Monomorium minimum, Buckley, the small sugar ant, Prenolepis 
