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UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

BUREAU OF
ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE
NEWS LETTER

VOLUME IX 4

Sarre Bui es
a ae yon het

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ans.

————

—_—__

UNITED STATES ciiaacacammaid Of AGRICULTURE
BUREAU OF = TTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE
RVEE ees: Pau Sea ER

FOR NOVEMBER 19421

Volee eae. 2 (Not for publication) .. January 1, 1942

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| REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR |

Als |

ADMINISTRATION

Rohwer end Popham Receive New Assignments

On December 4, 1941, Sievert A. Rohwer was placed in

charge or regulatory work, retaining nis ae eS) SPs e
assistant chief of the Bureau, and William Lee Popham was ap—

pointed an assistant chief in-charge of control operations.

Mr. Rohwer was born in Telluride, Colo., on December 22,
1888. He was educated in Colorado and came to the eee
in-1909 as a taxonomist. In 1924 he was placed in charge of
the new Division of Insect Identification of the Bureau of Ento-
mology, and in 1927 was. assigned to general administrative
duties. When Plant Quarantine and Control Administration was
created in 1926 he was appointed assistant chief of that Bureau.
In 1933 Mr. Ronwer was transferred to the Bureau of Entomology
as assistmt chief and continued as such Pees the Bureau of
Entomology and Plant Quarantine was created in 193.

ir. Popham was born in Corvallis, Mont., on February 26,
tL, He received a B. S. degree in agriculture from Montana
te College in 1923, and did 2 years! postgraduate work in
any and plant pathology at the same school, His first po-
ion was with the Montana State Horticultural Board, and he
entered the Department of Agriculture!s Bureau of Plant Industry
in September 1924 as a State leader in black stem rust control.
In 1928 he became regional leader for Montana and Wyoming and in
1930 a field supervisor for 13 North Central States. He came to
Washinzston as assistant chief of the Division of Barberry

sie

Eradication in 1931 and when this work was taken over by con—
sOlidation with the Bureau of Emtomolozy and Plant Quarantine
in 1934 he was placed in charge of barberry—-eradicstion work.

Report by Bureau Hyewitness of Attack on Pearl Harbor

"On the morning of December 7, 1941, Jim Nichols and I
had gone to Hickam Field for a routine inspection of planes due
to arrive at 6 a. m., and also to cover ships due to arrive at
Pearl. Harbor, which-is adjacent to Hickam Field, a little-laters
Since the planes had not arrived by 7:30 a. m., I told Jim that
perhaps I should go over to Pearl Harbor and see if the ships
had entered. On the way over to the Pearl Harbor Gate, I had a
hunch that maybe it would be better if I 'yhoned the Officer of
the Day from the Gate, and, if the ships were not in, go back
to Hickam Field to help him. I called the O. D. and he told me
the first ship would dock in about 45 minutes, and asked me to
come up end have coffee with him and the customs officers. At
first 1 chougnt I might do so, especially since I had not had
any that morring, but before I had much time to think, I had
told hin that I had to go back to Hickam to do some work. When
I returned to Hickam Field, about 7:45, Nichols was walking around
outside the operations building.I honked, and he came over and
sat in the car with me. We had sat there talking perhaps 5 or

Minutes when suddenly the quiet mnday morning air was torn
with the droning, whistling screech of planes in the direction
of Pearl Harbor. Then we heard an explasion, then another,

We immediately got out of the car, and saw dive bombers diving
into Pearl Harbor in quick succession, each releasing his deadly
explosives. We watched this, stunned, for perhaps 450 seconds,
thinking at first-——and hoping——-that it was practice fire. Boil-—
ing, swirling clouds of black smoke told us, however, that this
was not a practice session, but the real thing. Of a sudden
there ceme roaring from high adove on our right a dive bomber,
nosing directly toward our location in Hickam Field. The bomb
burst within perhaps a-hundred yards of our car, sending giant
streaks of bluish—brown soil high into the air. Up to this
time, I had noticed no unusual activity on the field; the men
standing around seemed stunned, as we were, at the show taking
place before our eyes. Then I asked Jim if he didn't think we
should try to get out of the reservation before activities or
bomb holes blocked our way. I suppose he said 'yes,! because

we were soon under way. Now the air was filled with planes—
not only dive bombers but with bombers skimming just over the
trees and over our heads as we drove along. Army men with pis-
tols pulled them out and shot at the invaders. They replied
with machine-gun fire. ‘the bullets made puffs of dust along our
way and zinged through the air as they ricocheted off the pave—
ment and other objects. We could see the bonds under the low
flying planes as they flew into Pearl Harbor. In the excitement,
it seemed that there were hundreds of the ships, all eneny, but
perhaps there were not more than a hundred. Before we were more

than a mile from Pearl Harbor, other clouds of smoke were billow-
ing from the Naval Reservation, and the sky was flecked with

puffs of antiaircraft shells. Back in Honolulu the streets were
quiet and no one seemed to know of the attack. Our fellow workers
on Sunday duty in the Post Office laughed at our story of an
attack on the islands. Of all the birthdays I will ever celebrate,
December 7 of 1941 will no dowdt remain the most indelibly marked."

BUREAU EMPLOYEES CALLED TO ses COLORS OR TRANSFERRED
TO SPECIAL NATIONAL DEFENSE ASSIGNMENT

James, Edwin F., Under Biological Aide, Fruit ins., inducted,
Select. Serv., November 7, 19/41.

FRUIT INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

Lead arsenate injures peach foliage in South.—-This year

s in the South were wunusually favorable for in-

pea ees from the use of lead arsen e. According to
Oliver I. Sn napp, of the Fort Valley, Ga., lab

Cipitation was recorded on 19 days in June, 1 5

16 days in August. Injury fren lead arsenate aes

100)
ch RHIC

peach trees according to the regular scnedule inc:

by the end of peach harvest on July 21, it amounte v

a ee injury, severe defoliation, and occasional fruit injury.
ne Eee: taat ae received the regular schedule of eee arsenate

when oe I pee for foliage injury were ae on Sep=
tember 12, 7 weeks after peach harvest, whereas the trees that
received no lead arsenate during the season were in full foliage
on that date. This injury caused many fruit buds to open in Sep-
tember, which will reduce the 1942 peach crop on these trees.

Partial protection of raisins from saw—-toothed grain
beetle.—Two ene Stoe= of boxes of stored raisins, pr
peared pared by Charle Fisher, of the Fresno, Calif., pe ea
were sampled ile ewe a stack was protectsd by an oil—
filled trough barrier at ground level and by a canvas cover,
edged with a tanglefoot Bee nee to prevent infestation by
insects falling from the roof structure. The other stack was un—
protected. Before the storage period began, the raisins were
Passed over a cleaner. The calculated infestation of Oryzaephilus
surinamensis (lL.)} per ton in the protected and unprotected stacks
is shown in the following table.

B SS

se alii

ORS surinanens is ine

Protected stack Unprotected stack

Date of sampling
c +
. Trams Gu ares Adults! Immature: Adults

oo ee ce

=) , Number : : “Number: it Number as Number

December 7, 5 I4O= tee Sie OSS Ram Os (Toc Wiese! $ 2,511
Dota) eta 2 wee : LIL al ie SaaS Gee ES) wee 379

March 1, 194]———=-=-=-_— : On ee Ors Cha 263
April 5, 1941----------- : OA 205% © = 255hs
May 3, 19'41---------—--- 3 Sele 2 3G 2 bo ee
June 7, 1941------------ 2 6,529 21,600 = 45,806. ea iG ee
July 5, 1941----------=-; §,867 +: 7,126: 11,670 +: 13,157
August 2, 1941——------~-- r DGQORS 1,8 2oces , SeOS ee Se
September 6, 194]~~------ : Sls sae eee onoms
Getober W oln eae : 2H ih FsOO. as 120. ee ees
November 1, TCG ——e Agi 8 al soe LT a oe

No larvae nor adults found in Texas.——Grove inspections
were made in November in 2,250 citrus plantings in Texas without
finding any larval infestations of the Mexican fruitfly. Approxi—
mately 5.COO traps were also operated throughout this period, but
no adult Mexican fruitflies were taken. From these results it
would appear that the annual fly movement northward from Mexico

is no further advanced eee normally, and may be somewhat later
this season than usual. Fruit certified for shipment from the
regulated area amounted to o 96,1 equivalent carlots during the
month of November. For the season, Fruit shipments have reached
(:398 equivalent carlots. This is a slight decrease from the
amount or fruit moved from the area for the corresponding period
last season,

CHREAT AND FORAGH INSECT INVESTIGATIONS
. : }
Col tera captured in Japanese beetle traps during 1941.——

Phitip Lusinball. leatavetter laden enorme that, for the fourth
consecutive season, the May beetles captured in Japanese beetle

traps operated at many of the field stations of this Bureau through

the cooperation of Erle G. Brewer, in charge of Japanese beetle
quarantine operations, were sent to the Lafayette laboratory for
determination and study With these Phyllophaga were many beetles
of other genera, most of which were identified and included in a
special report, which is on file in this Division. The collections
during 1941 yielded 9,668 May beetles, representing 54 species and
3 varieties. These came from 54 locations in 22 States and, as in
previous years, most of these were from the southern part of the

United States. These collections also provided new State records
for 8 species, and 6% new county records for many other species.

Rice stinkbug as a pest of sor eas G. Dahms, Lawton,
Okla., reports that sorghums at the United States Dry—land field
station at Lawton were attacked by hordes ats rice stinkbugs (Solu-
bea pugnax Fab. ) from August 7 to August 2%, 1941. As there were
Many varieties anc strains of sorghums growing at the station, an
opportunity was afforded to study the effect of this insect on dif
ferent varieties and on sorghums that matured at different dates.
The varieties that were nearing maturity when the bugs invaded the
field were injured less than were those in the early bloom stage.
Plats of Sumac sorgo maturing on August 13, August 18, and Septen—
ber 5, yielded 49.6, 20.3, and 7.4 bushels per acre, respectively.
One variety, White Darso, Ks. 33-3/%, was injured much less than
were two other varieties of White Darso (Sharon X Darso Wav. 48-12
and Deatm X Darso Wdw.e 52-29), although all three varieties were
"Tirst neaded" on the same day.

JAPANESE BEETLE CONTROL

safety practices and Red “oss
perienced men, scouting over rough terrain, climbing large trees,
and topping and felling trees ar Se fe ake pee eee Ge if definite
safety practices are not otserved. oe use of poorly adapted
W. P. A. personnel for such work has increased the need of safety
training. Because the field crevs are often away from roads and
Other help, first-aid training is important. Furthermore, the
possessicn of good first-aid and snake—bite kits and a knowledge
of first aid has often made it possible to help injured nonemplovees.
The foremanship training manval ee by each field crew contains
a section on safety ew regulations, and suggestions, and a
section on oo ALG. he fis = section is written to serve
the type of injuries likely to occur and the conditions likely to
be present = the accident site. Each crev or truck carries a 10—
unit first—aid kit. The crews working at dist2nces from their
trucks carry pocket kits. Crews working in poisonous-snake areas
carry snake—bite kits. Antivenom for the use of our men is kept
at conveniently located hospitals, police stations, and physicians?
offices. Red Cross first-aid training has been used extensively
during the last 43 years to supplement our safety and first-aid
training. Not only are all supervisors urged to take advantage of
any Red Cross first-aid courses but security—wage workers are en—
couraged to join classes, often conducted by our supervisors. Of
a total personnel of 2,200 over 350 have taken Red Oross first—ai
work. In addition to these 350 men now employed, it is estimated
that 1,000 former W. P. A. workers took first-aid courses when
working on Dutch elm disease. Ten regular employees have instructor's
certificates, 14 others have had advanced courses, and U5 have
standard certificates, whereas only §& have not taken advantage of
first-aid courses. Among the field security—wage workers, there are
3 instructors, and 8 advanced and 262 standard certificates. Among
the regular and W. P. A. employees at the Division headquarters there

first—aid trainins.——To inex-

ata
J
Tet

a
==

are 4 with standard training and 14 who expect to enroll in

courses this season. Those now conducting standard and ad—

vancea courses are O. N. Liming, J. F. Wootten, D..H. Slayback,
Rs E. McCarthy, H. L. Cramer, 5. L. Stonebraker, F. Theall,
A. &. Peters, Vo S. Meni foles-end De sus-tbon.

Connecticut sanitation crews aid in extinguishing fires.—
A sanitation crew arrived at a property in Clinton to heul away
a Graphium tree. They found painters had been burning paint off
‘an unoccupied house. Blow torches had set fire to the walls and
the fire had already reached the roof. The foreman immediately
put into use his fire pump and at the same time sent a-driver to
the nearest telephone to notify the fire department. By the time
the fire equipment arrived the blaze was pretty well under con—
trol. On another occasion a crew foreman, scouting ahead of his
crew tagging trees to be removed, smelled smoke. He knew tnat
he had no fires going in the vicinity and that there were no oc-—
cubied residences nearby. He finally located a grass fire, which
was spreading rapidly tovard the barn in an unoccupied farmyard.
With the help of one of his crew members, he bDeat out the flames
and by the time help arrived had the fire under control.

Many confirmations obtained by sampling elms removed within
25-foot radius of confirmed trees.—-Results obtained in Pernnsyl—
vania from removal of elms within vie feet of original Duteh elm
disease cases offer additional corroboration of the benefits of
this practice. Some 20 oie eane oS ons have been obtained in the
Allentown work area in this manner. In most cases ie orisinst
suspect was removed as beetle material, and the removal of. the 25—
foot—radius elms could not be considered at that time. Aftera
confirmation was receivec, permission was obtained fer the cutting
of nearby elms ang several other discased trees were found. In
many instance oe. trees involved displayed no outward symptoms
and very Little a ee was present. in some places confirma—
tions were obta 1d oar racius by sampling all elms

13
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ee
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B
re
Hh oy

he
in the seamie as te vicini ty the original D. 3. D. “In the Hacstou
district, 6 elms that were Roe the 25—foot radius have so far
been confirmed. All were tagged by sanitation workers while carry-~
ing out eae eee to remove these trees as elms near D. H. Dz
Four of the 6 so removed showed extr emely few dying tips, while 2
showed none, and it is doubtful whether any apparent symptomatic
wilt vas present when the scouts first inspected then.

Beetle material left after lumbering in Berkshire County,
Mass.——Beetle-material scouts in Massachusetts located an area of
about 50 acres which had Deen cut over in connection with lumber-—
ing operations. Approximately 100 elms have been cut for lumber or
damaged in the process. The elms cut are sawed into 2-inch by 6-inch
timbers which, it is reported, are to be used for the crating and
shipping of defense machinery built by a manufacturer in Pittsfield.
The operation was started carly in the fall and is still going on.
The material first cut is heavily infested with Scolytus, and that
cut at a later date is still potential beetle material. The bectle

aie

Material in this area is almost as great as the total amount
tagged in other parts of the area to date. It is believed that
the Scolytus found in this area are the first to be found in
Lenox Township. This discovery is not surprising as Scolytus
has been found in nearly all of the adjoining townships. The
county of Berkshire has large stands of white pine, and defense
needs have increased the cutting of large amounts of this timber.
In nearly every instance some elm is cut or damaged in the
process. Seven of tnese areas have been found to date and they
are an important source of beetle material.

Cooperation of property owners in Connecticut.-—-Through
contact with the Connecticut Experiment Station, R. J. Benham,
of Washington, Conn., learned that this project would remove and
burn beetle-—infested elm material, so he wrate the district super—
visor asking that he inspect a tree on the Congregational Church
property in Washington. The Experiment Station had notified him
that 1% vas bectle-infested and should be removed. It was a large
anc difficult topping job, and with the pressnt scarcity of eapable
toppers in the district, it would have been an extremely difficult
undertaking. Mr. Benham agreed to have the tree topped by a com
1ercial tree company, and also made all arrangements necessary for
acquiring a burning location from a local selectman. Permission
was also obtained for the removal of freshly cut elm wood nearby,
it is believed that Mr. Benham's active participation in the prob—
lem gave him a greater interest in the Dutcn elm disease eradica~—
tion project than if this project had taken over the entire job.

Opening of hunting season necessitates care in placing men.—
With the opening of the small—zame season in Pennsylvania on Novem
ber 1, a large number of gunners were afield. Although some of the
crews were scouting in areas well stocked with various kinds of
small game, the shooting caused the men no inconvenience and there
Was no reason for removing the crews from these areas; however,
when the Dear and deer scason opened the latter part of the month,
crews were removed to safer areas. The possibility of being nis~
taxen for a decr or bear is too great; then, there is always the
chance of being struck by a stray high-powered—-rifle bullet. A
crew assigned to scout for beetle material in a large special prob-—
jem swamp in the Hast Stroudsburg district of Pennsylvania ran into
a bear and they all made for trees. One or two men who could not
Climb in training were able to make the grade wnder these circum
stances.

Nursery cooperates by advising location of slash.—One of
the local nurseries is wholeheartedly cooperating in the attempt
HOerree the Wilkes-Barre, Pa., district of clm slash, which in the
past has been found in large quantitics and which in many cases has
attracted large numbers of beetles. The nursery is engazed in clear—
ing electric light and telephone wires in the city of Wilkes-Barre,
the city of Nanticoke, and in the borough of Plymouth. During the
course of this work they naturally cut considerable elm slash large
enough to harbdcr beetle infestation. They keep the district office

—6—

informed as to where the brush and limbs are taken, affording
the opportunity of seeing that it is completely burned by the
dump attendants or by our ovm crews.

Heavy beetle infestation in beaver swamp.--A large crew
has been engaged in removing infested trees from a beaver~flooded
swamp in the town of Washington, Dutchess County, N. Y. This
work progressed rather slowly because of the deep water which
covers most of the area. Beetles are extremely abundant in the
trees being removed, Scolytus galleries predominating. Adults of
Hylurgopinus were observed hibernating in the outer bark of some
of the trees. A quantity of this material was collected for use
of the Morristown forest—insect laboratory. As an indication of
the density of the beetle population in this swamp, it was ob-—
served that the woodpeckers waddle rather than fly from tree to
tree.

Ohio forest ranger approves burning methods,——The ranger of
the State Forest at Zaleski, Ohio, made an inspection tour of the
burning operetions within forest lands in the Athens, Ohio, Dutch
elm disease vork area. He expressed his complete satisfaction
with the methods of ourning used on the project, especially the pre—
cautions exercised in presuppression work before fires are set. He
was in full accord with the manner in which fires were safeguarded
for the night, which consists of covering over the burning piles or
ashes with a thick layer of earth.

Trees have place in wer spheres.--The following news item
appearei in tne Stamford, Conn., Advocate of November 4: "The
slogan, ~Loughboy, spare that tree!' may gain currency in the army
if the advice of a Stamford tree expert is followed. In a letter
to Secretary of War Stimson, F. A. Bartlett urged better protection
of trees around army camps and airports for camouflage purposes.
Reports from the Huropean battle fronts, he said, indicate that
high-speed cameras have exposed camouflage with fake trees and
paint."

Interesting removal in Pennsylvania.—-An interesting D. HE. D.
tree was removed in the Philadelphia district of Pennsylvania the
first week of the month. It was a blown—over tree and color was
found where the beetles had attacked it. This proved to be Cerato—
stomella ulmi, and when the tree was cut it was found that the coler
had penetrated to the stump. The tree stood on the bank of a wet—
weather stream. When the top was removed, the trunk and stump
assumed an upright position and the trunk section had to be felled
in the regular way.

Tree-surgery company cooperates.-—-lir. Sandt, a representative
of a tree-surgery company, visited the East Stroudsburg district
office of Pennsylvania and advised that he nad a crew on line=
clearance work for a power and light company and was conducting opera—
tions along the Delaware River and west to Log Taverns Ponds. He
agreed to notify the district office of any elm material left over 3
inches in diamoter.

25:

Scolytus found enterins green wood.—Hecent observations
in the southern part of Delaware Countr, Pa., indicate that
Scolytus multistriatus harem has again been attempting to enter
green elm wood.

Property owner hires crew.—Three men in Columbia County,
No Yo, did such a good job of removing a tree on ae property that
the ovmer hired them to take dovm another tree on one of their
days off duty.

Speedy Bureau action authorizes reshipment of out-of—area
elms.—-Information was received on November 7 = om a nursery lo-
cated in the New Jersey Dutch elm disease regulated area, to the
effect that they had an order for some elm trees to be delivered
to a mumoder of defense-housing projects in adjoining States out—
Side tne infected zone. They wished to purchase these trees in
nonquarantined sections, bring them to their nursery, and ship
them tc the destination points along with items other than axret
Under proper safeguards there woulc be no hazard involved i
handling elns from noninfected points when they are both received
and reshipped during the dormant season cf the insects that spread
the disease. Observations of the Division of pene insect Inves-
tigations at the Morristowm, N. J., lsboratory show that the ine
sect vectors of the disease fungus may come to nursery paces to
feed and to hibernate any time between April 15: and Octo!
Accordingly, such receipt and reshipnent night be permit ot with
safety between November 1 and March 31. Re coseer anions for the
ee of administrative instructions to authorize reshipments

© this nature were forwarded to Dr. Annand on November 5, and he
ie (Ac administrative instructions as B. HE. P. @. 51/7 on Noven—
ber &,.effective November 10. A forn of identifying tag to cover
these reshipnents was devised and the nursery made their first re-
shipment under this authorization on Noverbsr 24. There is a
Japanese beetle inspector, on full-time assignnent at this nursery,
so that the matter of recsipt and segregadon of the trees was under
constant observation. This inspector also issued the tags at the
tines of reshipment. The reshipped trees had been received fron a
firm in’ lowa.

Difficulty in obtaining temporary inspectors.—-Cometent,
tenporery AED EC SOLS such as are usually available in the New
England States during the Christmas—tree— and. greenery—cutting
--season, have been ane st unobtainable this year, owing to the
Graft and the demands for defense workers. The sane difficulty
was experienced in obtaining men for the seasonal nursery~- and
sreenhouse—inspection work in the large Connecticut nurseries. In
both instances it was necessary to employ some inspectors with lit-—
tle or no previous gypsy woth experience after a short period of
schooling. .- Men who returned to the Bloonfield, N. J., headquarters
from Japanese beetle soil—trenting work. in North Carolina and Ohio
were innediately reassigned to the Christnaswinspection activities.
Ordinarily these nen would have been loaned to the Division of Do-
Nestic Quarantines for transit-inspection work during the heavy

=0=.
movenent of Christmas ornamentals. Bec
railroad strike in Noveribe on cutters int: | their efforts
to get their shipments off early. nstances it vas
necessary to employ some men in Hew Jersey and send them to New
Hngland on a temporary assignment. Nurserios aid greenhouses are
experiencing the same problen in obtaining helps Some of the es—
tablishments in the Philadelphia area were reported as unable to
isk Wie opeaz orcers r this reason. In Nez Jersey a number of
nurserynen have offered to employ their help during the winter
ionths, if they agree to stay until the end of May. in sone in-—
stances wages have increasea as much as $1 a day.

use of the threat of a

7
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a
it

Heavily infested soil intercepted.—-Anong the interceptions
at the ae beetle highway inspection station on U. 8S. Route
ell at Sperryville, Va., was a truck containing about { + yard of
soil, en route fron Arlington, Va., to Roanoke, Va., the latter a
point some 1350 miles outsice the main regulated area. The nursery—
Man had bsen Going sone landscaping at Arlington anc had loaded on
his truck tke surplus dirt remaining on the ground after his plant—
ings hac Deen completed. When informed of the quarantine, he in
Mediately unloaded the soil and left it at the inspection station.
seventy Popillia japonica larvae were removed fron the soil by
screening prior to the usual funigation of confiscated soil.

Beltinore office moved to Pikesville.-—The district Japanese
beetle quarantine office previously located in room 306, Post Office
Building, Baltinore, Mc., was moved late in Nevember to 2 Sherwood
Avenue, Fikesville, Mc. The new quarters are in a one-story, con—
crete—b ocx ance They are particularly satisfactory from the
standpoint of light, office, garage, and parking space. The loca—

oO
by] He

Glca 16 DOFe, Ce neeatty situated for activities in this area, « The
new office is a short distance south of Reute amet

FOREST It HSHCT INVESTIGATIONS

Pire reprocucticn weevil found on Sierra National Forest.—

C. B. Hatton, of the forest—insect laboratory -at Berkeley, Calif.,
reports the discovery early in November of an outbreak of Cylin—
drocopturus eatoni Buch. on the Harris Ranch burn,.Miami ranger
ae Sierra National Forest... The cutbréeak -is°in a stand of
reproduction-growing on the fertile slopes of a ridge southwest of
Signal ye Lookout. The infestation extends cover an area of ap-
proxinately 4,000 acres, which was naturally restocked with ponde—
rosa Aine Sh aes following the fire that burned off the original
stand of tinber in 1934. It is estinated that between 25 and LO
percent cf the pine on the burn has been killed. The appearance of
the weevil—infested reproduction resenbles the damage light ground
fires sonetines cause to similar stands. Many trees are dead, hav—
ing brown needles, while others are sickly and yellow. The nortal—
ity is not confinec to individual trees scattered throughout the
dense brush (Ceanothus spp. ), which forns a major part of the cover,
but it occurs in the patches of pure—pine reproduction spotted over
the aren, and in the scattered pine seedlings growing in the. open
over bear clover. By far the greater part of the danage has occurred

within the last 2 years; however, there are remnants of trees infested
earlier, and probably there has been an endemic infestation for some time,
The insect is now in the larval stage, and a large potential population of
weevils is present. This is the first occasion in which the pine reproduc-—
tion weevil has been found to be causing economic damage in naturally es-
tadlished stands. Hitherto, it has only been know to be injurious to
planted stock in the brush fields of northeastern California.

Infestation of Cacoecia conflictana in northern New Mexico.—-An aspen
leaf roller, which nas caused severe defoliation of aspen on the Rio Pueblo
drainage southeast of the Anzgostura Camp Ground, on the Carson National For-—
est in northern New Mexico, has been determined by J. F. G. Clarke as Ca~
coecia conflictana (Walk.). According to observations made byes De Wygant,
Berkeley, from August 25 to 29, the infestation occurs at elevations of
about 10,000 feet, and 2,0CO acres or more have been heavily defoliated.
Light damage to aspen was also observed in other areas on the Carson and
Santa Fe ‘Paes Forests in northern New Mexico. Previous records indicate

that this inscct is widely distributed from Maine to Utah and northward to
Labrador ie Alasxa. At the time of the examination the insect was in the

egg and beac hatched larval stages. The eggs are laid in flat masses, leaf—
green in color, on the leaves and trunks of aspen. The larvae apparently
feed on the leaves for a short time and then go to tne ground for hibernation.
The heavy defoliation occurs in tre spring, when tne larvae curl the leaves
into trumpet--shaped rolis. When the nae was first observed by David 0.
BCOtt, Gistrict ranger on tne Carson National Forest, on a iL 2b ease

the last-instar and piadall stages. Mr. at observed that the general emer-
gence of the moths in the field was from about July 20 to aaiiguut August 10,

An ichneumonid parasite, Eerpestonus hariolus (Cress.), was reared by hin
from both C. conflictana on aspen and C. fumiferana (Clem. ) on white fir.

Tent caterpillar defoliates aspen in northern New Mexico.—The tent
caterpillar Melacosona, probably fragilis Stretch, defolinted about 4,000
acres of aspen = the Big Tesuque Creek Basin northeast of Santa Fe on the
wanta Fe Naticnal Forest and about 25,000 acres northwest of Taos on the Car-—
son Nationai Forest in New Mexico during June and July, according to Mr.
Wy2ant, who examined the area in the latter part of August. The infestation
on the Big Tesuque Creek Basin received considerable attention by the press
in New Mexico, leading people to believe that mich of the aspen would be
killed unless control is brought eueubs The aspen, much of which is 3 to 6
inches d. b. h. and 20 to 40 feet high, has little commercial value, but is
highly prized by the natives for its scenic, recreational, and watershed-
protection values. According to the Forest Service personnel, the insect has
been widespread in the aspen in New ees and Arizona for years, with the
worst epidemic years probably 1933-55. The heavy epidemic centers seem to
shift from year to year, indicating that its natural control factors build
up locally and bring about-its control. Several consecutive years of defoli-
ation are necessary to kill the trees on ie usual sites, therefore little
Mortality of the trees has resulted. On the pocrer sites the trees succumb
te the effects of defoliation more racers and mortality has been considerable
in such small local spots.

Heavy infestation of Jeffrey pine cone moth in northeastern California.—
Heavy damage to the 1940-41 Jeffrey pine cone crop was reportéd to P. C. John
son by officials of the Modoc National Forest, during the annual forest—insect

SD.

survey of this area early in October. An examination of Jeffrey pine stands
in the Big Valley ranger district revealed a widely distributed infestation of
cone moths, subsequently Getermined as hasoeryresia toreuta Grote. Preliminary
field counts of cones showed a heavy inciad S of attack and several sacks
were collected from trees and shipped to the Berkeley laboratory. An examina-
tion of ‘thistmaterial by Joh. Pattersonnon Oct

pillars and pupae in the axial region of the cone. Out of a total of 15,2
seeds, 35.5 percent had oee8 destroyed by the young caterpillars; however, 90
percent of the cones were infested. This checked to some extent with records
of the Durbin Nursery at are alif., where 200 sacks of seed from the

i¢))

fas
a Y
same area yielded slightly less tnan 50 percent of the expected normal amount,
The examination ee Berkeley further disclosed the presence of the following
= 3 seer : ofl
parasites and edators: <A chalcid (& 0%), an ichneumonid (1.5%), a small mage

‘

s
cot (3s), and an encclerid (0.5%). Efforts of the Modoc National Forest to
fully utilize the current Jeffrey pine cone crop, one of the heaviest in recent
years, ended in disappointment and the abandonment of cone-co! eee se activities
following the discovery of the infestation. Examinations of Jeffrey pine stands
in the Lassen National F niagics ai showed a widely scattered Dut lizhter infes-
tation of cone moths. he curre i ation in these two areas is of eco=
nomic importence, oben to the Doe quency of good seed years and the increas=
ing demand of seed for reforestation.

e
a
ie
Hy
(@)
02

Defense progrsm accelerates salvage from Tillamook burn,——-Harly in Novem
ber, while making en examination to determine the extent of insect~caused de-
terioration of fire—killed Douglas fir trees in the 38-year-old Tillamook burn,
Pet tarnisss of the Portkand, Oreg., laboretory, found that the output of
salvage operations has been greatly increased in response to the recent demand
for low-grade lumber. Logs that only a, short time ago would have been culled

bs"

because of excessive borer holes are now being marketed at a profit. It is
expected that the increased use of lumber cut fron pane maa logs will
swell the already numerous reports of borers enmergi m various parts of
new homes. Cerambycids of the genera Crioceph Asemum are the princi-
pal insects responsible for these reports. Alt he noles they cause are
of considerable coneern to property ormers, the actual structural damage zs
slight. Apparently there is no danger of reinf

Q)
oF
aie
w
Q
Re

t tudy continuese—-—-Leimperatur
wintering broods o nm pine beetle have not occu os in the pine for-
ests of eastern Oregon and Washineton during the last 4 win Nevertheless,
according to J. M. Whiteside, of the Portland laboratory, a sender designed to
obtain data on low winter temperatures within the forest proper has again been
set up this winter. Six natural divisions of the pine region. of eastern Oregon
and three: life oe corresponding to high, mid, and low elevations, within
each division were selected for sampling, Thirty-six duplicate stations.were
located on the western pine beetle survey check plots within each zone. AIL
we need now is some 20° or 30°%below-zero weather to complete an analysis of
variance.

Low winter es lethal to over—

ct O
a
4
e

Sanitation—-sslvage intesrated with other marking practices.—Marking pon
derosa pine timber on a sanit n—salvage basis, to remove from the stand trees
highly susceptible to attack by the western pine beetle, is now being studied
by the Forest Service and private operators as a desirable feature to combine
with other marking practices, according to W. D. Bedard, Portland. Two 4O—acre
sample plots on the Deschutes National Forest have been marked in three differ

ct
k?’
(e)
f

1
dp)

tober 28, showed full-grown cater. |

weys, including senita

selection. The Forest Service

; wiripns
mere Saf

the hope of evolving a revised

operat

tion—-salvage in combination with a system of value
and lumber
of the various systems for effect on the stand, value, and grade recovery,
ar = rule which will

rs will study the results
in

be satisfactory to both

Federal and privete interests for use on Forest Service timoer sales.

Elm bark beetle trenpping experiment.—--RX. R. Whitten, of the Morristow,

ieee eeeaboratory, has
which ae bark beetles
Wimitehouse, N. J. The
traps were acrcet ive alia!
ihemdlareas. ~The treps used in this exper
internal epplication of a water solution
percent
This plot has an area of 3-2/3 acres
with occasional scattered elm trees.
Dutch elm cises
oe miles of th

infested or likely to be infested.
in this area, samples of the beeties
Selatin -capsulés and submitted to P.

compiled data covering 4 consecutive years
have been trapped in a small
object of this exneriment wes to determine

reducing the elm bark—beetle populations in Fadl wood—

during
Located at
whnethe

woodlend plot

iment were elm trees killed by the

sodium cnlorat
ef the trees standing in this plot were used for. each series of traps.
and is surrounded by open farm lands,

through the cooperotion

Approximately 4

UC e

of the Federal

Mie -ecadicHL OM UNI ts. tom the. Vast 4 years: ald the elms. within
© plot area have been carefully exanined and pruned of all parts
Wares Sai. Im addition
were collected in individual, sterile,

V. Mook, of the Bureau of Plant Industry,

to trapping beetles

to be cultured for the presence of the Dutch elm disease fungus (Ceratostcmella

ulni). The oe
results for 1¢O41

& results for 1948, 19349

DAY)

bad } 7}
and 1941, and the culture

are presented in the fcllowing table:

H ; sScolyvytus miltistriatus:Hylurgopinus rufipes:Beetles
i igiotne Oat... Lotel =: Average : : Average :contan-
Year J-trape sseetsons:seallerzes: galllert slotal sgalleries : inated
Fa USSG 8 : sper section $3galleriessper sectim: with
5 : : = : : SO eeiace
sNumber: Numbsr ;: Number $; Number ; Nonber : Number sPercent
May to July : : : : : : :
Traps: : = tees 2 : : :
eee es Os Boe Soe 2 5965 Oa ER BIS(Ol hee 30. OOO es we wes
eee PO SS 5990 55S SR seembyallebL ue 45.500 ee
ee 1S Ss 6 CUPO Ce) (U2 CIS sl 1905 UE SO i tO aoe ss
OU ee Gs BS ues (oo S33 Sey Gey: Ose Beto es Oe 1b
July tc Oc- $ : : : : : :
tober Traps: - : H : :
hoe : at LOG MeO) siete sin Or 40 : : SOCS I CS
Boge ee SCS ue CTS 8 nese : LG ROL KE 5 ere
eget 1S 3 te 3 yo6le 3 M.S : DE 8 ROD tis Te

Beetles trapped 3 miles from Whitehouse plot were 14.5—pere

ftaninated.

ent con-

Beetles in over 50 percent of the traps treated did not die and so

have not been included in the data.

ile. |

Caged elm trees infected witn Dutch elm disease fungus through $8. mil- /
tistriatus.-—-W. D. Buchanan, of the Morristown, N. J., laboratory, reports

3 |
that 5:of 80 well-established trees growing in a large cage developed foliar }
symptoms of the Dutch elm disease. The trees were attacked by approximately |

~4,000 S. multistriatus that emerged from Tisid-infested and infected logs in .
Ly

1941. “About 7.7 percent of the beetles were found to be contaminated with )
the Dutch elm disease fungus. Discoloration caused by the organism was found
in the 1941 vessels of 8 of the 80 trees, but foliar Sse tar is Geveloped in

only 5 of them. The culture results indicate tnst most of the beetles nada
very light load of C. ulmi, which probably explains why the Dutch elm disease
did not develop in more of the trees.

GYPSY MOTH AND BROWN-2 AiL MOTH CONTROL |

Gypsy moth inspection work and Christmas trees.—-The volume of ever-= |
green boughs and Christmas trees cut in western Massachusetts and the southern |
half of Vermont appears somewhat smaller than usual, because of scarcity of |
skilled Choope.S. Tae operators have had to rely largely on the purchase of |
of trees cut by farmers who have been attracted by the high prices.

e difficuity has been encountered in examining woodland areas for

the gypsy moth well in advance of the rezular cutting crews, the field super>
visors have had to remain constantly cn the alert to inspect the smaller

ons where the trees were Deing cut by the farmers. The op-
permitted to cut boughs or trees in the inmediate vicinity of

an infeste

Machine ahich was opera oa for Ss s along the western
border of Berkshire County, Mass., was recently transferred to Charlemont, in
the eastern s::tion of the county. Arrangements were also made to transfer
the other machine from Connecticut to ilassechusetts. The latter nachine has
completed the dispesal of approxinatcly 1,200 piles, or about 600 cords, of
brush accunlated in sone 35 acres of woodland found to be infested by the

fypsy moth during the past year.

yosy moth work in Vernont.—-Six crews of sm@uts and one crew
‘ed Zypsy noth work in Verncnt during Novenber. Two of these
crews Serena: scowls work in Lowell Township, Orleans County, where the
prospect of completing the work in the most inaccessible areas before the ad=
vent of severe winter conditions had appeared to be good. However, the resig=
nation of “several W. P. A. oe reduced thése crews to such an extent

that it is now very doubtful whether the scouting work in Lowell can be
finished before the minor roads are blocked by snow. Another crew has found
no evidence of the gypsy moth while scouting in Swanton Township, Franklin
County, where woodland areas are relatively small and scattered. Three single=
ege-cluster infestations were found and creosoted by two crews which have al=
ready finished scouting a large portion of Middletown Springs Township, in
Rutland County. No indication of gypsy moth infestation has been discovered
by a crew scouting in Sudbury, Rutland County. The crew of laborers was en=
gaged in chopping dead end worthless trees and creosoting egg clusters ata

woodland infestation in Woodford, Bennington County. Scouting conditions were
generally good during November, although ee ime was lost because of storny
weather during the first part of the nonth. A finch snowfall in Lowell Towme-

ship caused no serious interruption in gypsy moth work. Unseasonably warn tele§ %
peratures and drying winds caused the forest litter to dry ranidly and again

~15-

produced dangerous fire conditions during the latter part of November. The
fypsy moth crews were detailed to work in open country in the vicinity of
settlements, and in other localities not likely to be frequented by hunters
during the deer—hunting season, which comprised the last week in November.

W. P. A. gypsy moth work in Massachusetts.—--At the beginning of Noven-
ber 9 W. F. A. crews were engaged in scouting for the zypsy moth in the towm-
ships of Hinsdale, Mount Washington, Richmond, Savoy, Washington, West Stock-
bridge, and Windsor, in Berkshire County, and in Blandford Towmship, Hampden
County. Numerous small scattered infestatims were discovered in each of
these towns. In addition to the scouting, considerable treatment work at in-
fested locations was performed by 10 crews of laborers in the townships of
Alford, Lanesboro, North Adams, Peru, Richmond, and West Stockbridge, all in
Berkshire County. The work of the laborers consists chiefly of rough creosot=
ing of ege clusters;cutting dead, defective, and otherwise worthless trees;
and piling the resultant brush and limb wood for disposal by burning or by
Means of ths brush—disposal machines. The crews engaged in thinning and
ground work at a gypsy moth infestation in Richmond Township have already ac—
eomplished much treatment work, including the creosoting of large numbers of
ege clusters in tne mest heavily infested spots scattered through the wood-—
land area. As usuel, these spots of heavy infestation are found in areas
where the tree growth is composed of species most favored as food by the
gypsy moth. So far’as ssible the favored species, such as poplar, gray
birch, and oak, are being removed. |

5g O

W. P. A. gypsy mth work in Connecticut.—Of the 4 W. P. A. gypsy moth
scouting crews working in Connecticut at the beginning of November, three
were scouting in Litchfield and Salisbury Townships, in Litchfield County,
and the cther vas working in Southbury Township, New Haven County. All scout—
ing work planned for Litchfield Towmship was completed by the middle of Novem-
ber, and the crew was assigned to scout in the vicinity of infestations lo-
eated during the last fiscal year in the neighboring town of Cornwall. A few
scattered infestations were found in each of these towns. A crew of laborers
was detailed to treatment work at a gyrosy motn infestation in Litchfield Town-
ship during tne month. As a result of a cooperative arrangement with the
State of Connecticut, one State crew was assigned to ecouting work in Kent
Township, Litchficia County. Considerable difficulty has developed in con-—
nection with the transportation of W. P. A. workers, particularly in Connecti-_
eut and Massachusetts, because age or physical infirmity renders many of the
Men assigned tc gypsy moth work unfit to operate Government—owned vehicles.
In some sections it has been necessary to assign regular employees to the task
of transporting W. P. A, crews te and from work daily.

W. P. A. gypsy moth work in Pernsylvania.—-The number of W. P. A. em
ployees engaged in gypsy motn work in Pennsylvania remained fairly stable dur-—-
ing November, ranging from a high of 630 to slightly less than 600. falas
force was divided into 42 crews of scouts and 12 crews of laborers. Fourteen
of these scouting crews end 4 crews of laborers were assigned to work in Lu-
gerne County, & scouting crews and 5 crews of laborers to work in Lackawanna
County, & scouting crews and 4 crews of laborers to work in Wayne County, and
2 scouting crews to work in Carbon County. In addition, 4 crews of N. Y. A.
enrollees performed scouting work in Luzerne County. Several of the crews in
the Pennsylvania area were engaged in scouting wood lots found to be infested
in previous years, and which were subsequently thinned and cleaned of ground

debris. Work in such locations progresses more rapidly than in the aver-—
age woodland, where many egz clusters are deposited in concealed locations
in dead or defective trees, in thickets, and on all types of ground litter.
Much treatment work was done at gypsy moth infestations in Sov ath Canaan
and Salem, in Wayne County, where it was necessary to tear down numerous
stone walls, creosote the egg clusters, and rebuild the walls. Selective
thinning operations were also conducted at these infesta LO About 15,000
gypsy moth eg lusters were eesbae’ at the center of the South Canaan in—
festation. Th ee limits of these infestations, iachearsa by the ab=
sence of egg ciastoee. were located meaae in November. Close scouting werk
around an infestation e County, indicated that cnly a small
area is affected, is believed that this ae can be exterminated
without difficulty. . Scouting work a j here a male gyosy moth was re-—
Ss e

B 08

Le s
herry Bi

covered at an assembling cage in Cherry Ridge, Wayne County, was completed
.in November. No indication of the presence of the gypsy moth was found.

]

3
)
2)

wa,

O
a)
ia?)
Ou

31}

Bureav-—: sored W. P. A. project for North Dakota.—Presidential
is tes Semrenber 29, 1941, approved a Bureau—svonsored W. P. A.

e Darberry—-eradication project, which was started November 5 in
ty. Work will also be carried o

lette
State—w

ippren=-Cou Ve O d on in Logan and McIntosh Counties,

which are in the sate WW. P. A. unit and district as Emmons. At present the

assigned personnel consists of 1 nonrelief superintendent ana 19 relief la—

borers, including 4 foremen. State, district, and local W. P. A. officials
busines i

in which

as well as 2
and cooperation in

+ —
operati NS ane

—

-
barberry eradication.

Barberry bushes found in Big Fork area of Montana.-——Work under the re-=
cently approved State W. P. A, project was started in the Big Fork area on
a narrow strip of land, much of which is low anc swampy, at the north edge
of Flathead Lake. In this area 18 escaped bushes were located, ranging in

n 6)

height from
this small tra

i o * a) = . 3 .

6- and &-foot fruiting bushes. Upon completion of

ct; r as

Bagger and, by: the cle
™ Le

to wooded areas along the Flathead

d
fe Ae
November, & additional
i h e

x 2 se of bushes hed bsen found,
mostly large and fruit-bearing. In this area some of the most suspected
terrain has not vet been worked; however, preliminary reconnaissance in
this locality already had revealed 1 location of = Nescapes! including
fruiting bushes, and 2 other locations of large, individual fruiting bar=
berries. 4t. this time 45 relief laborers and 1 Se: superintendent
are assigned to the project. As is the case elsewhere, it is necessary
to take assignments of a number of older men, several of whom are from 60
to 65 years of age. The average age of relief laborers now on the project
in Flathead County is 5l years.

Barberry-eradic ai en activities in Nebraska.——During the current fis-—
cal year inspection ews have been established in various counties in Ne—
braska. At prese satel seven crews are operating in the northern Nebraska
counties and four are working the southern-unit. As workers become ayail—

able additional crews will be added in the southern counties. With the
tate enjoying one of the most favorable crop—production years in nearly a

decade, plus the stimulus of defense activity, procurement of efficient la=

bor under current limitations proved to be a difficult problem. All of the

Sip

certified skilled workers employed-on the Nebraska project entered pri-~
vate employment with the approach of ths harvest season. With the ex-
ception of three foremen who later returned to le px ojects all have con-
binned: in the status-of EEENEEE employment.

isd eadaa to orew men.—-inthusiastic reports have been received con-
~cerning:a séries of memoranda: prepared and distributed in Massachusetts
pomcmyear by! C, OC, Perry, State Meader, for the information. of the field
men engaged in the actual eradication of Ribes. During the 1941 field
*season 14 memoranda were issued; that is, 1 approximately every 2 weeks.
These brief statements were designed to give emphasis to important points
involved in the field work and to acquaint. the workers with different
phases of the entire control program so as to stimulate their interest,

and psychologically they seem to have a very helpful effect in that. the
system serves to tie the individual field man into the general control set-
wp. The 1941 series of memoranda were titled as follows: (1) The Blister
Rust Control Grew es a Unit; (2) Searching for slalioens (3) Favored Locations
for Ribes Growth; (4) Uprooting and Disposal of Ribes; (5) Making and Fol-
‘lowing "The Line:" (6) Miscellaneous Weaknesses in Control Work; (7) Blister

n\.

Rust Kills White Pines of All Sizes; (8) The Eradication of Ribes is Hf
pceomi ve invithe, Controle Biliister Rust: (9 ) Annual: Examinations ons Not Needed
to Maintain Control of Blister Rust; (10)° Blister Rust Quiz—-Questions;

(11) Blister Rust Quiz—-Answers; (12) Blister Rust Cankers on White Pine
Persist after Ribes—HEradication Work; (13) Why Blister Rust Control is Im
portant in the Econonic System; and ares Paani Yousron Your hffortse: -lhe
final memorandum was mailed direct Com Laborer il and nonrelief).
if contained a brief word of recogniti

wal worker in the control program.
from "the office" seemed to be especi

ft
AGW wins .wlaals is ha came direct
= +
u

Blister rust display.--C. C. Pay ry also reports that he assisted Dis—
trict Leader William Clave witn a blister rust display at the second annual
Worcester County Conservation Congress and Exposition, held cooperatively
by the biological department of Clark ¢ University. and the Worcester Museum
of Natural History. The display was a duplicate of the one recently staged
by Distvict Leader R.-H. Wheeler at the Eastern States Hxoosition, which
proved to be very successful. David Potter, director of the Museum of
Natural History, saw the original display at Sp oo eld and was so im
pressed by it that he requested District Leader Clave to abandon anothe!
display he had been planning and to duplicate the one at Springfield.. Mr.
Perry has been requested to transfer the. central panel of this display to
the Worcestcr Museum of Natural History to de used as a part.of. their col—
lection of aids to visual education in Teriae history.

Data on white pine.—-The following, Laiteres from.a list published in
the July issue of Northern Region News, region 1, Forest Service, are a
few facts on the importance of western white pine in the Northwestern regions
"iiore than a million matches can be made from an average Idaho white pine
tree. In order to supply the demand for matches made from Idaho. white pine,
about 14,000 acres mist be logged annually. The manufacture of a million
feet of finished pine lumber provides employment: for 13 men for the greater
part of a*year. In 1939, 7/7 percent of the lumber cut: in the Northern Rocky
Mountain region was Idaho white pine and ponderosa pine, compared with 65
percent in 1929 and 54 percent in 1919. Less than one-third of the merchantable

fey

S
=

-18-

timber remaining in Montana and. north Idaho is white pine or ponderosa
"
pines

Development and use of Ribes-eradication tools.--H. R. Offord, of the
Berkeley, Calif., office, reports that the two-pronged Rives peavey and
the hydraulic Ribes jack wre tested cn a number of KR. roezli plants. The
two-pronged peavey avey has proved to be an excellent tool for auxiliary clean
up work in areas where the power methods are being used. It-is planned to
make several more tools of this same design this winter. The hydraulic
jack works effectively but appears to have no practical place in R. roezli
eradication that cannot be taken care of as well or better by other tools
and methods. The special problem which has been kept in mind in the de—
velopment of the Ribes jack has been the eradication of large R. nevadense
in stony ground, of which the Yosemite National Park has a considerable
anount, where the draws are too narrow and steep to operate a tractor and
where dynamite cannot be safely used because of stony soil and absence of
trees or stumps for protection of the workers.

Inspect on 0: of pine and Ribes in the High Sierra country.--W. V. Bene
dict tide -a tfip -in the High Sierra country of, Yosenite’ Park thilg) aise gend
company with Park Superintendent Frank Kittredge and members of his staff.
The party examined principally the high country in the upper basin of the
south Fork of the Merced River, along the boundary of the park as it ad
joins the Sicrra Forest. They noted a-.general distribution of both Pinus
albicaulis and P. monticola in the high country, but in no locality did
these 5-needle pines occur in sufficient number to be considered as blis~
ter rust control units at present. Ribes montigenum, R. viscosissimum, and
RK. cereum wer e observed, and frequent inspections of the first two species
were made to Cetermine whether or not either blister rust or pinyon rust
was present. Ne infections were found.

COTTON INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

Division conference.—--The. Division of Cotton Insect Investigations
held a conference at the Delta Branch of the Mississippi Agricultural Ex
periment Station, Stoneville, Miss., on December 10, 11, and le. Repre-—
sentatives from all the field laboratories and the Washington office were
in attendance. In discussing past and future investigations, the 19 di-
visional workers in attendance had the vbenefit of comments and suggestions
from F. C. Bishopp, assistant chief of Bureau; C. M. Smith, of the Division
of Insecticide Investigations: F. M. Wadley, statistical consultant of the
Bureau; H. C. McNamara and others, of the Bureau of Plant Industry and the
Delta Branch Experiment Station; Clay Lyle and A. L. Hamner, of the Mis-—
sissippi Experiment Station; J. C, Gaines, of the Texas Experiment Station;
Dwight Isely and W. R. Horsfall, of the Arkansas Experiment Stations; and
others. Results reported regarding investigations of the boll weevil and
cotton aphid and their control suggested several changes in Bureau recon—
mendations, as follows: (1) The making of boll weevil infestation counts
may be simplified. The grower who wishes to determine the percentage of
Squares infested simply walks across his field, picking cotton squares at
intervals until 100 squares are collected, taking care that the squares
are collected in about equal numbers from the bottom, middle, and top
branches of the cotton plants. These 100 squares are carefully examined
and the number punctured by boll weevils is the percentage of infestation.

(2) Instead of the former recommendation that dusting with calcium arsenate
be started when 10 percent of the squares are infested, the studies indi-
®aued that ian fields with fertile soils and plenty of moisture, where the
cotton grows rank and continues fruiting until late in the season, it is
not profitable to begin dusting watil from 25 to 30 percent of the squares
are infestéds; in rg where, because of low soil fertility, insufficient
moisture, determinate growth of plants, or other factors, the plants do not
grow rank and stop Ponies early, it is recommended that dusting begin when
trom 20 to 15 percent of the squares are infested. In areas where Doll
weevil damage is. serious the growers are advised not to plant cotton in ficlds
that cannot de expected to Se at- least one-third of a bale if the weevil
is controlled. (3) To prevent losses from the cotton aphid following the use
of calcium arsenate for tho control of the boll weevil, it was decided that
the safest recommendation is the addition of 2=percent nicotine to the calcium
arsenate for each alternate Gusting. Investigations will be continued with
Os5 percent rotenone in each application that gave promising results in 1939
and 1940 byt cnly fair results in 1941.

Boll weevil conference called fo : call from
agricultural offic: als in the Sovtneastern States i a full qneey gion of
vVaricus phases of the boll weevil prol of Bureau,

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blem, P. N. Annand, chie
M. Le. Wilson, director of extension work, and James T. ween tee chief of the
Office of Experiment Stations and director of research, invited many State
and Federal azencics to participate in a conierence to be held in Atlanta,
Ga., on January & and 9. The agencies requested to send representatives to
this conference were the experiment staticns, extension departments, agri-
cultural colleges, departments of agriculture and other State agricultural
officials in the eight Southeastern States-—-Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mis-—
sissippi, North Carclina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. iInvita-—
tions to partic peeve were eaiso sent to the following agencies in this Depart—
ment; Agricultural Adjustment Administration, Bureau of Agricultural Chem
istry and eae 1E 5 ee of Agricultural Hceonomics, Agricultural Market—
ing Service, Farm Credit Administration, Farm Security Administration, Fed
eral Crop Insvrance Corporation, Forest Service, Bureau of Plant Industry,
and Soil Conservation Service.

yhid control on ee eal exe

eriment.—--Experiment mloying factorial designs were again conducted in
194i at Florence, S. 6., Gainesville, Fla., Tallulah, Lae, and College Sta-
tion, Tex., to determine the comparative effect on infestction and yield of
treatment with calcium arsenate dust for boll weevil control, with nicotine
dust or spray for aphid control, and a combination of the two treatments.
Small plots, ranging in size from 1/20 to 1/4 acre, arranged in randomized
blocks, were used. The results at the different localities have been sum—
Marized by R. C. Gaines as follows: The combined records for all localities
show that the treatment-—locality interaction was highly significant, indicat~
ing as in 1940, that the differential response to treatments at the various
localities may be attributed to the combination of infestations which pre—
vailed Guring the course of each experiment. At Florence there was a heavy

boll weevil infestation and an extremely light infestation of aphids. At
Gainesville there was a very light infestation of weevils and a heavy aphid
infestation. At Tallulah there was a heavy infestation of both weevils and
aphids, and at College Station the boll weevil infestation was intermediate
and the aphid infestation light. Average records of the boll weevil

factori

iiEweec puos DOL weevil and cotton &
er

—20—

infestations, aphid populétions, and = yields at all localities are showm
in the following table.

sBoll weevil-: Aphids : Yield
Treatment > punctured iper square: per
bane: 3; squares 2 Sees > acre
> Percent : Number : Pounds
Check—---——-—--—-—-—-~—--—_-__————- --------- : 5 tc 2 Ne aia meta
Calcium arsenate—-------------~--------- : 18 3) 22a5lL- <i 9O@
Either nicotine dust or spray----------— -s 36 : 1.0/7 : 138
Calcium arsenate and either nicotine : 3 :
dust or spray------------------------ H If sh, PFad $150

Parasites of the pink bollwornm.-—-L. W. Noble, of the Presidio, Tex.,

laboratory, reports that a shipment of Calliephialtes dimorphus Cush. was
received from Brazil on November 6. This was the second shipment received
this year throuzh cooperation with the Division of Foreign Parasite Intro-—
duction. It arrived in good condition and consisted of 2 adults and 66 pu—
pae. Breeding of this species was continued during the month and the larvae
after spinning cocoons were placed in cold storage. Smail-scaie breeding of
Chelonus pectinophorae Cush., Microbracon nigrorufum Cush., and the new Mi—
crobracon Sp > (near vulgaris (Ashm.)) was continued. The Microbracon larvae
were placed in cold storese. C. pectinophorae will be carried over winter
by continuous breeding on the Mediterranean flour moth. Material for a. pare
asite hibernation test was collected from a field in which Chelonus black.
burni ad and C. pectinophorae had been released during the summer. Ap—
proximately 4,500 bolls were collected and placed in hibernation cages on
November 13.
PINK BOLLWORM AND THURBERIA WEEVIL CONTROL

Gin-trash inspection.—-During the month inspection of gin trash was con=
tinued in Arizona in Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal Counties, and 264 additional
specimens of the pink bollworm were found in the vicinity of Glendale, Marie
copa County, bringing the season's total for that rather limited area to 701
specimens. No pink bollworms were found in any other part of the Salt River
Valley, and results were negative for the season in Pima and Pinel Counties.
Last year 2 pink bollworms were found in Pinal County. in the Pecos Valley
of New Mexico inspection of 156 bushels of trash from Eddy County yielded
12 pink bollvorns. re about that same quantity of trash last year 266 pink
bollworms weve taken. n Chaves County inspection of trash yielded 1 speci-
men of the pink eer which is the first finding since the 1938 crop,
when 3 larvae were found. In Luna County, N. Mex., 19 specimens of the pink
bollworm were taken for the season through examination of about 9 bushels of
trash. In the Texas Panhandle regulated area larger quantities of trash
rere examined than for several years past, but the only pink bollworms found
were in Terry County, where 2 specimens were taken. These were the first
pink bollworms taken from that county since 1938. Last season very light in-
festations were found in that area in Howard, Martin, and Midland Counties.
Outside of regulated areas, inspection was performed in the San Joaquin Val~=
ley and Riverside County, Calif., with negative results as to pink bollworm
infestation. Some inspection was also done at Mexicali, Baja California,

ele

Mexico, with negative results. Inspection of a considerable quantity of
trash in Sonora and Sinaloa, Mexico,gave negative results as to pink boll-
worm infestation. Inspection of trash in the Juarez Valley of Mexico
showed several rather heavily infested spots. Gin trash inspection of the
1941 cotton crop was brought to a close at the end of November. As a re~
sult of the season's inspection, no new areas were found infested with the
pink bollworm, and in a considerable number of counties found infested last
year results were negative for the 1941 crop.

Stalk destruction.--Climatic conditions in south Texas are conducive
to the growth and fruiting of the cotton plant throughout the year. Con-
sequently, in combating the pink bollworm in that region it is necessary
to create an off—cotton—growing season by destroying the stalks as soon
as the crop is picked out, and, in order to Maintain this condition, all
sprout or stub cotton that develops prior to the fruiting of the subsequent
planted crop must be destroyed. On account of extremely unfavorable con-—
ditions over a period of several months farmers were unable to comly with
the State regulation requiring the completion of stalk destruction in Octo-—
ber, and extcnsions were granted to permit completion of harvesting. Fairly
good progress was made with stalk destruction in November, although rains
interfered with all field activities in most areas. Of the 206,700 acres
planted to cotton in the counties comprising the Coastal Bend district,
stalks had been either cut or plowed on 204,295 acres at the end of Novem-
ber, leaving 2,402 acres of standing stalks. In the lower Rio Grande Valley
counties of Cameron, Hidelgo, Starr, and Willacy, comprising 235,100 acres
of cotton, only 755 acres of stalks remained standing at the end of Novem~
ber, 395 acres of this being in the area flooded by high waters from the
Rio Grande ard a little over a hundred acres is abandoned acreage. Also,
during the iacnth, fields were being systematically checked for standing
random stalis or sprout cotton, and gruobing crews were operating in Cameron,
Hidalgo, and Willacy Counties in an effort to destroy all plants that might
furnish material for duild-up of infestation, In many instances farmers
are cooperating by replowing fields where stalks make grubbing impracticable.
At the end of November grubbing crews had removed scattered stalks or sprout
plants from 45,393 acres.

Wild cotton eradication.—-Wild cotton eradication work for the present
season began during the first half of October with a small number of W. P. A.
workers. At the beginning of November, 65 workers had been assigned and by
the close of the month the number had been increased to 88. The increase
in number of workers was reflected in the increase in acres covered and
plants destroyed. A total of 3,033 acres was covered, from which 89,230
plants were removed. It is encouraging to note that only 65 of these plants
were far enough developed to produce fruit. At the close of November the
first clean-up for the season had been completed on Long Key and the Mate—
cumbes in the Keys subdistrict, and most of Key Largo had been covered, and
work was in progress in the Marathon and Key West sections and along the
west coast of Florida. The first clean-up for the season in Florida Bay
and along the Dade County mainland east of Cape Sable was started about the
middle of the month.

TRUCK CROP AND GARDEN INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

Carbon disulfide treatment effective against wireworms.—A marked re~
duction of wireworms in shade-grown tobacco plots treated with carbon disulfide

—

292.

was noted by A.W. Morrill, Jr., of the Windsor, Conn., laboratory, ‘during

a small-scale experiment in which the effects: of carbon disulfide treat-
ment were compared with those of deep plowing and of no control. A total

of 36 plots, each containing 1/40 acre, were arranged in randomized blocks
_and each treatment was replicated 12 times. The carbon disulfide was ap—-
plied, in holes made in the soil, at tne rate of 1 ounce every 15 linear
inches, or a total of 30.25 pints per plot. The population of wireworms, as
revealed by un examination of U4 1 /l-square-foot samples taken at random

at the rate of 12 per plot, showed a highly sigwificant reduction of 90.47
percent in the plots treated with carbon disulfide, as compared to 40.5 per—
cent in the untreated plots. The reductions occurred during a week of un=—
usually hot weather with no precipitation, characteristic of much of the
season. This condition of high temperature and low moisture in the soil, —
while ideal for the use of carbon disulfide, is unfavorable for recovering
wireworms for comparison. Results on effect of plowing cannot be determined
until spring. The difference between Lee eee in areas receiving various
control treatments appears less marked when the general population is small
than when it =s relatively large. The principal species of wireworms in-=
volved in these tests was Limonius agonus (Say), referred to in many publi«
cations as the eastern field wireworm, in synonymy with L. ectypus (Say).

It is now believec that the former species is the predominant one in this
region since no specimen of L. ectypus (Say) have been recovered in tobacco
er potato fields.

Sa Bess lL, l~dichloro—l-nitroethane.--R. W. Brubaker
and W. D. Reed, of the Richmond, Vos a laborat ry, report that high mortality
of the larvae of the cigarette beetle (Lasioderma serricorne (F.)) was ob-
tained in the fumigation of baled tobacco at reduced pressure with 1,
1i~dichloro-1-“itroethane, Six replications each were conducted with bales
of imported <izarette tobacco (Turkish types) using dosages of 4 pounds and
4 pounds, respectively, per 1,000 cubic feet, with an EPs ae of 3 hours.
The tests were conducted in a steel vacuum chamber 50 by 36 by 22" waehes,
with a total volume of 34 cubic feet. The following is a summary of the re-
sults obtained. :

Do Larvae Mortality at-inches! depth—~
So ttreated : 1l-l 7
¢ Number sPercent:Percent:Fercent:Percent: Percent
4 1b. per 1,000° : jemeineele gga. : : :
Cer Steere a HOO Goer” TOO Go oa a 99.3
: aaa: : : : ls baa
3 1b. per 1,000: : : : : 3
Cie Pt y-——--~--< 3 1,500 é 9925 : GOST: 99 3 94.6 H 99.0

These results are the first obtained with this gas on tobacco. At
these dosages it is apparently highly effective against cigarette beetle
larvae, and further tests will be conducted at lower dosages, No deleterious
effects on the tobacco were noted.

Beletion® of crops to survival of new-brood wireworms.--Studies by E. W.

Jones and K. E. Gibson, of the Walla Walla, Wash., laboratory, performed in
1/100-acre plots and in 5 by 5-root cages, have shown.some differences between

one

certain crops as to their effect on survival of wireworms during.their

‘first season of grovth after hatching
ithe survivel of the Pacifie co

sugar—-beet wireworm (L. cali

general the following _ seens to be true
was shown when ¢g
When growing crops were

best survival by far
the cages.
. place with wneat and potato

‘vival was with onions and alfalfa.

new-brood larvas the first
wees, Sugar beets, Lima be
the above crops in their enn

Increased infestation
the annual survey conducted 1

during August and September Lol,

Douce
ed. was

equestris Gis C.
festation ev: veco
tion for 22 planting
Oregon it was 9.14
6.66 percent. The
it was 4.84 percent in ee
the 2 States combined.. The fig
variety and the sane size
work, In 1941 infestations
the highest 27
and 20 percent, a
places it was below 5 pe
corr -esponding with Similar

On SOc Sus yovetslioy

from eggs. There is some difference
t wireworm (Limonius canus Lec.) and the
ifornicus (Mann. )) on the various crops, but in

The

fer the last several seasons
the only food in

erm-lcilled corn was

sed as rood the best survival toak

es in both the plots and cages. The poorest sur-
Clover and corn show a good survival of

season, but not so gocd as with wheat and pota-

ans, and carrots seem to be intermediate between

recs on survival.

m Of
Ca

a
i=)

fly in Pacific Northwest.-—In
the sumner, Wash., Laboratory
to determine the infestation of Merodon
tLe reports tnat the heaviest gene ral average ine
encountered this son. The average infesta~
ashington was 5.1)! percent, ie 18 plantings in
and the average for the 2 States combined was
station oF sviousLy mete was last year, when
7-(1 percent in Oregon, and 5.85 percent for
rable beccuse the nercissus
—— een sampled throughout the survey
wercens wore found in 5 places, with
infestation ranged between LO
Hvone WO percent, and an ia”
ind i negative ,

by whe ‘staff of

sea

ngs

findii

arfect OF pepper weevil insecticides on aphids.--Observations JON pA ow Ta)

Campbell and. Js Oy Elmore, ¢ of Ries on ham ora, Geuabse, rar)
Of applications of insecticide dusts

fect
ere ne *Gontrol of

Calcium arsenste rosuit
On peppers, and tha
GEeapards.! The acd:
cent content of rotenone
of apnid development and

eame quite serious in several
considerable honeydew and sooty mold fungus. |
estauticon, became bad enough to cause def

ae tala
OL
de

aphids appeared and
oe was done.

Beeti leat
Phoenix, Arize, Laboratory ‘vs
districts in the Southvwe
determines
latter ast of September. |

St,

hopper were low in the beet fields located in

ond that désert conditions
quence from these areas to
ings near Perris and Hemet,
hopper but conditions were

PAOppeG An sugar de

infestation by Eutettix tenc

aborstory, on the ef~
to commercial plantings of peppers,

Anthonomous eugenii Cano, showed that the application of
ed in
cryolite cause
of a sur
in the

pone alee
ed
eal
12

a ‘able increase in the
mederate incre
nt quantity of
1 mixture of
in abundances.

SSC hokelinerelanjamaial

aphid population
the population
a, give a 0.5 per~
retarded the rate
aie she infestations be—
ium arsenate, showing
1941, however, before the
olliatvion, natural enemies
so reduced the number of aphids that little

Re,

5
+

it
aL

ere

a
ase
Field ee

7-2

seus grown for seed.--Van HE. Romney, of the
reports that a survey ‘of all seed-—beet-growing
AS welllacg Of sume —cUmrOunGIne "desert sarcacs to
ellus (Bak.) was completed during the
This survey sh —— 1t populations of the leaf

alt

tha
the Salt River Valley, Ariz. 5
are such that further movements of any conse—

the beet fields are improbable. Seed-—beet plant
Calafe, Contained Vow pooulations of the Llear=

such in the breedi source that additionnl movement

ne
at)

—2l

ield populations at Safford, Ariz.,
es of the leafhoppers from adjacent
sures will undoubtedly be necessary
ing we

to the fields may be expected. Beet

were fairly high and additional influs

desert areas are expected. Control mea
18

in this area and preparations for spraying were being made by the seed

contractors and farmers. Seed beet plantings in the Mesilla Valley of New

Mexico contained moderately high ‘populations or the leafhopper on Septem
fi Ef.

ber 26. At that time only one field examined had sufficiently high numbers
to warrant control measures. pate in the surrounding desert terri-
tory were such that additional influxes of the leafhopper were expected.
Spraying will probably be necessary in at least some the fields susceptible
to curly top in this region. Sugar beets grown for seed in the Southwest

ere planted in the fall, usually late in August or in September. From the
time the two-leaf plants appear until soil coverage by the foliage is at—
tained during the latter part of October, the beet leafhopper is the major
insect pest of varieties susceptible to curly top.

Pyrethroumoil sprays for stored-tobacco insects.--d. N. Tenhet, of the
Richmond, ¥u., laboratory, reports that a pyrethrum-oil spray containing
Owe percent total prrethrins, applied at 7-day intervals in a tobacco ware=
house, gave apparently satisfactory control of the tobacco moth (Ephestia
elutella (Hin.)). Test lots of tobacco moths were pleced in the warehouse
during applications and the mortality was about 100 percent. The mortality
of cigarette beetles (Lasioderma serricorne (F.)) was only 16 percent when
placed uncer the same ccnditions. Records obtained from insect traps showe
the spray to be mere effective in controliing the tobacco moth than were ape
plications of pyrethrum powder. Data obtained during the experiment indi-
cated that sublethal dosages of pyrethrum affected the rate of oviposition
of females of the cigarette beetle. Trap catches for the period May = to .
September 1! shoved a total cf tobacco He per warehouse as follows .
Sprayed warehouse, 2,147 moths: dusted warehouse, 11,806 moths: and untreated |

warehouse, 35,355 moths

INSECTS AFFECTING MAN AND ANDMALS

Dikine as a control measure against sand flies.--J. B. Hull, of the
Fort Pierce, Fla., laboratory, reports thet in a series of 8 l~quart samples
collected f

rom @iked marshes of pickleweed and mangrove, an average of 2.62
larvae per quart sample was isolated, as compared to an averege of 8.92 lame
vae isolated from an equal number of samples collected from undiked marshess

Cooperative advisory service to county agents and others for control
of cattle erubs.~--Arrangements have been made with the Texas Extension Ser=

—

viee by E. ¥. Laake and R. W. Wells, of the Dallas, Tex., laboratory, for
cooperative demonstrations on the control of cattle grubs and cattie lice
by the use of powered equipment. Demonstrations will be made in Anderson
County (eastern Toxas), Johnson County (north-central Texas), and four
counties in west-central Texas.

Cube-vettable sulfur din retains toxicity for at least 10 days.—--An
examination on November 29 by Messrs. Laake and Wells revealed no living
lice on 2 animals dipped in a vat containing cube-wettable sulfur dip,
which had been used 10 days previous for dipping 661 animals. The dip had
remained exposed for the interval indicated and had retained sufficient
toxicity to destroy all the motile forms of the short-nosed ox louse.

Sesame oil and pine oil as synergists for pyrethrum in mosquito lar-—

vicides.—JIn a series of tests on lots of Culex larvae, G H. Bradley, of
the Orlando, Fla., laboratory, reports that no increase in mortality was
obtained with the use of sesame oil.and pine oil as synergists for pyre-
thrum extract, when used in the proportions of l part activator to 9 parts
pyrethrum extract.

Public Health Service employees report for preliminary instruction, —
H. D. Pratt, assistant entomologist, and John Fluno and Eugene Gerberg;
junior entomologists of the U. S. Public Health Service, reported at the
Orlando laboratory the last week in November for preliminary instruction
before undertaking salt-marsh-mosquito surveys in the vicinity of National
Defense areas.

FOREIGN PLANT QUARANTINES

Moths at sea.—-On September 15, R. F. Wilbur boarded the small American

Sailing yxat White Cloud, which had just arrived direct from Hawaii at

Tacoma, Wasn. He feund four dead moths adhering to the oiled deck of the
yeeht.. R.-R. Pratsch, owner, captain, and navigator of the yacht, told

Mr. Wilbur he had run into a great cloud of these moths on September 10 at
46° 37! Ne, 130° 10! W., which was about 240 miles southwest of the nearest
jJand, Vencouver Island, British Columbia. He said the air was full of the
moths for several hours and many of them lit on the yacht. The wind was
from the north-northwest. Mr. Pratsch was particularly interested and made
a notation of his location in his logbook at the time. The moths were
identified as Peronea variana (Fernald). On June 20 the Forest Service
submitted to us for identification some larvae which they had received from
OWtside sources, collected at Snoqualmie Pass, where infestation was said
to be very heavy on white fir. HE. I. Smith reared the larvae, the adults
emerging during the first week of August. This material was submitted to
the Washington, D. C., office on August 21 and waS also identified as
Peronea variana. Referring especially to Mr. Pratsch encountering the
f1isht of moths at sea, indicating a possible migratory habit, an article
"Butterfly Travelers," in the May 1937 issue of the National Geographic
Magazine, by B. C, Williams, chief entomologist, Rothamsted Experimental
station, Harvenden, England, is of interest. Mr. Williams requests infor~
mation on flights of moths and butterflies.

Gladiolus smut.--In the News Letter dated April l, TOs Gvle Vio. 1

pp. 2/-28) is summerized the status of the Papulospora and "smut" found or

reported on gladiolus corms, In a-paper appearing the following month forrey
Bot. Club Bul. 68:259-291, May 1941), B. 0. Dodge and Thomas Laskaris seemed
to feel that a single fungus was involved in reports of the occurrence of
Zladiolus smut (Urocystis gladioli (Requien) Smith) and that it was not a
smut but a Papulospora, which they described as P. gladioli (Requien) Dodge
and Laskaris, comb. nove OD. P. Limber gave Mr. Dodge a culture of the Papux
lospora found at the Inspection House on gladiolus corms from Holland, and
from Pennsylvania Mir, Dodge received a culture of the fungus found on gladi-
Olus in Pennsylvania and reported as U. gladioli. J. A. Stevenson received
a letter from S. P. Wiltshire, director of the Imperial Mycological Insti-
tute, Kew, Surrey, England, in which he stated that their collections in-
clude specimens of a true smut on gladiolus. On November 7 Mr. Limber dis~
cussed the matter with Dr. Dodge at the New York Botanical Garden and learned

that Dr. Dodge had received material of a true smut on gladiolus fron
the herbarium of G. L. Zundel, of Pennsylvania State College, and had
studied the afore-mentioned cultures. He now believes that probably three
species of Papulospora are involved--P. glacioli, which he found at ©
various times on 20 percent of diseased corms in collections made from
a commercial storage house; P. coprophila (Zulcal ) Hotson, as determined
by Je W. Hotson on Holland corms taken at the Inspection House; and the
undetermined species found in Pennsylvania and first reported as U. gladi-
gli. Apparently ative smut occurs on gladiolus abroad, but is not know
to occur in the United States, and considerable care mist be exercised to
avoid possible confusion of species of Papulospora with the smut.

Sclerotinia kerneri (7?) on fir in New Ham shire.--The finding of what
appeared to be Sclerotinia kerneri Wetts. on balsam fir from Newfoundland
was reported in the December 1, 1940, News Letter (v. VII, No. 12, p. 27). |
Later similar symptoms were found on material from Nova Scotia. While on
vacation, L. J. McConnell, one of the New York inspectors, found similar
symptoms or -2lsam firs growing near Lonesome Lake, in the White Mountain
National For:st in New Hampshire. In November 1941 the same symptoms were
found by J. i. Beetxhnamp, of the Boston inspection force, on balsam fir
Christmas greens from Lancaster, N. H, S. kerneri causes the host to pro~
duce buds in practically every leaf axil in young growth. Sclerotia form
later within the scales in some cases and most of them or the male cones
drop out, leaving rows of scalé rosettes. The only sclerotia seen, in
American material, were a few in one collection from Christmas trees from
Newfoundland. Only weathered material had been noted until the Lancaster,
N. H., material was found to bear great numbers of small unopened buds in
the axils of the leaves, It is hoped that interest in the fungus may be
stimlated ix ne point where its distribution, life history, and likeli-
hood of spreed with Christmas greens and nursery stock may be made available,

Entomological interceptions of interest.--Living specimens of the
thrips Anaphothrips orchidaceus Bagn. were intercepted at San Francisco on
October 30 on Odor toslossum sp. in mail from England. Two dead larvae of
the euribiid eos mombinpracoptans Sein were intercepted at Boston
on October 19 in sg eranefrait (not cultivated) in stores from St. Vincent.
This represents our second interception of an Anastrepha from St. Vincent.
The first interception was also made at Boston in mango in stores. ‘The
coccid Asterolecanium miliaris longum (Green) was found at New York on
August 22 on a bamboo leaf in mail from Antigua. Living larvae of the
cerambycid Ciytus arietis L. were taken at Seattle on September 4 in an
elm branch tsed as cleat to hold plants in place from England. Forty-four
living larvee of the Mediterranean fruitfly (Ceratitis capitata (Wied. ))
were intercepted at New York on October 10 in apples in baggage from Portu~
gal. Twenty-nine living larvae and approximately 50 eggs of the melonfly
(Dacus cucurbitae (Coa.)) were taken at San Francisco on October 1 in three
pods of Phaseolus vulgaris in stores from Hawaii. Living and dead adults
of the bostrichid Dinoderus pilifrons Lesne were intercepted at New York on
October 24 in dry bamboo used as dunnase from India. -Living adults and

nymphs of the mirid Hurycipitia | vestitus (Dist.) vere found at Laredo on
September 30 on orchids in baggage from Mexico. Living specimens of the
lygaeid Exotochiomera tumens (Stal) were intercepted at Hoboken on August &
with Cattleva sp. in cargo from Venezuela. A living larva of the tortricid

Platynota rostrana (Walk.) was taken at New York on August 26 in grape-
fruit in cargo from Cuba. A living adult of the curculionid Tadius
erirhinoides Pascoe was taken at San Francisco on August 19 on n Cypripedium
haynaldianum in air express from the Philippines.

DOMESTIC PLANT QUARANTINES

Survey of wild host plants of sweetpotato weevil yields significant
data.—An over-all survey of wild morning-glory plants and other species
of Ipomoea was conducted early in the fall by T. R. Stephens, field project
leader on sweetpotato weevil control. in the commercial sweetpotatoegrowing
areas where eradication of the weevil is in progress, wild morning~glory
plants have not been considered aserious problem, as they are rather
sparsely distributed in the eradication areas and it is believed that they
do not harbor the weevils over winter. However, in the southern coastal
areas there are concentrations of numerous wild host plants, some perennials
and others essentially so, which have seemed, on rather limited observation,
to be capad’.. of harboring the weevils throughout the year. Further infor~
mation was ncceded as to the relative abundance of Ipomoea, native host
plants of the genus, and their relation to the weevil, for use in consider-
ing possible expansion of control operations into these coastal areas. The
survey, which was purely cursory,was made in the five coastal counties of
Alabama and Mississippi. Special attention was given to concentrations of
host plants in close proximity to the formerly infested areas. Infestations
were found in I. sagittata, the perennial marsh morning-glory, which grows
abundantly along water edges. Light infestations were found in the upland
type, I. pandurata. No weevils were found on the annual species of wild
morning-glories. Very recently infestations have been found in sweetpotato
fields from wich the weevils apparently had been eradicated, and of special
Significance was the discovery that in a number of cases these infestations
were in close proximity to native host plants. The survey further showed
that infestations are established in some species of wild plants remote
from places where sweetpotatoes have been planted, at least in recent years.
The information derived from this general survey, which points suspicion
to several species of Ipomoea as plants which carry the weevils over win-
ter, will be the subject of a conference with State cooperators in consider~
ing future policies of the control programs in these States. Georgia
State inspectors found, in the inspection of nearly 1,800,000 wild host
plants at Thomasville, that sweetpotato weevils will overwinter in that
area on I. trichocarpa, a plant of perennial characteristics. The only
weevils rece ently found in the city of Thomasville, after more than t years
of eradication measures, are those on the wild host plants. The eradica-
tion of these plants from the Thomasville area has been conducted by W. P. A.
laborers. This work has recently been suspended for the winter.

Sweetpotato inspections resumed in Texas.—~Inspection activities were

resumed in Texas in November, with the return to this project of the in-
spector who had been temporarily assigned to citrus canker inspection. With
the assistance of State inspectors, sweetpotato weevil inspection was con~
ducted in Angelina and San Augustine Counties and resumed in Madison and
Harrison Counties. The work in Angelina Cowmty was centered on formerly in~
fested properties where eradication was undertaken in 1940 for the protection
of the commercial areas in the adjacent counties of Nacogdoches and Cherokee
from which, it is believed, the weevils have been eradicated.

WPS.

Chinch bug survey approaches completion. —The Chinch bug survey; be-

_gun on November 3 in Illinois; Inctiana; Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Ne-
braska, and on November 22 in Oklahoma, was completed in three of these
States by the end of the month and nearly completed in the other States,
Throughout the survey, Philip Luginbill, of the Division of Cereal and
Forage Insect Investigations, maintained contact with State leaders and
discussed with them survey methods and procedure and made field observa~
tions.

Mole cricket control work terminated.-—The program, which was begun on
September 9, for the control of mole crickets in parts of Florida was com
pleted in the week ended November Door eA equipment and supplies were trans-
ported to Gulfport, Misse, for storage, with the exception of equipment and
trucks used by the research units. Preliminary reports show that during the
season nearly 2,200,000 pounds of bait was mixed and furnished to the Florida
State Mole Cricket Control Committee for distribution to growers in 11 coun-=
ties, 5 pexsce:t having been distributed in the Plant City area. Last year
over 24500 3 ) povnds of dDait was mixed and distributed to growers in 12
counties, 13, percent having been used in the Plant City area. Throughout
the program; close contact was maintained between the control supervisors
and research workers of the State of Florida and the Division of Truck Crop
and Garden Insect Investigations in order to take advantage of current in-
formation in regard to infestations and optimmm-control nethods,.

Survey and plans on grasshopper and Mormon cricket control.—~-The grass»
hopper egg survey or the areas infested with Melanoplus mexicanus (Sauss.)
was completed in November in nearly all areas. The survey is yet to be made
in infested sections of the Southwest. The survey personnel in the Denver
office contizued the analysis of the survey data obtained thus far and the
computation of bait estimates for 1942.

Conference on grasshopper and Mormon cricket control.--Representatives
-of the Federai anc State agencies Bop Chale ae in grasshopper and Mormon
cricket control will meet at Denver on vont ry 19-20, to discuss a suggested
plan of operations for the c hes Bese in 1942. Invitations are
being extended to directors of prety oon nd to directors or commissioners
of agriculture and State leaders to attend this conference.

Infected peach trees removed.—-The November work on the phony peach
and peach mosaic projec was confined to the removal of diseased, abandoned,
and escaped peach trees. In Georgia, on November 11, there remained in
Macon County 16,000 phony trees which had not been destroyed, because of in-
ability to obtain relief labor. To meet this situation, three tractors
borrowed from the white-fringed beetle project were employed, and with the
use of these machines the number of infected trees throughout the State had
been reduced to 3,000, which are rapidly being taken out. In Alabama the
standing infected trees were reduced during the month from 7,540 to 20. The
destruction of phony trees also went forward in Arkansas, and of mosaic
trees in California and Colorado. State cooperation was represented by 3
field supervisory employees in Alabama, 2 in Georgia, and 1 office worker
in Alabama.

Citrus canker eradication.--Citrus canker inspection was conducted in
13 Texas countics in November and crews of W. P. A. laborers, totaling 102,

~29-

strip-worked formerly infected properties in 6 counties, destroying 167,000
seedlings of Citrus trifoliata. In the Navasota area, where citrus canker
was found last February, formerly infected properties have been rechecked

at regular intervals and recurring seedlings destroyed in cycles of germina-
tion in an effort to destroy any incipient infection before it could spread
to other properties.

Transit-inspection activities.—-The recent strike of express employees
at Detroit, resulting in an additional burden on parcel post, freight,
and trucking, necessitated rearrangement of the inspection tours to meet
the irregularity of the movement of plant material passing through this
gateway. A considerable movement of woody plants, greenhouse stock, bulbs,
citrus fruits, and granite was found, with heavy express snipments after
the strike was settled. At Chicago arrangements have Deen made with a
freight company operating air freight to report to inspectors all shipments
of plant material. At New York, with the approach of the Christmas season,
the regular force of four inspectors has been increased by the assignment
of three transit inspectors from other cities to inspect shipments of Christ-—
mas trees from the New England area. A Japanese beetle inspector at New York
is also assisting. Interceptions of uncertified evergreen cones and bitter-—
sweet cuttings were made in November, one consisting of a freight shipment
of cones. On three occasions since July 1, Japanese beetle grubs have been
found in shipments intercepted by inspectors in the Northeastern States.

Permits to barberry shippers.--Forty—six nurserymen have been issued
permits under the provisions of tne black-stem rust quarantine to ship
species of Berberis and Mahonia not susceptible to rust infection into or
between the protected States, namely, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, lowa,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
The permits, which are valid for the current fiscal year, are based on in-
spections conducted by the Division of Plant Disease Control.

CONTROL INVESTIGATIONS

Toxicity to adult mosquitues of aerosols produced by spraying solu-
tions of insecticides in liquefied gas.—-A paper on this new method of pro—

ducing insecticidal aerosols was read at tne Hastern Branch meetings of the
American Association of Economic Entomologists by W. N. Sullivan. The work
was done in cooperation with L. D. Goodhue, of the Division of Insecticide
Investigations. This paper described the preparation and application of

the aerosols in controlling adult mosquitoes: in confined spaces. Aerosols
of pyrethrum oleoresin and sesame oil were prepared by allowing a solution
of these materials in dichlorodifluoromethane to escape through an atomiz—
ing nozzle. The solvent evaporates very rapidly and leaves the insecticide
suspended in the air. After some preliminary tests to determine the dosage
for complete mortality in 5 minutes, tests of a practical nature were run
on Culex, Aedes, and Anopheles mosquitoes. Culex mosquitoes were fed only
on sugar solution, but the other species were also given a blood meal. The
nontoxic nature of this insecticide to man and animals, its noninflammability,
its ease of application with no power requirement, and its nonstaining
properties appear to answer the requirements proposed for the control of
Mosquitoes on airplanes. Additional preliminary tests show the aerosol to
be very effective against several kinds of flies and promising against other

=3 o=

insects. These findings will be published in the February 1942 issue of
the Journal of HEconcmic Entomology.

A new laboratory method for testins roach hh sprays.—-When petroleum—oil
spray, similar to petroleum—base flys sprays, is discharged at close range
directly from the sprayer onto cockroaches, the amount delivered in a very
short time is usually far more than encugh to cause 100—percent mortality.

It is elso true that if a sprayer is turned on and cff rapidly to reduce the
quantity of insecticide applied, the type of spray produced is often de-
cidedly different from that produced when tne sprayer is operating continu-
ously; furthermore, extremely short intervals of spraying are difficult to
time accurately if the valve controlling the spraying is operated manually.
To meet these difficulties, B. R. McGovran and J. H. Fales constructed 4
pendulum apparatus which permitted the spray to pass through an opening onto
the roaches only while the pendulum was in one phase of its swing. A 10-inch
pendulum was used, which’ was short enough to travel rather rapidly. As the
rate of swing of a pendulum of a given length operating through a given om
plitude is constant, such an apparatus shovld Sive an accurately Gaimed, ab—
though very tbeief, exposure of the insects to the direct spray. Below the
pendulum a gle cylinder 9 inches tall and 6 inches in diameter, with a
3/4-inch hole
WZ,

z
bs)
*

mas

“ss
Imeatae LOO anes: a 1/4-inch opening around the bottom, covered
a metal pen 3-1/2 inches in diameter and 2-1/2 inches deep (tin cups with
the handles removed) which confined the insects. The inner surface of the
wall of the cup was very lightly coated with petroleum oil of neavy medicinal
grade, to keep the roaches from escaping or clinging to the walls of the pen,
To operate the apparatus the pendulum was pushed to one side until the spray
nozzle (a nasal atomizer with the tip pointed down) was directed at the
crescent-shaped partition attached to the oscillating end of the pendulum

about 1 inch from one end cf the partition. The air pressure was turned on
and the atomizer was sprayed on the end of the partition until the mercury
gage indicated the correct air pressure had been established. The pendulum

was then released and allowed to swing uniformly the number cf times needed
to give the required deposit. The average deposit of insecticide for each
passage of the 2-inch opening in the partition on the pendulum over the hole
in the top of the cylinder was 0.104 mg. of spray per square centimeter. A
summary of comparable tests of sprays of pyrethrins dissolved in refined
kerosene, ranging in pyrethrin content from 1 to 5 mg. per ml. and in deposit
fron 2.6 to 0.8 e per ci.©, against adult female German cockroaches (Blat-
tellea gernanica (L. se large “Sains - and adult males, caused mortalities of
(3, 87, and 98 percent, respectively, indicating that the adult females were
the most resistant to these sprays. A series of tests on each group with a
much heavier deposit Gas 3 MZ. per om.©) of highly refined kerosene without
pyrethrins added caused 97, 60, and 41 percent mortality of large nymphs,
adult male, and adult female German roaches, respectively. While the adult
females were the most resistant to this spray, as in the ones containing
pyrethrins, it is worthy of note that the nymphs were much less resistant
than the adult males, which reverses their order of resistance as compared
with the pyrethrum sprays. As these sprays were applied as "wet" sprays to
the dorsal. surface of the insects the wings of the adults may have absorbed
some of the oil and thus reduced its lethal effect.

INSECTICIDE INVESTIGATIONS

Plants reported to contain rotenone.--A list of plants reported to con+
tain rotenone or rotenoids has just been compiled by H. A, Jones. Rotenone

or compounds related to it have been definitely reported in 67 different
species of leguminous plants. Of these species, 21 are of the genus
Hepurdsia, ike of Derris, 12 of Lonchocarpus , end 10 of Millettia. Hleven
additional species of legumes are listed in which r reports indicate the
probable presence of rotencne or rotenoids. It is of interest to note

that there is to date no authentic record of these compounds having deen
found in a plant not of the family Leguminosae and of the subfamily Pepili-
onate. The list should prove helpful in the development of new sources of
rotenone and rotenoids in case supplies of the usual commercial sources are
curtailed because of the war,

Preparing insecticidal aerosols by spray ying solutions in liquefied
gases,~-Numerous requests. have been received for directions on the prepara
tion of insecticidal solutions in liquefied 8 iS Similar to those tested
against mosauitoes by Sullivan, Goodhue, and Fa he f
outline of the method is suggested by L. D. Goodime nd more complete de-
Bails will appear shortly in an ET circular. The safest liquefied gas to
use is dich]«xodifluoromethane know to the trade as "Freon 12." It is
relatively nontoxic to man and animals, noninflammable, and is generally
available at any local refrigeration-supply house. A solution of pyrethrum
oleoresin, with sesame oil as a synergist, in the solvent produces, when
sprayed under its own pressure (approximately 90 lbs. per Sd. ing) Saser=
sistent and safe aerosol which is very effective against mosquitoes, flies,
and, at high concentrations, against roaches. The apparatus required con-
sists of a 5-pound-csapacity freon tank and an oil—burner nozzie of about
e-gallons—per--hour capacity. Enough pyrethrum oleoresin to make about 5
mg. of total pyrethrins per g. of solution and twice this amount of sesame
Oil is draw into the empty tank by suction. The air is again withdrawm
from the tanx and the freon is introduced from a large supply tank through
a flexible hese. The amount is determined by difference in weight. Some
shaking mixes the solution. With the nozzle attached it is only necessary
to invert the tank and open the valve to produce the aerosol.

Nectar from Pima and Acala cotton blossoms.—-Geo. H. Vansell, Davis,
Calif., reports on his investigations on nectar secretions, which are being
conducted under controlled laboratory conditions, Pima cotton blossoms se-
creted nectar far in excess of the Acala. The respective averages of the
quantity per blossom throughout October 1941 were 58 mg. and 4 me. No sige
nificant difference was noted in the sugar concentration of these two va~
Tieties;: both averaged, when protected from evaporation, ae about 18 to
20 percent. The Pima variety had daily more than twice the number of blos-
soms per plant as the Acala variety of the same age and treatment. The nec-
tar secretion occurs only during part of the first day the blossoms open.
Secretion proceeds ina seemingly normal fashion, even when a blossom is
severed from the plant. henical analysis revealed the practical absence
of sucrose in this nectar. The respective percentages of sucrose, levulose,
and dextrose vere 0.35, 9.25, and 10.36 in a liberal quantity of Pima nectar.
Acala nectar was not significantly different.

IDENTIFICATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS

two species of Mezium in the United States.—-For sone years” ms has been
thought that only one species of spider beetles of the gems Mezium was

ee eee

represented in the United States. It is evident now that the European
species Mezium affine Boield. has been in this country at least since 1904
but has been misidentified as M. alericanun Cast. The latter species was
originally described soc South America. From specimens at hand, it ap-
pears that M. americanum is restricted to the Gulf States, whereas M. affine
is distributed | ea the eastern part of the country, southward to Flor—
ida and westward to Iowa. .

Artipus floridanus abundant in Florida.-~-Occasionally an insect or-
dinarily of little economic tape Ppence pecomes sufficiently numerous to
attract attention. This seems to be the case with Artipus floridanus Horn,
one of the otiorhynchid weevils, which was reported to de especially abun—
dant at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in November. The beetles seemed most numer—
ous near the seacoast. Among the plants attacked were Citrus, sea grapes,
Melaleuca, Ixora, coco palms, Plumbago, Hibiscus, Chalcas, and roses.

om lion.--There were received for
cies of the betfly genus Gastero~

4. Herman, technical adviser, los
ion. Mr. Herman stated that the lar=
941, at Gay's Lion Farm, just
ences for the larvae of this

re a specific identification
rvae appear to be very similar
ttacks the horse. This is the

O p
}4
fe)

- genus are not comple
is not pose ye at p
to those of G. nasal
first kmown record o

e
However, the
» wnich usually
ly larvae from a

Type Material added to collection of Hymenoptera.~-Type material of
25 species o: wasps was oe osited recently in the National Collection b:
i! i

K. V. Krombein. Identified material of only one T
present previously in the coilection of the United Sta

Probable origins of incorrect records of hostsparasite relationshipse—
Many of the published rec ae of host relations of parasitic insects are in=y
correct because Of Various circumstances such as nisidentification of host
or of parasite, the assumption that all parasites reared from material knowly
to be infested by a certain species were parasitic on thet species, con-=
fusion of notes or lab oe end other factcrs. An excellent example of an
erroneous recerd of hosteparasite association has recently come to notice.
A Bureau fieid worker submitted for identification a hynenopteron said to
have been reared from the pupa of a coccinellid beetle. It was suggested
by the specialist making the identification that the record must be in=
correct, because the parasite in question is known to attack only chrysopid
larvae. Subdsequent investigation of the host naterial, which had not been
submitted with the specimen, disclosed the fact that a chrysopid larva had
spun its cocoon within the pupal exuvias of the coccinellid. This indicates
what extreme care is sometines necessary to avoid mistakes in host~parasite
records.

—-~-000~~—

UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

BUREAU OF
ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE
NEWS LETTER

+ et nn

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
BUREAU OF ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE -
EW S LETTE ER
FOR DECEMBER 1941

aa : oer 3 o Ns .
ee ee cor Se Sa ee

Vol. esi Now 2) fms (Not for publication) ... . February 1,°1942

REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR

~ OBITUARY
A. C,. Davis

Alonzo ¢. Davis; assistant entomologist of the Division of Truck Crop
and Garden Insect Investigations, -who was stationed at Beltsville, Md., ©
died suddenly on January 4. Mr. Davis was born in Honolulu, T. H., on
March 4, 1901. He received the following degrees from the University of
California: A. B., in 1926 and M. A., in 1927. During 1926 and 1927 he was
employed by the Bureau for seasonal work on the pepper weevi. project in
California, From 1927 to May 31, 1931, he was employed as an agent, in co-
operation with the University of California,” on this same preJecte ' He was:
appointed as assistant entomolovist and was-aSsigned-to mushroom investiga-

tions at Arlington, vats on cune 1, a eet he transferred later to oe
odie) Med. .

“-Mr. Davis accumulated a wealth of practical: information on the. bi-
ology and control of insects and related pests which attack mushrooms, and
is the author of several bulletins issued by the Department on this subject.
Incidental to his formal assignment, in. récent. years. he. has. been engaged on
investigations = thrips ab var lene! roses.

_ Early in his career he became intérested inthe natural history. and .
taxonomy of certain Coleoptera. and the ihseet favis of rodent habitats.
Several valuable papers have resulted fror* Rese! obfseiey ets tons and See

Mr. Davis' service was characterized ee Ske Seghle <2 Nacrotion to duty
and an inherent desire to doa thorough © ‘job cf whatever he undertook. Al-
though his career was short, ne left behind him an excelient record, not
only in-the-Bureau. but, Ww — officials “of: the. _musbreom, industry... with whom
he’ worked closely. . as

"He is ‘survived by his wife and four children.

ates

ds L. Webb

On January 20;°1942,.Jesse’:‘Lee Webb died at Washington, D. C. He
was born in Bloomington, I1l., on April 9, 1878. He attended the public
schools in Rippey, Iowa, and graduated from the Washington State College,
receiving the degree of B. S., in 1900. He received the M. S. degree from
West Virginia University in 1902. ~

“Mr. Webb's’ term of service with the U. S.- Department. of Agriculture
extends back to 1901, when he started work with the Bureau of Forestry,. now |
the Forest Service.’~ In 1903 he- carried on entomological work with.the In-—
sular Government in the Philippine Islands for 3 months, returning to the |
Department to continue his work with the Bureau of Forestry. In 1904 he was
transferred to the Bureau.of. Entomology, where, he carried on miscellaneous
insect investigations until 1909, when he was assigned to work on forest in-
sects. In 1912 he was transferred.to Southern Field Crop Insect Investiga-
tions and devoted considerable of his attention to rice pests. He contrib-
uted many valuable publications to the literature of economic entomology and
his biological studies on horse flies were outstanding. From 1928 to the
time of his death he was associated with investigations on insects affecting
man and animals and showed much eee in preparing scientific material for
popular consumption. ails

ee ee

In 1904 ' Mr. Webb was married to a Evans and is survived by his
widow. wise his: oy oe Delmar Evans W ebb «

a oe

BUREAU EMPLOYEES CALLED TO .THE COLORS OR TRANSFERRED -
TO SPECIAL NATIONAL DEFENSE ASSIGNMENTS

Hatt . aibepait J., Unskilled Laborer, Trick Crop Ins. Resigned December 343
1941, to enlist in u. S. Army.

Jackson, Calvin W., eee PBW, ipaueeoas pelechs SCrVe,y ‘November. a 1941.

hal , ‘ 4 * Fr!
Pe aa

Ozanne, ‘Theodore W., Agt., Mexican Fruitfly Cont. Resigned January 10, 192,
ee: enlist in U. S. Army. ‘

"Ex=Blister Bhatia on Midway and Wake Islands.-~--Now that the small ra

Pacific islands of Midway and Wake have been so much in the public eye it

will be of interest to know that several hundred men from the Rogue River 4
Valley of southern Oregon, many of them "ex-blister rusters,". were among
the: labor crews employed on these islands on National Defense improvements. |
So long as the ammunition held sut these old squirrel snipers should have
given a good account of themselves. ‘

om
i]

FRUIT INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

a :
Fecundity of the raisin moth.--Pairs of adults of Ephestia ae a |

Greg., from larvae reared on dried mulberries in an incubator at 82~ to 8h~ Fay |
were held in celluloid vials at room temperatures during their egg laying.
The work was done at the Fresno, Calif,, laboratory by Oscar G. Bacon, using
50 pairs of moths. Half of them were given water and the others received

25-percent yee of honey. The females given water deposited an average
of 350.6 eggs, while those given diluted honey averaged 306.5 eggs. The
‘largest daily baton contained 190 eggs, and the most prolific female laid 692.

MEXICAN FRUITPLY -CONTROL

No Mexican fruitfly taken since Aucust. --The last Mexican fruitflies
to be trapped in the lower Rio Grande Valley were taken in the Laredo district
early. in-August.- Since that time an average of 9,000 traps have been operated
monthly without taking any Anastrepha ludens Loew. Usually about 20 fliés
are trapped before January 1, and, while the late appearance of flies tnis
“season indicates a probably Fiche infestation, it should not be taken as an
indication that the Mexican fruitfly will not be abundant in the regulated
area before the harvesting season is completed. Fruit shipments for the
season through December 31 totaled 12,174.3 equivalent carlots, which is
slightly greater than the amount of maa shipped during the same period in
1940. Weather was favorable for field work during December and i 2 ereves
‘were inspected. “A large amount of insect-damaged fruit was “inspected, but no
larvae were found. 5 mh

CEREAL AND. FORAGE INSECT INVESTIGATIONS.

Parasitization of #uropean corn borer in southeastern New England.--
Charles i. Clark, Moorestown, N. J., reports that a field survey to ‘determine
the status of parasitization of the summer generation of the corn borer
(Pyratista nubilalis Hbn.)) was conducted late in July 1941. The areas in-
cluded were 491 ¢ square miles in southeastern Massachusetts and 177 square
Miles in central Connecticut. In the Massachusetts area parasitization aver-
aged 24.9 percent, as compared with 40.0 percent in 1940.. This reduction is
attributed to a~sharp-decline-in -effectiveness of -the dominant - parasite,
Macrocentrus. gifuensis Ashm., combined with or immediately follewing a great
reduction in borer population, The tachinid parasite Lydella srisescens R. D.
was. also less effective in’ this. area in 1941 than in 1940. . Inar2eolata punc-
toria Roman and Chelonus. annulipes. Wesm. were recovered in some numbers in
the southeastern Massachusetts area. In the central Connechicut ares an in-
crease in parasitization both by the. locally dominant I. ‘puncicria and’ the
less important L. grisescens was recorded in 1941, as. comperus vith 19h0,
notwithstanding. "an apparently great reduction in corn) borer She eel
the area surveyed in 1941 parasitization. was 47.0 percent, of which 41.3 pe
cent was by I. punctoria. and i..6.percent)'by Ls) grisescens.: Of particular
interest and . importance wes the first recovery in central Connecticut of i
gifuensis: released here in oe

Lae masses. of Eurovean corn 1 borer. produced. for manus] infestation of
7

experinsntal corn varieties.—-Ray T. Everly, Toledo,. Ohio, reported that
during the period June 16 to July 5,.1941, 63,200 moths of P. nubilalis, com-
prising 32, 609 males and 30,600 females, were collected at Toledo from a large
field cake, which had been stocked in the previous fall with cornstalks heavil:
infested with hibernating corn: borer larvae. | Of the moths thus. produced, lots
were placed within oviposition cages in a room ma sintained at 78° F. and over
90 percent relative humidity. Here the moths deposited egg masses on waxed
paper ‘sheets placed in the cages" For tehat: purpose.” ‘Subsequent pinning of
these masses entailed. a loss of lhe a percent, white 4.5 ‘percent: of the’ masses

were discarded as of 2bnormal size, it being considered that any containing
more thah 40 or’ less than 10 eggs were unsuited for infestation purposes.
These operations resulted in 131,887. egg messes of normal size, available for
manual infestation of corns grown at Toledo in the resistant-variety tests.
Of these egg masses, 90,906 were placed on field corn and 40,981 on sweet corny

Toughness of plant tissue and resistance to European corn borer.==
According to G. T. Bottger, Toledo, extensive tests were conducted with a

special spring puncturing device for the purpose of measuring physical resist-
ance to puncturing of green leaf tissue of five different strains of corn,
including both dent and sweet. types, and its possible relation to the corn
borer resistance inherent in some of these strains. Leaf resistance to
pressure puncturing increased as plant maturity advanced. There were no
significant differences in leaf resistance to puncturing between any of
the five strains tested, when based on everages of all values for each strain. _
Tests made of seven Straws of dent, sweet, and popcorn types at the same
stege of maturity (within 2 days before taseen appearance) showed statistical]
significant differences between certain strains, but the results were too a
erratic to indicate any strain relationship to the physical resistance of leafy
tissue within types; consequently, no relation between leaf resistance to
puncturing and corn borer resistance was indicated. The data did, however,
indicate that the. toughness of corn-leaf tissue is associated with types of
corn and to this extent may possibly be related to corn borer survival,
resistance to puncturing being less and corn berer survival greater, in gen-
eral at the same stage of maturity, in the sweet and popcorn types than in the
dent type of corn strains tested. | |

Hydrogen-ion concentration and resistance to Kuropean corn borer .--
Mr. Bottger also reports that in order to study the possible relation of

pH readings to corn borer tolerance, pH tests were made at six successive
intervals. on seven different varieties of corn. The tests were made in: the
field on growing plants. The electrometric method was employed, utilizing

a factory-sealed glass electrce¢ce:ant saturated calomel electrode with a Beck-
man pH meter adapted for making pH readings directly from the calibrated
potentiometer dial. The data indicate a curvilinear relation of pH read-
ings of ccrn-plant tissue and maturity. Statistically, the pH readings of
R4°X L317 (resistant) and Golden Cross Bantam (intermediate) are lower than
readings for popcorn (intermediate) and the sweet corn strain Mich. 1828
(resistant). The pH readings for Ri X Hy (resistant) also averaged signifi- —
cantly less than did those for popcorn (intermediate). While significant
physiological differences are doubtless reflected in these strain differences,
no relation of pH readings to corn borer resistance in the varieties tested
is indicated. In view of indications of the data and known facts gathered
from other experiments incident to nutrition investigations of the European
corn borer, it is concluded that pH readings of growing plants may have -some —
utility in determining relative concentrations of certain chemical substances
in growing corn plants and in this capacity may possibly be useful in dete
‘ing relative resistance of corn varieties to the European corn borer.

Commercial-scale field tests indicate feasibility of controlling hessia
fly by use of resistant varieties,-#W, B. Noble, Sacramento, Calif., states
that in 1941, for the third.successive year, the fly-resistant wheat Big

d —5-

Club 38 (Dawson X Big Club?) was. grown on.a commercinl. scale under field
conditions:in a section where hessian fly ‘has long” been abundant’. din 2939
“this wheat showed no fly infeststion and noticeably. outyielded nearby regular
etesnt dof the plsnts vere infested. In 1940, 4 per-
312 Ciub 32 were infested and it yielded 30.percent more
uier Big:Club, in-which 69 percent of the plants were
infested. Yieid-figures*for tiie 1941 commercial p! lentes are not available,
’ but an this-fieid cnly about 2 percent of the plants were infested,, while: four
‘neighboring fields of regulat- Big Club had an-average plant: infestation of 79
percent. In the 1341 nursery Big Club 38 Was uninfested. and yielded 69- per-
cent more grain than did nearby regular Big Club, in which ,100 percent ae the
plants were infested.

—ar

_ cent of the plants of '5
' grain than adjacent: regu
re

oSY)

> JAPANESE ‘BEETLE “CONTROL

Infestations in Gh, Slide opie cpabs ne the. month .76 gypsy sraead egg
clusters and 1 brovm-tail meth weobing were removed from pees eek 2
for gypsy moth inspection anc certification. This material was destined t
points in Minnesota, Maryland, Ohio, New York, Avena, Tilinois, eomne et
eut, eae New Jersey, and Porns syivania.

a i
ie
a
Loy

Christx: as-preenery. dGesceren eoMave than 20 tons cf balsam boughs were

inspected at Arlington, Mase., for making wreaths: and table pieces to be.
shippéd outside the gypsy moth area. Christmas-tree inspection in the Green-

field; Mass., area Was~greatly <inereased over that -of Last-year. Dealers in
mixed greens in this area reported that their business this year
of 1940, Shipments of Pas sbnas trees and preenery from the Whi

‘Junction, Ve., district.was heavier than in recent years. During Dece ember,
20;935 trees were certified in the latter aréa for Shipment to NewYork, -
Pennsylvania, Florida, and a few other States. cas

Large ‘temporery ins inspection force ——During December 3a, fee ary in-
spectors were ‘engeged in gypsy moth- inspection work, 28.of whom.were employed
on the inspecticn of Christmas: trees and evergreen bouchs, 2 25 nursery:
“products inspection, and:-1 on forest products. Extra-.work performed by: the
temporary men included extensive scouting emer me the Greenfield, Mass.,
“district, wheré 52 bough lots, comprising 2,308.acres, were scouted. Twenty-
two of higee were found to be infested. ao a "31,30 100-pound bales
of boughs were inspecte oipeces by piece, «fn sli... 12,093. bales of boughs were
‘certified. from this areas “A total of 20,314 Christmas trees were, hand in-
spécted. a Ses

PER stias tree certified for shipment to Iceland. ——At. eve peclieuts 6f the
‘Vain se riment of- Agriculture, the district inspector. at Portland: certified
a 25-f ‘oot Christmas tree for: shipment: to Reykjavik, Iceland. At Augusta,
Governor Sewell attached a Christmas message and the. tree: was trucked to. the
Brooklyn, N. ¥.,! Navy Yard,: where it wes transferred: to. 2 naval vessel. for
transportation to its destinstion. The tree wes consigned to a lieutenant
who had writtén tc his parents. from Iceland that he feared Christmas trees
would be hard to find on the barren island. His f-ther thought it: would be

Ab)

+. Mice: to send a ‘community tree as Maine! Le wate seantine soldiers and sailors at

this North Atlantic outpost. Pérmission from’ beth the Army and Navy-was re-
quired before this shipment could be made. The War Department -specified that
the tree should be accomvanied by a Federal gypsy moth certificate..

; Unexpected freedom from infestation.--For several years heavy gypsy
moth infestation has been prevalent in the towns of Conway, Jackson, and
Bartlett, N. H. Observations showed that the infestation in these tovms was —
confined tc the valley areas and the foothills of the White Mountains. During ©
December several carloads of square-edge lumber, which had been sawed early in
the spring and piled for air drying in and among birch-tree growth, were piece .
‘ inspected. No gypsy moth egg clusters were found. Ordinarily lumber piled
under such circumstances in an infested area during the egg-laying season woul
be found infested. The extremely early hatching of egg masses in the spring
of 1941 was apparently responsible for the high mortality of the moth larvae
in these towns. vet. ing

Decorative material accompanying game birds certified.--Over 500 certif=
icates were issued during the month to cover individual cartons containing a

brace of pheasants, with a background of spruce boughs, a few pine cones, and
branches of elderberry for decoration. This decorative material required gyps
moth inspection, = .

Certification refused at infested nursery.--Upon the finding of 11 gyps
moth egg clusters on blue spruce trees submitted fur inspection at a nursery —
located in central Connecticut, certification of the inspected trees and all
other stock from the unit involved was suspended. Four of the clusters were
found on November 28 and 7 on December 1. Connecticut. State Nursery Inspecto
M. P. Zappe closed this nursery unit against further shipments until it has
been freed from infestation and has again been inspected and certified by the
State.

Power company stations man for elm disposal.—-The following incident
indicates the extent of cooperation being received from utility companies

in Connecticut. One of our. crews in Middlesex County had occasion to haul
some elm wood to a tovm dump to be burned. They found there a man from one
of the power companies who was stationed for an indefinite period to take ca
of elm wood, which the power company’s‘ trucks were hauling into the dump for
disposal. As the larger elm logs were brought in, the man was boring a seri¢e
of holes in them, charging the holes with dynamite and exploding the charge
with the battery from his car. In this way he was splitting the larger logs ©
into small enough pieces so they could be more easily handled and burned more
quickly.

W. P. A, Dutch elm disease personnel reduced in Connecticut.--By action
of the State W. P. A. during the week ended Decémber 13, personnel on the D
elm disease project in Connecticut was reduced by 55 percent. The laborers
transferred from the project were assigned to airports and other first—prior
National Defense projects. The personnel retained was almost entirely within
the border zone, with a comparatively small number not actually living in tha
zone but sufficiently close to it so they could be used entirely within the
zone. Work within the infection zone necessarily was virtually discontinued

Crew extinguishes fire set in swamp »—-lihile sanitation workers were bur

ing several woodpiles accumulated prior to the hunting season on a hunting
reservation in Pike County, Pa., ‘the caretaker requested the general foreman
to set the whole swamp on fire anc burn it off. Our men refused to start t
fire, whereuvon the caretaker started fires in the swamp while Dutch elm men
were burning woodpiles.: As soon as this condition was discovered, all hands

rh,

_ began fire fighting and. extinguished the blaze. set- by the caretaker. This
_ incident could have resulted in a serious, unjustifiable accusation aes
, She ay ‘had the fire escaped into the forest.

silt ie attacks healthy elms,—-It has il lg ‘iernemeer evident that

during last summer and fall S. multistriatus in large numbers has been attack-

s ing apparently healthy, full-leaved elms. In the first half of the month this

condition was discovered in 3- widely separated locations in Pennsylvanis. The
‘number of trees attacked in any 1 location ranged ‘from 3 or 4 in one spot to

' 25 and 4O, respectively, in 2 other counties. Most-of these trees were slip-
pery elms. An item of interest in connection with this condition is that at
each location oa er ai hed already Reeun to feed heavily. on beetles in the
infested trees.

Elm tree stripped of bark by woodpeckers.--A beetle-infested tree removed
in Sussex County, N. J., in December had been completely stripped of its outer
- bark by woodpeckers, making it look more like a sycamore than an elm... C. W.
Collins, of the Morristown laboratory, was notified and on examining the tree
and taking pictures of it, said that he had never seen a tree in such bad shape
as this one. The greater. number of the beetles had emerged, but there were
still numerous larvee left in the inner bark.

Clerk loaned. to agaist office.--The clerk..in the headquarters office

at Bethel, Conn., was-temporerily assigned to ‘the United States Navy Recruiting
Station in Danbury, because of the rush cf enlistme nts in the Navy following
the attack by the Japanese on December 7. She, was returned to the office with
a letter of appreciation from the recruiting officer, stating that she had been
of considerable service during an unprecedented rush of business.

Klm wood hauled to Army camps in New eee ae the latter part of the
month, 17.loads-cf elm wooc approximating 24 cords were de livered to the army
éricampments aroynd. Paterson, N. J.; to be used -as:fire wood. This Division
was advised tha t the camps could use sbout 100 ccrds for their ant a re
vem

W. Pi A. Federal ag roject discontiniéds==At:-the-end of December,

“- the We Po . Federal Dutch ln Disease project was closed out, with the expecta
tion that it would tater be resumed a the sponseren1p. OF the verious State
We Fs A. ores rusk

Methyl. broads fumigation. Activities.—A large plant grower et Bound
Brock, N. ds, recently. completed a new fumigation chamber with a capacity of
appre etic: 600. 5—inch potted plants. The grower has. fumigated large num-
bers of hydrangeas and reports very satisfactory results with his new unit.
‘This grower usec his fumigation chamber not only for. Japanese beetle certifica-
tion purposes, but fer déstroying-all insects infesting His plants. Because
‘of the apparent stimuls ting” effect of méthyl.bromide fumigation on some vari-
eties of hydrangeas, ‘the grower expects to save coal that would otherwise be
used in growing on these plents. Some of his customers are demanding fumi-
gated plents, because they save at least 2 weeks in propagation. Members of
the treating section of the nein conducted an experimental methyl bromide
fumigaticn cf canna rocts at a Long Island in apeneokie 2nt. Beetle infest=tion
was found there for the first time this summe The fumigated roots are now

=o.

being tested in. the greenhouse for damage. “If no hamful effects are noted,
this firm may construct a sizablé chember to eliminate hand inspection of
thousands of these roots that will be shipped to nonregulatéd points and to
other classified dealers within the regulated zone this. spring. Another Long”
Island establishment sterilized 60, 000 ° apres Sle in thelg methyl gine :
fumigation chamber,

Morning after Pearl Harber (actual telephone conversation at New York
City office, December &).--"Agriculture, Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quar-
antine." "Ts this the Japanese Beetle Office?" "Yes." "This is Reuters
British News Agency. I saw your listing in the telephone directory. Just
what do you have to do with the Japanese?" "We doen't do anything for the
Japanese. We enforce a plant quarantine to prevent the spread of the Japanese
-beetle. This is an insect that was accidentally introduced into this country
from Japan." "How lonz has this been Eoing. one" "In the neighborhood of 25
years." "Oh, then it isn't something that started since the war?" "No, the
beetle was discovered in this country in 1916." "Do you have any Japanese
working for you?" "No, there are none working here, and none in the Bureau t
my knowledge. If you ee any more definite information you can call our
Bloomfield, N. Jey field headquarters." "Well, that won't be mene Seen © a
think you ee given me all the information I eabeay Thank you":

Mild wepes a boon to nursérymen.--Nurserymen. on the Eastern Shore of ©
Maryland and Virginia reported that, owing to the unusually mild weather pria
to Christmas, they were able to dig stock and fill and-ship orders which). und
ordinary circumstances, would not have been filled until the regular spring
shipping season. This was especially gratifying to nurserymen, as it partia
solves their labor-shortage problem. One large Marylanc nursery required the
services of an inspector on 24 of the 27 working cays in the month. In the
Syracuse, N..Y., 2rea, the mile weather permittec the inspecticn of bare-roott
nursery stock until lete in the month. Most of this stock was placed*in sto
- age for spring shipment. Nurseries in’ the Harrisburg, Pa., area made many
shipments to southern points during the open weather,

Late interception of infested msterial.--A midcwinter interception of
beetle-infested material was mace et the Japanese beetle highway. inspection —
staticn on U. S. Route 1 at Fredericksburg, Va., when 2 Japanese beetle grubs
were removed from soil about the roots of 12 miscellaneous plants’ being trans
ported by a motorist from New York City to Miami, Fla. : oi aH"

eirdpean corn borer certification: discontinued.--The limited amount of

European ccrn borer inspection and certification work performed -by inspectc
‘throughout the Japanese beetle anc gypsy moth regulated areas, as: well as in”
Michigan and Indiana, was distontinued after December. Arrangements were mac
by the Bureau with plant quarantine officials in the infested States to take
care of the added inspection dutiés, and States that had theretcfore requires
Federal corn borer inspection and certification agreed tc modify their quar=—
antines.so that such. preducts would be accepted on ‘the basis of steee, certisy
as Aa .

Se.

"FOREST INSECT INVESTIGATIONS is prey See > lane Saree

Report.on elm hanger study ané re cule bark beetle attack concluded .——
On December 2 Ry J’ Kowal, Morristown, .N. J.; completed the examination of 124
hangers” arid: 35 henger ee for attack'of elm bark beetles and the Dutch elm
Gisease fungus. This study was begun in June 1940 in an effort. ta.determine
the importance of wind— and ice-damaged limbs. insofar as they furnish breed-
ing material for the principal insect vectors of the Dutch ¢lm disease funcus,
namely, Scolytus multistriatus Marsh. and Hylurgopinus rufipes (Hich.). - Atten-
tion was aiso given to the possibility of the fungus being introcuced into elm
trees directly by beetles attacking the hanger and the remaining stub. -The
results of the creation of hangers in all months of the year shcwed that no
attack by S. multistriatus would be expected in limbs felled’ from October to
February. “September hangers having no living attachment were in all cases
attacked but the resulting progeny died in all cases. Attack and development
were obtained in-hangers created from Merch to August, inclusive. S. Jd.
Snucker,..of the Bureau of: Plant Incu ustry, examined the 35- ‘hanger stubs. Dis-
colorsd streaks in the xylem, usually emanating from the cut end of the ‘stubs,
were founc in approximately half of the 35 stubs. All discolored streaks were
cultured. One discolorec streak 1+1/16 inch long anc 3/16 inch from the cead
» portion yielded-Ceratcstomella ulmi Buisman. This streak appearec to have orig-
inatec from a beetle attack, which scored the xylem.

SB PRINy Hod ao as arasite of Neodiprion sertifer (Geoff.).--C. L.
Griswold, Morristown, reports thet Microplectron fuscipennis Zett:, 4- European
prepupal parasite of Gilvinia polytoma (Hte.) anc Neodiprion sertifer ’ (Geoff. ys
- was originelly introduced into Canada anc New England to.assist in combating
-G. polytoma.. With N. sertifer attainine outbreak” proportiens in New Jersey in.
1938 and 1939, liberations of this parasite were made in ‘several infested
localities in June 1939. Establishment of this parasite was found to heve
taken place in some of these infested ereas in- 1940, including an area at
Lamington, N. J., where severe defoliation on red pine ‘occurrec sere since
1938. In December 1941°a search was mace at the Lamington, N. J., area for
cocoons of N. sertifer for the purpose of cetermining whether or not are
- introduced parasite of the sawfly had been established since its-liberaticon in
-1940.. The search cisclose¢, thet a very large proportion of the sewfly coccons
. found, both ol¢ anc new, had previously been attackee by. M..fuscipennis. An
_ examination of the red pine: needles also revealed a very limited ege deposi-
- tion by N. sertifer, forecasting a greatly. reduced infestation in 1942; for
. which the repid oe and effectiveness cf M. fuscipennis is believec to be
_ responsible. et ae

'.; ..- Nursery elms snd their susceptibility to Hylurecpinus rufipes.--R. T.
Webber, Morristown, reports that curing the period December 8-18, 1941, in-
Clusive, 135 nursery elms located in 6: nurseries. in New Jerséy were examined
for H. rufipes infsstation. This, examination was. mace for the purpose of ob-
taining accitional data on the susceptibility of nursery elms to ettack by H.
~~“ rufipes; which-is.a carriér_of. the ‘Dutch elm Cisease fungus. These trees
ranged from 1.0 to 6.0 inches in ia ameter, with an ‘average..of 2.7 inches. As
*-a-result of this examination, it was found thet the elm-stock.in.3 of; the
nurseries inspected showed conclusive proof of Hylurgopinus : attack. Moreover,
in 2-of the 3 nurseries where an infestation existed, hibernating beetles were
present in variable numbers. The data, arranged in tabular form, follows.

Diameter of trees

e e
e °

~6 inches 2 :Trees with : : Bark cells
: above - :evidence of: - ¢ occupied by
ground 3 Trees :H. rufipes :H. rufipes:living adult
(inches) :examined: attack :bark cells: H. rufipes
; Number : Number : Number ¢ Number
0.75 to 1.50----------------- ye 2 ; 2 = @)
higS ist eo BNS Uae ates Sonne od nae Stent © : 28 5
B o5ld don dice ernment lt hd Bemable 5.5... pee ge Se
A208 her GyOO2=e—estcoeoeseen) Vay aer pai ee 5
TOL, Geté AOE “gape! Spa the ge,
Total------------------ in 15 ne 30 ¢... Lok H Bs

Scolytus multistriatus prevalent in Ohio River Valley.--D. EK. Parker,

of the Columbus, Ohio, forest-insect laboratory, reports that the smaller
European elm bark beetle (S. multistristus) is becoming more prevalent in the
watershed of the Ohio River, where the phloem necrosis- disease of elm-is ac-
tive. The killing of elms by this virus disease supplies large amounts.of
‘breeding material suitable for Scolytus. S. multistriatus was first recorded
in Columbus in 1939.in one section of the city. At present most of the trees
killed by phloem necrosis in all sections of the city are very heavily in-
fested. Other disease areas in Ohio and adjoining States present a similar
situation.

Western pine beetle survey finally completed.--According to F. P. Keen,
Portland, Oreg., the annual pine beetle survey of Oregon and Washington, a
“cooperative undertaking between the Forest Service, the Indian Service, and
the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine, was completed late in November.
Curtailment of C. C. C. funds made it necessary to drop the training school,
which heretofore had preceded thé survey work. Notwithstanding these diffi-
culties; the crews covered 71,360 acres, a 0.65-percent survey of hohe
ELS 000, O00-acre pine area in these two States. ee:

Ips-caused te decreases on sia edgar National Forest.—-Ips—caused

damaze to ponderosa pine reproduction following logging is being investigated ©

““8by We de Buckhorn, of the Portland laboratory. He has found, from a study of

the Wolf Creek logging aréa on the Ochoco National Forest, that. damage caused
by Ips oregoni: (Eich.) oecurs almost entirely during the First year following
logging. On cut-over areas subject to attack in 1941, approximately 3 percent
of the residual reproduction was killed by I. oregoni. On similar cut-over
areas subject to attack in 1939 and 1940 the losses caused by this insect were
7-and 10 percent, respectively. The lessening of current losses is attributed,
at least in part, to increased tree vigor resulting from the abnormally heavy
ae of 1941 (News Letter v. 8, No. 12, p. le, Dec. 1941).

High commie’ e of cocoons of an imported pine sewfl remained in dia-
- pause through 1941.--J. V. Schaffner, Jr., of the New Haven, Conn., laboratory,
reports that the first.serious defoliation by the European sawfly Gilpinia
frutetorum (F,):in New Englarid occurred in the fall of 1940 on a municipal
watershed in. ‘Southington, Conn., where the defoliation of red pine trees on 5
“acres ranged ‘from 25 to 60 percent. The feeding in the fall of 1941 was fully

_- asi severe. as.that in 19,0;."" Many ‘acres in nearby stands’ Are at’ present lightly
_.. dnfested...In July 1941. the duff in a series of samples covering a total of

Son: 528 square feet was examined with the following results:

- Condition of cocoons - "| Se eeOoeoens ound

ee 2 : : 7 ~ - Number:Percent
From which adult .sawflies had emerged--~-----------===-----2 2,629: 21.2h
Destroyed by mammals-------------------------------=-----=: §1,924:: 15.54
Destroyed by predaceous end scavenger insects------+--=-==; °1,293: 10.47
Destroyed by hymenopterous psrasites----------------------: 2,543: 20.54
Dead from unknown causes--------------------~----------~----; hs 3.62
Apparently ees wher COLL CCE 60m en Bw ee 28.59

Total

(all conditions) found in semples ----------- i ea i ea

Y55 all cocoons were collected, some of them were 2 or more years old.

The 3,539 cocoons that appeared to be healthy were:immediately isolated
in glass vials for rearing in the laboratory. Early in the winter all un-
issued cocoons were dissected. a Ratoe se

Rearing data :Number:Percent
ae Adult sawflies emerced July-Senvtember----------: 1,860: 52.56
¢. Coc@ms containing hymencoptsrous parasites-----; ._528: 14.92
Cocoons dead from unknown causes--------------~: ~ 386: 10.90

Cocoons 2live and in diapause, December 1941--=: 765: 21.62

A further analysis of the dsta shows that for the entire collection,

-4,489 cocoons, or 36.27 percent, produced sawflies and 3,071, or 24.80 percent,

were p*rasitized by Hymenoptera, 2,760 of these having been attacked by the

European species Microplettron fuscipennis Zett. The outstanding: points of

. these studies indicate that a high percentage of cocoons remained in diapause

. through 1941 (21.62 percent based on field collections examined in the labora-

tory). The importance of the multibrooded parasite M. fuscipennis is 2lso
shown. . | | i va RL hae ie

moth egg clusters in the ecological study areas.. The-insect has never been
abundant in the general region of Eastfordc, although it was found there over
25. years ago. Outbreaks have. occurred in the other areas ‘represented.

1 ee

Petershan,

’; Eastford, : Freetown, : : Alfred, Meine
Winter - Conn. ; Massa °° Mass, ~.s Tract) 1D ey arae, 1h
2p phy 2 tavtt tenn see acres): :(80 acres):(120 acres):
"4946= 37------====% + - “Fae bY a = lg" Ne ee
'1937~38~--------- ¥ iii : 3/ 7008110 : S55 ry === Ree ;
/-1938-39~------- == OF > 126 : . 250750 : 900*450 +: 3,1002370
1939-40---------=: | Fe) Munsenianee Nessal e = 545. : 2204)0 : ~ 430290 ©
MGOUOM) Ue at ait vial Conia ee to er - --- : 230440
ADL b2 anna oe ; ; By oS jb Cee

9604160 + 1o+8

mer ee 120 acres of the crea was surveyed this fall but the remainder wi 1
be EMEA eS fe spring.e — : aa 4

Ano egg clusters were present in the samples taken but a few were noted
in the ote Sarita area.

Bi nemieers are rounded to a of the standard errors

Milo ee clusters were seen mies probably a few are present.

’ GYPSY MOTH AND “BROWN-TAIL MOTH CONTROL

. Brush-disposal machines returned to storehouse.—-The two brush-disposal
machi fea which have been operating in the field for. several months, were re-
turned to the storehouse at Greenfield, Mass., about the middle of December,
after field conditions became favorable for burning brush. One of these
_machines had been in constant operation in Massachusetts since last Seotember }
and had disposed of brush at gypsy moth infested sites in the towns of Sandis-
field, Mount Washington, Alford, -and Charlemont. The other machine was trans- 7
ferred to the field at-about the same time, but was used for several weeks on
properties in.the Connecticut area, where authority,to burn the accumuleted
brush could not be obtained, before moving to infested sites in Massachusetts.
Although large quantities of brush and other waste wood were reduced to sew-
_sust or small chips, very little, mechanical trouble developed in either maching
curing their long periods. of operation. ... The | caterpillar tractor used in moving
the machines from one pile of brush to the next was also réturned to the store
‘house. It has been equipped with a snow —— anc is available for immediste
service when needed,

Visit made to offices of State administrators,-——During the first week
in December A. F. Burgess, in charge of moth work; Eli Abbott, Jr., assistant
administrator of the W. P, A. in Washinzton; and Paul P. Stewsrt, of the
Secretsry!s office, visited the offices of the State administrators of
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, =nd New York, to discuss problems connec
with the change-over from Federal ere to Federal 1 W. P. A. projects under
the State program, which will take place on January 1, 1942.

Gypsy moth colony founc_in town free from infestztion for 15 years.—A

gypsy moth crew, tempcrarily assignec to open scouting in Danby Township,
Rutlend County, Vt., during the open season for deer, discovered 2 small

ete

- gypsy moth-infestation in an old apple orchard... Danby was first infested by

the gypsy moth in 1924, and several small and scattered infestations were also

-. Fourid. in, 1925 and 1926:.: Owing to intensive extermination measures conducted
a ee aad no ee evidence of infestation was found’ in Danby until this
eet

en Gyps sy moth work - retarded otal Shui wteabac wns unusual weather oontad
tions, the modified séowting work necessary in Massachusetts. during the déer-
hunting season, together, with a reduced force caused by workers taking time

off to: hunt,°all contributed to an appreciable retardation in gypsy moth work
in that State during the first week in December. Satisfactory | progress had
previously been mace by the 8 crews of scouts and-10-crews of Bog iS Hoe
; in the HOSS Teena ee: oe the barrier ZONE»
hee W. P.-A.work in haces Sut eres to treatment of infested areas.—-
- The force of W.-P.°A. workers was reduced from 37 to 25 on December 8, at the
specific’ request of the W. P. A, State administrator in Connecticut, oe stated
that this action was necessary.in order to keep within the State quota, and
thet sgimblar reductions were being made on other W, P. A. projects. This

. mécessitated a change in the work plan, as the Ws P..A. force was too small to
_. perform both scouting and treatment work acequately. Several agents were de-

_ , tailed to make special. surveys of large blocks of woodland in tovmships of the
barrier zone where small anc scattered cypsy moth infestations were found and
treated several years ago, but where little or no check-up work has been pos-
sible curing ‘the last 2 years,. because of: the lack of available W. P. A. em-
‘ployees. In addition,. 3 - 2-man crews of experienced agents were assigned to
determine whether infesto tions exist in the most dangerous parts of the barrier
zone area. These men will traverse the woodlands about 100 feet apart and

Sey eid creosote add single e sag clusters found. The centers of the larger infesta-
tions will be. marked, in order thot. they .can be readily. located and treated by
the W. P. A.:crews. By this method, the entire time of the’ smait force of
&ypsy. moth workers now employed in Gonmectien: will be utilized in areas where
ae labors will be of maximum eet a to gypsy moth control work.

. Qi We Ae ) mate work discontinued in Se inet ra N. Y. Ae gyps,
. moth project was placed on the inactive list on December 3, anc the men were

| . either furloughed or transferred to projects more closely identified with

- National Defense. However, the N. Y. A. shop.project was’ permitted to con-
_tinue, as it was considered in. the nature of defense work, because of the ex-
Jogos mechanical See EAS received by the eur Ole.

r D noeh” gat pets ha from woods coe deer-hunting season.—-At

"the end of the first.week in. December, 34 W.°-P. A. gypsy moth crews were en-
gaged’ in scouting: and. 12 crews were employed on ground or thinning work in

the Pennsylva mie area. These, crews ccnfined their activities to residential
areas or to open country during the 2-week open season on deer, which began on

_ December 1. All gypsy moth work in wocdlands is suspended at this time, as

<a theré is always grave danger of injury to workers from stray bullets from high-
_ poweréd: wat les, which are. permitted in Pennsylvania. « Gypsy moth work in wood-

land areas was resumed on Decenber Lb mg

PLANT DISEASE CONTROL

. Federal A y_ prejects cdisecntinuec.—-All Federal: Agency #. P, As proj-
ects in barberry eradication: were terminated by December 31 or earlier. Bureau-—
sponsored Vi. P.-A. projeets were. started. promptly in Januery in all States in
the area, except Ohic,. South Dakota; and Wyoming. ‘In Ohio the application was
approved in December but the Presidential Letter was not received until January
5, 1942. In Scuth Dakota the epplication has been approved but no project is
being..operated at present, due,to snortege of lebor in areas where survey is
necessary, and also because of weether concitions. No labor program is anti-.
cipated for Wycming. In general, the change from Federal Agency to State

W. P. A. projects was accomplished with a minimum of cofusion and interruption

_:. Mild fall weather favors progress in Michican.--The Federal Agency W, P.A
project, started October 1, was terminsted December 31. During this period in-
tensive survey was conducted in Benzie, Grand Traverse, Huron, Kalkaska,° Lee-
.Lanau, Manistee; Sanilac, Sts Clair, and Wexford Counties. M. E,. Turner, State
lesder; reports that from the standpoint SF results and accomplishments this
wes perhaps the best 3-month period of work thet he has had for some time in
Michigan... Qher SN gne ah FAP Ae for this was the fact thet #. P. A. officials
approved an assignment.quota of 200 employees for this period. In acdition,
weather conditions: were, very eee is for survey, 2nc. the personnel assigned
was above average... On Janpary 1 the entire Federal Agency personnel was trans-
ferred to.the State W. P. A. project. It is expected that ‘work will be con=
tinued..on about the -same basis, except that survey operations were suspended -
in St..Clair County. because all laborers in that county were assigned tc a
certified Defense project. To suprlement the loss-of St..Chair County, survey.
operations were-stearted in Genesee County... of $2

Area .of escapec barberry bushes in West Virginia.—iW, M. Watson, State

. Leader in charge of berberry eracicnticn in West Virrinia, reports an inter-
esting finc of barberry bushes in Marshall County. This area is located about
6 miles southeast, of Moundsville ond in. the vicinity of the,village of Rosby's
Rock. Approximately 1,00 common barberry bushes were located on this: property,
and most of them were.exceptionally large anc heavily fruited. “At Least 2 were)
estimated to be more than 15 feet high. Althcugh the bushes showed no evidence
of aecial infection this year, nearly all farmers who were interylewed concern=
‘ing stem rust probléms agreed that ¢rain crops Of all kinds had been severely .
damaged by stem rust in past years.. Some of the.clder residents in this area
were questioned as to the location or the original planting responsible for the
escapec bushes, Several of them re ted the story of the French wine maker, .
who ceveloped the present. Beebout Ee oar into a hillside vineyard. The wine
maker was a lover of flowersand shrubs. Many impcrtant end rare shrubs were
saic to have been planted around the original home.and only a few hundred feet
from the Site of the largest escaped bushes. Thé exact location of the orig- *
inal, planting was never ascertainec, but the present owner of the property is
certain that the "spice .hedge" planted in profusion around the wine shop was..
imported barberry. Several old.residents in the area referred to the escaped
bushes as wild."snice hedge," The old homestead end wine shop were.razed abo
ithe turn of the. century and the. site was transformed into a tillable field. &
present :the entire area-is overgrown, and enly traces of the site remain visi=
ble. ree ts

—

wiped erAdi cation: in “phair 1941 an inspéction was made of all bar-
berry locations in°10 Ohio'counties. This inspection was conducted by a train-
éd Bureau employee’ at times’ when his services could be spared from other duties,
~The purpose: of this inspection was to check the effectiveness of previous erad-
jeation methods and to look for the presence: of fruiting barberry bushes on old
properties’ and nearby. : Harry. Atwooc:, State leader, reports that: barberries
were found ‘on 3.2 percent of the 1, 666 properties checked. Five new locations
were found, only 1 of which hac et bushes. Approximately 92 percent of
the peeve as were found on cold properties. No seedlings were noted on any of
the properties inspected; however, of the bushes found on old properties, 11.3
percent were fruiting, as compared to 13 percent of those found on new proper-
ties.

Barberry eee project reotearteed eR: Ox Bulger has been promoted
to ‘project leader to fill the vacancy caused by the new assignment “of W. L.
Popham, who. on.December 1 was made-assistant. chief of the Bureau in charge of
control ‘operations. L.. Kenneth Wright, heretofore -State- leader of barberry
eracicaticn in Pennsylvania, will take Mr. Bulser's place ss assistant project
leacer. The project headquarters have been moved from Washington, De Gea GO
‘Minneepolis, Minn.,. anc all field operations, not. only in barberry eradication
but also in connection with’ rust: surveys.cnd barberry identification and sus-
ceptibility studies, will hereafter be handled through the Minneapolis office,
which will report direct. to the chief of the Division at Washinton.

Blister ‘Past: damare :-to b epiaiabilc white pine on Pack Demonstr=tion
Forest.——At the 1938 blister rust control conference of supervisory personnel
in the Northeastern States, Clifford H. Foster, director of the Charles Lathrop
Pack Demonstretion Forest at Warrensburg, N. Y., presented a very interesting
paper on bhister rust cemage. . Mr. Foster reported that 250,000 boarc feet, or
5 percent, of the stancing pine timbér on the forest would-be-lost from Wigetee
**rust ‘stem cankers which origineted prior tc the-application of control measures.
During the last 3 years, many est=blished blister rust stem cankers have become
more readily visible.’. For this reason, studies of blister rust damage now in
progress at the Pack Forest have added ay the total.of observed old stem in-
fections on merchantable timber. Mr. Foster now believes that his 1938 esti-
mate of 5 percent potential loss from bigster rust, must be revised upward and
may reach 20 percent, or 1,000,000: board feet, before the count is complete.
This condition at the Pack Forest shows that ade stem infections on large trees
are not readily observed, even by competent trainec foresters, until such time
as these infections have become -almost unavoicably fatal. Foresters or wocdlanc¢
cwners may be led into a false: sense of security by the lack cf ‘conspicuous
cankers, when many of the best trees in the stands may be undergoing the lest
stages in the process of destruction. In. his thinning operations Mr. Foster
has found frequently that the crop trees he. desired to leave for additional
growth were the ones:having stem cankérs. In fact, such infected pines have
frequently caused Mr. Foster. to revise his management plans. Further serious
blister rust infection in the forest, however, has now. been prevented by the
eradication of Me ee and pouscborry bushes.

White pine acreage increasing in northern Wisconsin.--White pine acreage
is on the increasé in some counties in northern Wisconsin, Several pine areas
worked initially in 1936 were found to contain a greatly increased acreage of
native pine, when given a second workin- this year. One area in Marinette

~ =16—

County contained 75 acres of first-priority pine when warked.in 1934. Five
years later, in 1941, the same area was reworked and it har expanded te 2bout
520 acres of first-priority pine. A substantial portion of this acditional
pine acreage consists of seedlincs and small trees growing uncer aspen, which
“serves as an excellent cover crop for the younz white pines. Ribes cynosbati
bushes, from 2 to 3 feet high, were found generally distributed over that part
of the area requiring initial eradication. This example of an increase from 75
to 520 acres of first-priority pine through natural reprocuction is an indica-
tion of what is happening uncer Lanna e circumstances in other parts of the
white pine Fees pls

COTTON INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

Malvaceous plant, -algalia, attacked by pink bollworm.-~-At the Presidio,
-Tex., laboratory many kines of malvaceous plants are grown in small numbers tc
determine if there is danger that they may serve as hosts of the pink bcllworrm.,
On December 4, 60 mature seed pods ef Abélmoschus, abelmoschus from plants grow-
“ing in close proximity to:cotton were examined. Of these, 41 were found to
be -infested with pink bollworms. A total of 107 pink bollworms were taken, or
an average of 2.61 per infested pod. This plant is grewn occasicnally as an
' ornamental in the extreme southern parts of the United States. The infestation
of 68 percent in these seed pods at Presidio in 1941 was greater than in seed
pods of this plant grown uncer similer conditions in Puerto Rico. In 1938 L. C

Fife stated: "“Algalia (Abelmcschus abelmoschus) is occasionally grown in Pusrt 7
Rican garcens for. its musk-scented seeds and for medicinal purposes. The large @

bristly seed pods average around 2-3/4 inches in length and 1-1/4 inches.in ,
diameter. Of 129 pods collected 2djacent to infested cotton at Isabela, 10, or ©
De 8 percent, were found infested." |

Pink bollworm hibernation in lower Ric Grande Valley.--The results of
the last two seasons! work in the lower Rio Grande Valley have’ been summarized |
by W. T. Hunt, L. C. Fife, and A. J. Chapman, of the Brownsville, Tex., labora- §
tory. As the. field clean-up and closed season, when no fruiting cotton is. per-=
mitted, are important measures used in the control program, an effort was mace:
to Peer ees the time and the place where long-cycle or hibernating larvae are
formed under these conditions. Green and onen bolls collected in July were
- examined for long-cycle larvae efter keeping them uncer different conditions
in the field for at least 30 cays to permit pupation of short-cycle larvae.

' No long-cycle larvas were found in green bolls removed from the plants anc ex-
posed to the sun on the soil surface or in green bolls buried 3 to 4 inches
deep. No long-cycle larvae were founc in green bolls on plants that were cut
and scatterec over the soil surface, but larvae were found when the stalks were
piled so that the green bolls were protected from the full force of the sun.

No long-cycle larvae were found in open bolls placed on the soil surface in the
sun, but larvae were found in open bolls buried 3 to 4 inches deep or on stalks
cut anc scattered over the field or placec in piles. .The mean temperature for
August was 83° F, anc the precipitation. 092 inch. Examinations of the soil be-
neath the bolls showed thst the high témperatures had not caused the larvae to
leave the bolls and enter the soils No attempt was made to determine the per-
centage of larvae entering the diapause under these conditions, but it was
definitely established that long-cycle larvae are found as early as the latter
part of July. Long-cy¢le larvae were recovered from open ‘bokls 6n and beneath —
the soil surface =nd on standing stelks in the lower Valley in-each month from

Ate

November to April. No larvae have been found in cocoons in the soil, as is the
case in-arid ‘regions. Open bolls were placed in-Hibernation-cages.on the soil
surface, some weré buried,: and some were left on standing. stalks between.. ivi
August: 20 and December 10, to determine the curation of the resbing sta 22 Cw No
survival ‘was ‘obtained: arom oper bolls placed in cages on August. 20, ‘but. from :
botls ‘placed.’on the soil surface in cages on September 26 ‘moth emergence ©:
occurred as Tate as April 21 or after 207: days. The: maximum duraticn of. the .
resting stage was in open bolls on standing stalks. From meterial caged on
september. 25, the last moth emerged on June ll,or after 259 days A higher
survival also. occurred fae bolis left on standing stalks “than in any ouher’
environment, emphasizing the importance of cutting all cotton stalks in. the
fall, ‘even ‘though the bolls are left on the ground. Between October Ty, 1940,
and May-°31, 1941, the rainfall recorded st Brovnsville was. 26.5) eenese ca)
18.6 inches more than for. the :same neriod in 1939-40. Large areas of. pales

vated land wére :flooded:on. several occasions gue, Goon eee ae are that the
hibernation cares were ¢wpletely inundate.. for: tro ae to ome ey

Hise eats ePS TSAR SHE Ee aa Hone one Sees Tyee ct 38, oom
gence, therefore very little carry-over to the 1941 crop was expected... The
results of the bloom exeminations, FiéId inspections, ane “sin-trash’ examina-
tions were in line with this expectation ane. showed Sera lg aces ee over
previous yearSe Sor aan ys eee ee RRR SEL ES

Cotton dusting for insect control in Arizona.--T. P. Cassidy, Tucson,
Ariz., anc H. G. Johnston, éxtension entomologist, Phoenix, Ariz., répvort
that -39,740 acres of cotton was dustec-for insect-control in Arizona.in 1941.
There:was a total of 82 , 064 acre=applications of Insecticides; or an average
»of.2.08 applications for each acre treated, For, the control of. Miricae,
Pentatomidae,: and other hemiptérous: insects 72,688 acre-anplications were made
on 29,924 acres of cotton, using a mixture of paris:green 7.5:percent-sudfur-:
92.5 percent. This was applied at-the rate of 15.pounds per acre-anplication,
making 2.total of 1,090,320 pouncs:of the paris green—sulfur mixture used, For
the control of the ner armyworm (Laphygma exicgua Hbn.):and the cotton leaf.
worm (Alabama, argillacea (Hbn.)) 9,978: acre-anolications were made on 9, 816.
aeres of cotton, using calcium arsenate dust at:the.rate.of 8 pounds per.acre-
application, making a total of.79,808 pounds: used. .Ground mechines. were used
~inmaking 6,120 acre-applications and airnlanes were, used for 76,544 acre-
applications. “During 1941, 2 airplane ‘companies: operated-in Arizgona.: The -
Asricultural Ma arketing Service of this Department estimates that- 239, Q00 acres
~of the 1941 crop will be’ harvested: in Arizona,s: The 39,740: acres dusted for.
insect control is therefore 16.6 bercent of the acreage in Arizona. Before. :
the investigations :of Mr, Cassidy and: his associates showed thet: dusting of.
cottcn with insecticides is often a profitable prachace in Ae ous yractica a
“nene of the. sige: ain de state: was dusted,’ pr PS

TRUCK vcnaite AND GARDEN INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

“Diffusing ‘oder: ots, isoam wv: eae in Ay egw menacis ae e. ‘Seott
anc Joe Milam, af the Clarksville, ‘Tenn. laboratory, report the. results of
tests conducted in triplicate with several methocs of diffusing the odor of
isoamyl salicylate for attracting hornvorm moths Protoparce sexta (Johan, )
and P. quinquemaculata (Haw.). The standard vial-and-wick combination, ‘con-
sisting of a l—inch vial, a short length of lamp wick, anc a loosely fitting
cork, was founc to be lets than one-fourth as effective as was 3 ounces cf

=18-

lump fuller's earth placed in 2 small cloth: = and soaked vith ae ote
salicylate. Rottenstoné, charcoal, or Irish moss prep2red in-the same manner
as the fuller's earth, or a 2-square-inch block of plaster of paris soaked

in isoamyl salicylate, was_founc_to be only slightly less effective than the —
fuller's earth. Following is a summary of the results based on 15 days! ex~
posure of the materials during a period when moths were very scarce. ss

Bust y : Number cf moths recovered.
Diffusing material : __Northern) ; Southern Total 2 Total. |

' _° :Males:FPemales: Meies:Females:Males:Females:Male and female
Vial. and wick------: 4

: 6 ee 3: 19: & er [25
Fuller's earth----- SS 2 eyeRESi el Jake 26a: Sie) shy 6 128
Rott enstone-——---=— sor fges> shes gnofers 25 @-2 6S ssobbh Pe 109
Charcoal----------- is. oe 23, 2. Saas a3 = +59 & Sy es 96 |
Plaster of paris---: 16: 12 : 44: 29° s-6OTE Steer 91:
Irish moss--------- : 9: 7-4 °§O0%ev <i96s cSRe B5¢ & - Bh

1/protoparce quinguemaculata.

46 welene wie]
Aphids infesting potatoes in relation to prevalence of: leaf roll.——From
a survey conducted in Aroostook County, Maine, during: the summer of 1941 by.
this Bureau, cooperating with the Meine Agricultural Experiment’ Station,.ti. A.
Shands and G. W. Simpson, of the Presque Isle laboratcry, conclude that the ~
_liarge increase in the incidence and damage from the- leaf roll Ccisease.in
potatoe S in that district a recent ye2rs may have been influenced by a change
in the relative ebundance of the species of anhids infesting potatoes, rather
than by a change in the sdieigek: A.comm:rison of the data from this: survey’.
with those obtained by Simpson in previous: years Ciscloses | that, «lthouch the
species of aphids found on potetoes were the same as ‘those prenciseny reccg=
nized. as commonly infesting potatoes, there were differences in the relative:
abundance of the snecies. The green peach aphid comprised a larger proportion
of the infestation than it did 5 to 10 years ago. + Aphids are the cnly known
vectors of this virus @isease, and other workers have determined thet the
green peach aphid is the most important. The present survey consisted of mak—
ing collections of aphids from adjacent fields of potatoes and clover, and
from. adjacent fields of potatoes, clover, and English peas. The collections,
cbtained before and at intervals on 2 occasions following pea harvest, were-
m2de on clover and peas by sweeping the plants with an insect net, while those
cn potatces were mace. by removing the aphics on poptecentakiwe tenwen of semple
plants chosen at random on the side of the field adjacent’ to“the peas or clover
Altogether, | 60 collections containing 4,822 aphids were obtained from the 26
fields included in-the study. - The felonies table shows the total eeepc of
adult aphids of each species mere the collections contained. 24 Bev,

=19=

3 a 1 .
: ! : Adult aatee qgbtained from-—
Tnsecu: | 2 Meek pai : ae : Young,
paroeal Ee tian Peas Sacvene
ae : Number .:Number:Number:Number
Buckthorn aphid (Aphis abbreviata cn. OOS a 2 Tap

- on.
Green peach ephid (lyzus persicae (Sulz.})e-:-. 127 s:' 12-3 Gert 23)
Potato aphid (Macrosipaun eclmroiis Ashm.))s 96 “ye QT aS,
Foxglove aphid (Myzus psevdosolani Theob. =: toy Se O: Qe a ERD!
Pea aphid (Macrosipnaum pisi (Kit.))—- ------ O $3 -450:¢° 334 ©. “42
Miscellaneous—-----~-----------------+------- : e- etleie ona - O25 8

Pes

In. ee bes which peas were harvested.

The. data Sficg that the ties from potatoes contained adults of only
the four species of aphids récognizedc in previous years as commonly infesting
potatoes in that districts; those from peas contained mature forms of only the
pea aphid; and those from clover contained mature specimens of the three spec-
ies more commonly infesting potatoes, also the pea aphid-and a few of two or
three other species. The specimens were identified by using binocular or com-
pound microscopes, under the supervision of P. W. Masen, of the Division of
Insect Identification.

Se ee damage winter cover crons and lima beans in southern
California.--A phase of the’ wireworm-winter- -cover-crop investigations, now be-
ing conducted at the Ventura, Calif., laboratory, is to. determine the extent
of damage caused by the sugar beet wireworm (herons californicus (Mann.)) to
jima beens during the growing season. The results in 1941, as reported by
Me W. Stone, -shew that very low wireworm populations were resvonsible for con-
siderable damage to lima bean plentinss, and when populations averaged slightly
below or above” one wireworm per square foot more than. one-fourth’ of the plants
were destroyed. The following table shows the kind of cover crops being testec
in three fields, the average -ireworm population in 1941, and a summary of the
wireworm injury.

: Average : Reduction in plants .:

* Cover -.-". ‘gwireworms: | “in fields. ; Average
crop ¢ per sq. : Field - Field © Field sreduction

ere LORI Noe t “No.2? "No.3 San.plants
: Number -:Percent:Percent:Percent: Percent

So £853 SOMO te Owe TAF A1ee
es es. 3 FzS es 3665s. 1603-2 A502
feet oo SSA eo a eee Ye 6°: eos Aptes3
ee ea ey Oe 29.0 5 SF 1668-2. 21.0
-. Fenugreek---------; SG ie Pe Os Sah hs 2G Gee oe a
- Control-—-s-------; 636s 36.8 + 12.2: 12.0: 18.8
ewe Oe eee gg oe : a
eover: ae id a ae SR Oe see? Y a6. y= 220

Planting: of Kol Ng in these fields was at the rate of 100, pounds: per acre,
or at an average rate of 2.5 bens per foot of row. Two weeks after planting

~20=

there was only 0.96 plant per foot and at the time of harvest” only 0.75 plant
per foot of row. This shows clearly the extensive damage done by wireworms to
both lima bean seed and plants. The results in the above table were based on
counts. of plarits made 2 weeks after planting and at the time of harvest, in
O.Ol-acre plots, or 174 feet of row loczted in the center of ‘each plot. The
cover crops were planted in November 1939 for 2 successive years and were
plowed under early in the spring. There are 16 renlicates of the barley,
mustard, clover, anc control plots and 12 replicates of the vetch and fenugreek
plots. A total of 24 1/4-square-foot samples of soil to 2 depth of 16 inches
were taken at random from each plot and sifted for wireworms. prior to eis Plante
ing of lime beans in May and June 1941.

INSECTS AFFECTING MAN AND ANIMALS

Double-action light traps effective in capturing gnats.--A. Vi. Lindquist,
of the Nice, Calif., laboratory, reports that a deouble-action light trap,

fitted with lamps tctaling 400 watts, took 55.8 pounds of the Clear Lake gnat,
whereas four small single-action traps with lamps totaling 400 watts attracted
only 65.5 pounds of gnats. Mr. Lindquist also reports that traps set 7 feet
from the ground attract the maximum number of gnats.

Cube dip kills brown winter tick on calves.--Fifty calves, each infested
with approximately 500 Dermacentor nigrolinestus (Pack.) and weighin= about 125
pounds, were dinped in a portable tin vat 39 inches jong, 28 inches wide, and
22 inches deep, containing 25 pounds of cube, 6-3/8 pounds of.-soap, and 57
gallons .of water. H. HE. Parish, of the Menard, fex., laboratory, ccnducted the
test cn December 18 2nd renorts thst when the ofieee were examined on December
22 and 29 no live ticks were found. Ticks of all stages were present on the
treeted animals, Mr. Parish also reports that 1 calf was severely infested witt
suckins lice when dinrec but that no living lice were found when it was re-=
examined, For cipping, the calves were thrown and all 4 feet tied, With the
aid of a block, they were lifted into the vats, back first. The head was then
ducked ana the calf:hoisted over the vet until the excess dip drained into the
vat. The operation was completed in about 23 hours.

-Smear 62 meets arproval of livestock men.--Wi. L. Barrett, Menard, has
estimated that about 90 percent of the livestock men in southern and Soushe .
western Texas are. now using Snear MS-62 for screwworm infcet>tions. Many thousancs
of gallons of the smear were manufactured and sold in Texas curing the last 6
months of 1941, when it was first released to the public. A cirect saving to
ranchmen has been shown in reducing labor bills by 2bout sne-half, because ig
fested enimals dc not ordinarily need more than the initial ircatmanke

Ranch-management screwworm—prevention One hoamae goats and sheep
in August and ezrly in September reduces the December--peak-population of .
Cochlicmyia americana C. & P. on the western escarpment of Texas, according to ~
observations made by the Menard labcratory. Data obtained. clearly show that

the December neak pcpulations of the screwworm can be markedly reduced, if not
practically eliminated, by ranchers shearing 85 percent of the goats and sheep ~
durins the time indicated. Population studies indicate that the December popu=
lation of this fly is a significant index to. the winter carry-over in this part
ef Texas, No coubt the adjusted wound-treatment practice put into effect on in”
dividual ranches accounts for the present reduced population of this pest, as

eal

_721-

compared with that of a year.ago. The populations ia all areas in Texas were
lower during the period Octobe r-December 1941. than’ for. ‘the ‘Same Rese OCS in 1939
“and 1940.

“FOREIGN PLANT CUARANTINES peg 2 a iidbowe
Citrus black spot in Sole tea eee the items covered ina translation
of excernts from the quarterly bulletin of the Department of Agriculture of
Argentina for October-December 1940, made by Roberto Ortiz, is-a statement
that Phoma citricarpa McAlp. was isolated from mandarin orange y the first re-
port we we have noted for this disease in South America. mn

- Entomologiéal interceptions of interest. —-Living pupae of the whitefly
Aleuroplatus cococolus Q. & B. were found at San Francisco on.November 5 on
leaves of Guzmanie a maculata in express from Guatemala. Hight living larvae of
the Mexican n fruittly (Anastrepha cha Jucens (Loew)) were intercepted at Baltimore
dt November 27 in oranges in “quarters ters from Mexico. Living adults. of the’ bruchi:
Bruchus emarginatus Allard were taken at New York on November 3 in peas in carg,
from India. Lzrva and pupa of the bruchid Caryedon fuscus Goeze were taken at
‘Philadelphia on October 21.in tamarind pod in.mail from British Guiene.-
Eighteen living learvae.and 10 living pupae of the curculionid Caulonhilus
latinasus (Say) were intercepted at Hidalgo on November 26 in 1 avocado seed in
bageage from Mexico. Fifty-five living larvae of the Mediterranean fruitfly
(Ceratitis capitata (iWied.)) were intercepted at San Franciséo on November 12
in Coffea arabica in baggage from Hawaii. Eight livins adults of the curculi-
onid Cylas ‘uurcipennis Boh. were taken at New Orleans on November 8, in sweet-
potatoes in stores from Java. Living larvae anc punae of the bostrichid
Dinoderus bifoveolatus Woll. were intercepted at New York on Ausust 15-‘in
barbasco roots in cargo from Peru, and on Aucust 6 and Sentember 2 livins adult:
were taken in cerris roots in cargo from Straits Settlements and British Malaya.
A living larva of the Tahitian coconut weevil (Diocalandcra taitensis (Guern.))
was intercepted at: San Francisco. on November 7 in coconut: in barecage from
Hawaii. A living larva of the curculionid Epicaerus co enatus Sharp was found
at Laredo‘on October 23 in notato in baggage from Mexico... A living adult of
the curculionic Eucalandra setulosa Gyll.-was taken: at Hoboken on Sentember 30
with Cattleya sp. in cargo:from Colombia. Living adults of the bostrichid
_ Heterobostrychus acqualis (Waterh.) were fotind at New York on September 24 in
wooden racking cases:in cargo. from India. Living svecimens of the coccid
-Lepidosaphes uniloba (Kuw. ) were intercepted at San Pedro in August on Alyxia
Qlivaeformis leaves in baggage from Hawaii. Three living. larvae of the East
_Incian bean pod borer (ieee testulalis (Geyer)) were intercepted at New
Orlee ns con October 30 in string bean in stores from Puerto Rico. Living acults
larvae, anc pupae of the scolytid Renocis msxicanus Blckm. were intercepted at
Chicago on October 8 in bark of E Bysenharatia sp. in cargo. from Mexico. Living
specimens of’ the thrinvs | bicolor Hd. were intercepted at Laredo on
April 17 on cactus bloom in barfare from Mexico. This represents our seconc
interception of this species. A livine larva of the tineid Setomorpha insect-—
, ella (F.) was taker at New York on November 3 in sweetnotato in stores from
REeeOs sf living acult of the lyzaeid Sisamnes contractus Dist. was intercepted
at. El’ Paso on July 23 with pineapple in ‘cargo from Mexico. A living adult of
_ the endomychid TIrschcideus americanus Buq. was intercepted at. Hoboken on
. November 25 with: fy Gabe leys sp..in carge from Colombia.

=z *

Patholo eal interce tobe 3f interest. ‘_-Alternaria fascipuiieta Luin & BE.)
Jones & Grout was found on Nevember 12 at Philadelphia on penpers from Brazil.
Cerebella andropozonis Ces. was intercepted on July 1 at Nex York on Paspalum
sp. seed from Australia. Cercospnora apii Fresen., which has been intercepted ;
very infrequently for several years, was found on Octcber 13 at Baltimore on
celery from Brazil.- Determination of Chlamydcomyces palmarum (Cke.) Mason has
just been received for Ciseased banana stems from Panama founc-in-carge on
August 26, 1940, -et New York. What was assumed to be Colletotrichum ploeospory,
oices Banned was found on. August 22 at Hoboken on Sarracenia sp. from New Found-
land. No reports of a Colletotrichum on this host were found. ~Diplcscanter
corenata (Cobb) Cobb was found on October 17 at Philacelyhia in notatc tubers
from Argentina. Gloeospcrium rhododencri Br. & Cav. was intercepted at Seattle
on September 7 on rhododen*rens from Englancs Hormodendrum olivaceum: Te
Bone was intercepted on September 25 at New York in several boxes of apples ~
in baggage from Chile. Paranthcstomella sp. was intercepted on June 27 at ~
* Brownsville on an orchid plant from Mexico... Phoma citricarpa.McAlp. was found
on December 7 at New York on oranges in stores from South Africa. Phoma
nebulosa Mont. was found cn November 20 at New York on parsnips in stores -from
Australia. Physalospora camptospora Sacc. was intercepted on November 3 at San
Francisco on plents of Stanhopea bucepha lus from Mexico. Puccinia asvaragi DC,
was intercepted on November 2, for the rst time, on asparagus from Mexico at
El Paso. Septoria dianthi —— WES se St Ree ne on November 6 at New-York on
carnation cuttings:in baggase from Brazil. Uzredo behnickiana P. Henn. was ~
-interceptea on August 18-at Hoboken on Oncidium oblongatum from Guatemala.
Ustilago rabenhorstiana Kuehn was found cn November 12 at New York on Digitaria
sanguinalis used as packing for 2 mail shipment from Uruguay.

DOMESTIC PLANT QUARANTINES -

Transit inspection of Christmas trees.--One. of the highlichts of the
year's transit-inspection activities is the inspection of Christmas trees and
Christmas greens in the Northeastern States.. The Christmas season of 1941 _
ran true to-form, with thie excention of the manpower. available, which was be-—
low that of previous ‘seascns. The intercentions per man-day, however, ©xX— |
ceeded that of any previous year. At Boston, the actual number of viclaticns
found was greater than that of last year, with the force of 2 inspectors under=
taking the work usually nerformec by 4. Truck, rail, anc water movement was, ~
closely checked at New York with inspection of mail anc exoress in progress -
24 hours a cay. - The December inspections in the Northeast resulted in inter=
ception of 218 violations consigned to 30 States and the District of Columbia,
95 percent’ of which invelved the gypsy moth quarantine. Approximately 55 per-
cent of these infringements. were returned to the senders. When shipments of
restricted materials also containéd gifts or other articles of value every
effort was mace-to inspect them in transit, att:ch the certificate, and allow
them to proceed. Falsely labeled shipments were not so numerous as in past
years. However, 1 -shipment consisting of a small tree, wreath, branches, and
cones was found sewed up in a piece of cloth to resemble a lores balsam pillow,
which is ‘exempt from certific:tion. At Buffalo, in a 14-piece shipment of-
clothing and household equipment consifned to Detroit, 1 crate ‘éontained 12
uncertified potted plants moving from the Japanese beetle area,. The personnel
force in the Northeastern region curing December ° consisted of 10 ‘inspectors, ir
cluding 4 from the Japanese beetle force, and 1 stenographer. The well— —
coordinated and vigorous programs csrried out in the last few years for check-

eg aie

ing the movement of Christmes greens from the gypsy moth area 2re eneetne far-
reaching results, according-to the resional inspector in charge. The number of
properly certified shinments from private ‘indivicuals has increased by leaps
and bounds, he states.

Truck shipments of Christmas trees inspected.--The truck movement of
Christmas. trees from New ing gland was heavier than in’the past and the in-
spection of several truck m-rkets in New York City an? the patrolling of the:
Boston Post Road at Pelham, N. cae took | precedence over rail ‘inspection. As
a result, 122 truckloads of greens anc 1 trucklosd of ersnite were exemined, =:
Two rics vere .founcd £0 be uncertified, 1 consisting of sbout 1,000 trees bousht
in Béston, their ori¢inal source unknown. The transit inspector, on, éxemining
about 2 percent of the treés, found a gypsy moth erg cluster. The :criver was
accordingly instructed to return the loac te the rypsy moth inspector «t West-
field, Mass., who, according to’prior arrangements, checked up on its return.

anc later reported on the cisposition of the load, . The sypsy moth eg¢s found
on these'trees were not viable; however, their presence indicated -that the trees
came from infested territory anc that the load was.a highly potential source

of more ege clusters. Rail movement of Christmas greens was below ‘normal..
Bignty-seven percent of the csrloac movement of Christmas trees that srrived..
in New York City came from Canada. a SS Re canbe Alas

Transit inspection in the Middle‘West.--In the.Central States over
Ae 000 shipments were inspectcd in December and 520 waybills were examined, .
the’ commodities. affected by plent oquarantines consisting lsrgely of. citrus
fruit. Approximately 2,000 L.C.L. freisht shipments of nursery stock, granite,
citrus fruit, Christmas trees, cotton linters, sweetpotatoes, anc Baek stock
from Texas Wet peered ey quera antine oon nce Curins eae ee
t _ Peach trees removec in inf abla areas.—-The December ‘activities ‘of the
_ peach mosaic and phony peach control projects were directed, jointly with the
States, toward the destruction of the remaining infected it Goes in. the
1941 inspection seasén anc of neach trees that have been abandoned or are frow-
ing wile. All such diseased trees found in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Scuth
Carolina have been removed. Those in Georgia wére reduced during the month
from 3,000 to 326. In Alabama, Arkansas, ‘Illinois, Missouri, anc Oklahoma ac-
' tien is being taken, it is reported, ‘toward eléanins un the remaining infected
peach trees’known to exist. An acditicnal number of’ mosaic trees have been
taken out of the Hemet district of Riverside County, Calif.

io gle Rnietin projects "for ” each-diséasé control have now-expired.=-The Federal
We Be A. projects on peach mosaic ‘and phony peach’ control which have been
operated annually since Aucust 1935 exnired cn December 31, 1941. ‘The funds
rie for these projects hav. mace it possible to accomplish a great
deal more in the control of these diséasés than would have been possible with
the regular appropriation for this work. Durinr the above 63-year neriod,
with the aid of rekon: workers, nea ur Ly... ‘90,000,000 aba indoned and escaned host
plants of these- diseasés hive: been destroyed, as well as 484,308 phony-infecte?
trees and 189, 840 mosaic trees. ie ete cera neach oreha rcs, oar"
ticvlariy in tis Southéast, $v

overrrown with pine fae other Ee Ora “The estan of avon peti deag
which were a constant source of infection to nearby healthy nurseries °nd
orchards, hes been of inestimable value to the peach industry. To replace thes:

Federal agency projects, applications have been approved by the State acmini-
strators of Alabama, Arkansas, California, Coloraco, Georria, Oklahoma, South
Carolina, and Texas, for federally sponsored W. P. A. projects in the State
programs. A project application in Tennessee has tentatively been disaoproved,
because labor will not be evailable on account of National De Beis needs The
Oklahoma project is now in operation.

Citrus canker eracication.--Sixteen inspectors and 1267 . P. A. employees
worked in several different. areas in Texas in December in locatinr and destroy-
ing seedlings of Citrus trifoliata, which constitute a menace to. the Federal-
State citrus canker eradication progrem. In Brazoria and Galveston Counties,
however, the vigorous measures of extermination of such seedlings at frequent
intervals since 1935 have rreatly reduced the number of such plents. Only 8&2
‘were located in, December cn 17 of the 37 formerly infected properties in this
area... Other areas worked in December included Navasota in northern Texas,
where an-active infection was found last year. Every property in the town
was checkece for citrus and over 95,000 seedlinss were founc and destroyed,
as well as a hedge of these trees. At Brenham, in Washin: ‘ton C county, risid
inspection and cestruction of Citrus trifolieta have been carried on since last
‘September for the reason that canker-infected trees found at Navasota, Tex.,
in February 1941 originated, it is beli eved, on 8 pronerty near Brenham. In
Harris County unusually einer inspection is made at regular intervals of an
area made up chiefly cf larse ranches, because citrus canker was once found on
trees in this erea which were accessible to cattle, and it is believed that
Citrus trifolista seeclinzs, now found generally scattered over the ranches,
have been spreac, in part, by cettle pastured in the area curins the time the
fruit-besrin:.trees were standin>. No citrus canker was. found ‘at any point
in December. In the extreme.southern part of the State, inspection of citrus
groves was conducted at Laredo, Carrizo Springs, anc Crystal City. No citrus
canker has been found in this part of the Stete for meny years. ,

Chinch bug survey completed.--The survey begun on November 3, to determine
the numbers of chinch bugs entering hibernation, was completed on December 13.
Surveys were made cooperatively with the States in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Kanses, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. According to reports from the States,
the infestations ere considerably lighter throughout Missouri, Illinois,
Indiana, anc eastern Iowa then for several years. Arers of severe infestation
anpear to be west of those. founc in the surveys of 1939 and 1940. The in-
cications.are that, uncer climatic econcitions favorable to the pest, severe
infestations may oceur next spring in southwestérn Towa,” southeastern Nebraska,
northeastern Oklahoma, and.in spotted reas. throughout | the eastern third of
Kansas. i

Correction.--In the News Letter cated Janusry 1, 1942, in the note on
pere 28 entitled, "Mole cricket control vork Decisated: at the: vercentare of
bait Cistributed in, the Bane City, Fla., area should be ch-nged from 3 to 37,

CONTROL INVESTIGATIONS

Two nitrile chemicals effective against flour beetle.—-H. H. Richardson
and A. H. Casanges, in tests of various chemicals as. fumigants at the Belts-—

ville, Mc., laboratory, found two nitrile chemicals, acrylonitrile and chloro-
acetonitrile, to be toxic to the flour beetle (Tribolium confusum Duv.). Con-

-25—"

centrations of near 2.and 3 mg. per liter gave 50- and 95-percent kill, res-
pectively, of the beetles in 5-hour exposures, at 77° F. uncer laboratory con-
ditions. ‘Acrylonitrile “is‘slsd. known as..propenenitrile and has the formula
CHp = CHCN. Chloroacetcnitrile has the Potiala CH, Cl CN. Both ‘have the

cyano - (CN) ercup present anc appear in the vicinity but, as reported in the .
literature, not: quite so toxic as hydrocyanic acid. They differ from hycro-
cyanic acid in having a slightly delayed killing action, For example, many -

- beetles were still alive ard active after a 5-hour exposure to a killing dosase
of these nitriles, but all: were dead in 3 to 6 hours later. These chemicals, -
liquics at ordinary temperatures, ere available commercially. Acrylonitrile: is
used in the manufacture of artificial rubber... Chlorcoacetonitrile appears:
slishtly more toxic than acrylonitrile but is also somewhat less volatile.
Acrylonitrile has a boilins point near ethylene dichlorice.

INSECTICIDE INVESTIGATIONS:

_ Thunder god vine."--The continued investigation by Fred Acree, Jr., end
H. L. Haller, cf Tripterygium wilfcrdii, commonly called "thunder rod vine" by
the Chinese (see News Letter v. VIII No. 9, p. 32, Sept, 1, 1941), has shown
the wsolated ‘Loxie Traction to consist of both’ a erpete line atthe) and a
noncrystalline fraction which likewise pcssesses alkaloidal pvronerties. The
pure crystalline alkaloid is a ccmpound cf very high molecular wei¢cht, having
characteristics exhibited by some other naturally occurring alkaloics. The
most striking of these characteristics is that the compound occurs as an ester,
Saponification studies have shown the alkaloid to be esterified with at least .
one molecule of benzoic acic.2an¢® several molecules of acetic acid. Ina
toxicity test by E. H. Siegler, the pure crystalline alkaloid appeared to he
many times more toxic than nicotine to ceclinz moth larvee,

_ Stucy ofsodium fluoride anc sodium caus il ot nic Outi to wartime con-
ditions, sodium fluoride hes become a very scarce commodity. Sodium fluo-
silicate, however, shoul? be more reacily availeble because of the potentially
large amount of silicon tetrafluoride that can be recovered during the manufac-
ture of phosphste fertilizer. Sodium fluoride has been extensively used in

the control’ of roaches, but sodium fluosilicate, desnite reports of good re-
sults. by some pest-control operators, has not been regarded as satisfactory.
_R..H.. Carter and =. L. Gooden have started an investigation of the chemical and
physical properties of all available commercial. semples of these two. compouncs
“in an effort to’ determine what chrracteristics may be responsible for the
differing efficiencies of these materials in their use as roach powders, Cer-
tain physical characteristics of sodium fluosilicete are probably of importance
also for use in poison bait for Mormen crickets.

_ Particle-size anparatus soon available.--The various field. staticns that
_ have need for obtainins measurements of average particle -diameter of powders
‘will be pleased to know that the self-calculating air—permeation apparatus
recently patented by E. L.-Gooéen (Oe BsuPate 2,261,802 mentioned in the News
Demers Ve. Vill; Nos 12, Dec... s19K1)) is feta dogetoped for commercial manu—
facture by Fisher Scientific Comp atiehd who ‘hope to eek it on ee market Py;

spring... pus

—26-
BEE CULTURE

cEréceine of stock serdanb in beekeeping.——C. - ‘Farrer BY Ca Ma.
Schaefer, Madison, Wis., report wide differences in honey production between

7 lines of stock tested in 1941. These lines were represented by from 1 to -

5 groups of 10 sister queens. Each sroup represented the progeny of a differ-
ent breeder queen. Each queen was established with a 2—-pounu package. Averare
productions are based.on colonies surviving with original- queens; sister queen
replacements, or supersedure daughters. An average of 3 colonies from each test
group hac to be eliminated because queens of other stock were used to make re-
placements. Five croups, line I, averaged 237 pounds of surplus honey. The
rance in average production for the 5 groups was 184 to 260 pounds. This line
has-shown superior production in all previovs tests. One group, line II, aver-
aged 101 pounds and stock of this line has shown low production in all previous
tests. One group, line III, averaged 129 pouncs. Three groups of couble
hybrids, line IV, obt2ined by crossing lines I, II, and III, averaged 219 pouncs
and a range in average production for the 3 groups of 188 to 246 pounds. The
yield of .the’ double-hybrid line suggests evidence of ¢ither hybrid vigor or
dominance of the superior characteristi¢s of line I. Three sroups, line V,
averaged 181 pounds and a ranre,in. average production for the 3 groups of 150
to 199 pounds. For 1 group each, line VI- averaged 180 pounds; :line VII, 145
pounds, The maximum and i eeenackas for all colonies carrying throuch the
productive season scaled ASaHegesduge were 341 pounds’ for. line I, and minus 22
pounds for line va “—*

| IDENTIFICATION aa CLASSIFIC# TION OF ANSE

larvee of Coleoptera in systematic entomology.—-The study of
coleopterous larvae, particularly primary larvae generally disregarded by
systematists, is province important in the field of taxonomy. It is through
‘such study that probdlems in the relationships of various species and. groups
of species are boing solved more and more frequently. There are numerous in-
stances amone the Coleoptera in which the systematic placement of a species
“appears to have been determined by other than characters of the adults. Study
of the primary larvae, elthouch not infallible, will sometimes solve these. .
problems with ‘such clerity that there remains little doubt as to the correct-
ness Of the solution: One-such examole is that regarding. the systematic posi-=
tion of Schizopns sallsi Horn. This species, which in .current classifications
is placed in the family Buprestidae, has recently (Rees, Wash. Ent. Soc. Proce,
v. 43, No. 9, 1941) been shown not tHe belong to that family, but rether to the
” Schizopodidae (proposed by Le Conte in 1859). 7

In order that this examalt: may be more fully understood, some of the
facts brought out in this study will be cited. Although buprestid larvae
possess characters common to the larvae of several families, there are certain
characters that differentiate them from all others, and these main distingnishe
ing characters~are present and unchanged, within limits, inthe larvae of. all
stages. Irrespective ‘of-the-instar,-a bilarestid larva possesses. cribriform
‘spiracles and well-developed dorsal and ventral.ambulatory plates jn combina-
tion with a distinct:labrum, but it lecks true legs, prolegs, and ventral
elands. A study of the primary larva of S. sallei reveals the absence of
dorsal and ventral ambulatory plates and the presence of biforous instead of

wpe:

cribriform spiracles. These two cheracters 2lone, cisregardins additional con-
trasting characters, excluce it from the Buprestidae. Furthermore the primary
larva possesses well-developed prolegs anc ventral glands, cheracters which
excluce it from all other families of Coleoptera. lven though these may be dis-
regarded es examples of specialized develonment the combination of other char-
acters prevents placement of the species in any known family. Therefore, al-
though the edult bears a superficial resemblance to buprestids and is now placed
in the Bupresticae, the study of the primary larva makes it evident to students
of both the adults and the larvae that the present classification of this spec-
ies is incorrect and that the family propnosed by Le Conte is warranted.

Another example of the value of primery larvae in establishing a more
correct systematic placement was reported by J. . MacSwain at the recent annual
meeting of the Entomological Scciety of America. His example cealt with the
proper positicn of the meloid genus Poreospasta. For many years this genus

was considered distinct from Lytta and was placed in a different section of the
family. Hcewever, Van Dyke (Calif. Univ. Pubs., Ent., ve 4, No. 12, 1928) in-
dicated that it is rather closely related to Lytta on certain adult characters.
MacSwain, studying the primary larva, corroborated Van Dyke's opinion and
established the final proof that the genus hac been incorrectly placed and in
reality belongs in the tribe Lyttini of Leng.

These and other examples show the importance of the correlated study of
adults and larvae. Unfortunately only relatively few Coleoptera are knovm in
the immature stages, The larvae of most species, even those of many abundant
forms, ere not identifiable since they have not been associated with adults
through rearing. Careful field and laboratory stucies which will establish
the icentity of larvae are much needed end will contribute importantly to know-
ledge of beetle classification.

—--000---

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RS ae al ids i

7 UNITZD STATES
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

BUREAU OF
ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE
NEWS LETTER

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
has) nel ca Oe “AND vee 0 (NTINE
CEN Soe a

"POR: JANUARY ae

Vol. TX, No. Be Sa (het for ‘publication) eon cen “March. sk 1942. ai

REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR |

ADMINISTRATION:
: Budget Estimates ee

The cee eater ee Ger the fiscal year 1943 Wacude: a total of.
$5,488, 360 for the work of the Bureau provided for under "Salaries and Exe...
penses.". This is an increase over the ‘amount available for the fiseal year .
1942. The total does not -give an accurate picture of ‘the. situation, bee
because ‘the working -funds under many of the items are reduced, considerably .
and, with one exception, the increases are to meet additional costs, in opera=
tion of W. P. A. programs occasioned by ‘the’ ‘change ‘from Federal to State proj-
ects. The working funds available ‘under ell but’ two of. the research appropri~
tions are less. The estimate includes: amounts for administrative promotions.
under the Ramspeck Act, which makes it difficult to compare. totals. . The fol-
lowing tabulation elves the changes: in working funds for’ the, veraous appropri-
ation items. : eae ! Baie an ts

General Aahinist sation pon nee om ge mor ar a ei mene $e 1,980

Cini Ah Oo SE LE ae a eee 42,600
Japanese: beetle control—~—------+++--+~4++---+--2 ot Ce hae ee
Sweetpotato weevil control---+—----=-=---=- 4-4-2 ie
Mexican fruitfly contro] -~-~=+<~-+~-=---=~-=---- + ane -- Gee
Citrus canker cradicetion---w------~--=-- sss nnn we 3,185
Gypsy and: brown-tail moth control--<+---------------~-+------- +) 75,000
Dutch elm disease. Rentelob ciel tele) ashe tae a aes #100, 000
Phony peach and peach,mosaic eradication=----------------+---' § + 35,200
Behe st SSC Gh ieee lie, BOD
Blister. rust control-~-----~-++—++~-+~+--+--~--~-----+---=---- enc —
Truck crop and garden insects~------------------------------- - 36;580
Cereal and forage insects~---+---+--++4---~--~-----+--+------- + 500
European corn borer contro]------------ wenn nnn nena a-- = , 10,000
Barberry. eradication---~---=+--~+---+~----+----~~-- saw-tn------- + =42,500
Cotton insects-------~------~~- +++ 4-4 +++ += nn e, if - 2h, Sh
Pink bollworm and Thurberia weevil control-----—--------—se—— = _ 51,800
. Bee ‘cul ture+--s--++- +e pene na -- === -------- = 3,000
Insects affecting ‘men and animal s—-<++-+--<------—+—=<-----— ilies
Insect pest isurvéey ‘and identificetion---------+--------------- | = 6,000
Foreign parasite introduction----------+---~~---+------------ fe 18,000
Control investigations~--------+--~-+-~--------~--~----------- ih Wee
oe aro diciee

eens) and ae dnvestigetiongh+<---seo ae Saee one ;

eae

Transit inspection~----------------- ~-=----+-----~------ $ - 4,059
Foreign plant quarantines-------~----------------------- + 14,765
Certification of exports-----------------~-~~~----------- ~- 1,862

The regular budget estimate provided for’a reduction of $39,500 for the
item, cereal and forage insect investigations. Subsequent to this, however,
a supplemental estimate of $40,000 was submitted to provide for. expansion of
_ the research on European corn borer. The budget estimate proposes an increase
of $690,000 in working funds for white pine blister rust control, of which
$271,668 is for work carried on under the direction of the Bureau.

New Division in the Bureau

Claude Wakeland has been appointed leader of the newly created Division
of Grasshopper Control, which will have charge of control operations of grass-
hoppers and Mormon crickets, as well as direction of any work the Bureau may
do to cooperate with the States in the control of chinch bugs. The work is
now unified under one division. The headquarters will remain in Denver, Colo.

Dr. Wakeland was born on August 2, 1888, at La Jara, Colo. He attended
public. schools in Denver and graduated from the Colorado State College with
the B. S. degree in 1914. In 1924 he received the M.S. degree from the same
institution, and in 1934 was conferred the degree of Ph. D. by Ohio State
_ University... He started his active work in entomology with the Coloradg Agri-

cultural Experiment Stetion, In 1920 he was appointed extension entomologist
for the University of Idaho. In 1928 he was appointed head of the department
of entomology of the University of Idaho, from which position he was appointed
to the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine in 1938 as project leader on
Mormon cricket control, with headquarters at Salt Lake City. In 1939 he was
made field director of the combined grasshopper and Mormon cricket control
programs. Since 1940 headquarters for this work has been in Denver.

Bre Gibson Retires. |”

: Dr. Arthur Gibson, Dominion entomologist and chief of the Division of
Entomology of the Dominion Department of Agriculture, Canada, for the last 22
years, was retired on January 15. He was born in Toronto in 1875 and joined
the staff of the Dominion Department of Agriculture in 1899. In 1914 an ento-
mological branch of the Department of Agriculture was established with Dr.
Gibson as chief of the Division of Field Crops and Garden Insects, and in 1920
he. succeeded Dr. Gordon Hewitt as Dominion entomologist. Dr. Gibson has long
been associated with cooperative entomological activities carried on between
the Dominion and this country, and is well known to many of the members of the
Bureau.- aa ON ee
L. S. McLaine Succeeds Dr. Gibson

Leonard S.. McLaine, chief of the Plant. Protection Division, Production
Service, has been appointed by the Civil. Service Commission to the position
of assistant director of Science Service, to succeed Dr. Arthur Gibson who
is now on retiring leave. Mr..McLaine's appointment becomes effective July 16;
1942. In the meantime, the Deputy Minister has appointed Mr. Mclaine acting
Dominion entomologist, and he will. take over his new duties immediately, re-
lieving H. G. Crawford, who has been acting in this capacity since January 15.
Mr. McLaine's long service in the. Division, and more recently in cooperation
with it, has made him acquainted with all the senior officers and most of the
junior members of the staff. He may be assured of receiving their fullest co- ~
operation. yar .

— a

_ BUREAU EMPLOYEES CALLED TO THE COLORS OR TRANSFERRED
ot TO eee ey BEFENSE ASSIGNMENTS ®

Aarne (Clerence We Ret “Peuit. Ins. Ue us hone sere, oie te
he active duty Dec. 26, ‘1941. DNase : :
Bucks, Robert dey Agt., Fruit Ins., enlisted, Marine a) Feb. 1, 1942.

Conradi,; Karl P., Fld. Aide, Cotton Ins., inducted, Select. serve, fae v2
1942.

Dutky, Samson R., Asst. Bact., Fruit Ins., First Lt., U. S. Army Reserve,
called to active duty, F..A. School, Fort Sill, Okle., Jan. 15, 1942.

Harwell, Rufus T.,“Agt., Cotton Ins., inducted, Select, Serv., Jane 15, “1942,
- Jordan, Austin R., Agt., PBW, inducted, Select. Serve, Jan. Cenichos
‘Klaus, Adolph Bes Auto Mech., PBYY, inducted, Select. Serv., Apr. 13, 1942.

“Lowry, William L., Fld, Asst., Cotton ot inducted, Select. Serv., Apr. 2
A9ke. -

Speke a Harold Ass Agt., Hey Beet ie Conte, | pene se HORE Serves
dan. 26, 19h2.”

‘Monroe, Henry es) ey Clk. Stenog., Tene Pl. Quar. (WRB), inducted,
- Select. Serv., Feb. Be Oe. |

, Parker, “Lawrence Beis. Asst. Ent., Fruit Ins. Second te U.S... Army: Reserve;
aay called to active duty oe service in P. R., Feb. lil, 1942.

oo. John, “Unskilled Labr., | Truck Crop Ins., inducted, Select. ‘Serv.,
Jan. & a 192. ;

~ Thompson, John | Ves. Gee Asst. Biol. hide, ae Ins., inducted. Select. Serve,
teaMaren wos to.

Wolfe, Homer Re, ABE... ee: ES enlisted Us S. Army, ou al, Heigh.

FRUIT ‘INSE SOT INVESTIGATIONS

3 "Development of raisin moth. Se of Ephestia figulilelle qeee

reared on dried mulberries by Oscar G. Bacon, of the Fresno, Calif., labora- :
tory, ‘passed through the larval, prepupal, and pupal stages, at 82" to Ba Foy
in an average of 43 days; ‘Larval period 32, prepupal period 1, pupal period
10. The minimum time was 33 days and the maximum 59 days. The number of in-
stars averaged 5, the range being from 4 to 8, The period of incubation at
the same temperatures ranged from 3 and 6 days, the usual period being 4 days,
and preoviposition period at room temperatures wes 1 day.

MEXICAN FRUITFLY CONTROL

Trapping results for January.--Trapping operations in Texas during Jan-
‘uary indicated that the seasonal influx of flies had started. During the

She

month 15 adult Anastrepha ludens Leew were trapped from 14 properties,

and several specimens of A. serpentina, A. mombinpraeoptans, A. sp. ae

and A. pallens Coq. were also taken. “Intensive inspection = of. fruit in the
groves failed to disclose any larval infestati Lons. Fruit harvested for ship-
ment during the month amounted to 4,860.8 equivalent carlats. In addition
to this, an immense amount. of fruit was purchased by the. Surplus Marketing
Administration for canning purposes. At the close of January a total of
17,035 carloads of fruit had been shipped from the regulated area. .

CEREAL AND FORAGE INSECT o£ ES hehe

Influence of Be ier on successive eae of European corn
borer.—The relation of nutrition to the rearing of successive generations
ef corn borers in the laboratory has been studied by. G..T.. Bottger, of
Toledo, Ohio. Attempts were made to rear successive generations on green
beans and peas; green peas exclusively, sweet corn kernels. preserved by quick
freezing, and frozen corn internodes similarly preserved. Fourteen genera-—
tions of corn borers have been reared successfully on the combination. bean-
pea diet and 13 generations on green peas alene. Very low survivals resulted
when larvae were fed either corn kernels or corn internodes, with-complete
' failure of reproduction in the F 1 generation reared on internodes and in-the
Fo generation reared on corn kernels. No cumulative effect sf laboratory
rearing is indicated,either by the weight of 15-day-old larvae. or by survival
and ‘pupation of 35-day-eld larvae. Wide variation in larval weight between
generations was apparently caused by differences in the nutritive quality of
the beans and peas, as influenced by their maturity and the.time which elapsed
betweén harvest ‘and feeding. Superiority of the green bean-pea diet over
green peas alone is indicated by higher average weights, and percentages of
survival and pupation, of larvae reared on the combination diet than resulted
from feeding green peas alone. No permenent change in-percentage of multiple—
generation borers is indicated after rearing 1, successive generations in
the laboratory. . Although no cumulative effect of: nutrition on oviposition
is indicated, a possible direct influence of larval nutrition on resulting
moths is siggested. It is concluded that laboratory rearing and nutrition,
if supplied by green beans and peas of proper quality, should not constitute
‘any Timitations to rearing successive generations of the borer in the labora-
LOLFY.

‘Control for Cyclocephala grubs.--P. Luginbill and H. R. Painter, La-
fayette, Ind., report that in the fall of 1940 a small area of the athletic
field of the Jefferson High School at Lafayette, infested with these grubs,
was treated with lead arsenate-sawdust mixture, using 1 pound of the arsenate
in 1. peck of sawdust, broadcast on 100. scuare feet of. area. At* the time of
application from 15 to 20 grubs were found in a square foot of area. An in-
‘ spection the following spring disclosed: only. about 1 grub per Sguahs foot of
area. : .

Choice of silk color by corn earworm moth.--E, V. Walter reports that
observations have been made for 4. years at Wesleco, Tex., on the possible

choice of silk color by adults of the corn earworm ovipositing on sweet corn.
Ten silk masses of each variety were examined on the third or fourth day

after emergence and the color of silks and number of eggs found were recorded.
A summary of these’ observations shows:that..green, pink, and red silks each had

the highest number of eggs for-1 or more years, red had the fewest for 3 years, ©

and pink the fewest Hs 1 yeary WN s green and pink were even for inter-
mediate place.

. : Eggs per silk mass on color--
Be ; Varieties* Green : Pink? =: Ree

: Number : Number : Number : Number
: 1938-------=9 2 35° ES 2,31 FS 2,10 1,52
pus Se Giererecinig Fo ice 1 (eg ceca Uc of Aiea aaaeee Ory FV Cea a ie 252
194,0-------- : 58 Ste Qe Ost see tes «80
ane mene one : er pops se : |
uevprderss% a : EEE Bee aOOn ee a ees.

<. Red aha pink silks appear to have ie fewest eges, according. to .the
totals for the year, That was partly beceuse many of the varieties. having
green silks were earlier than these with colored silks, blooming when there
was less host material availeble for oviposition. According to date of ob-
servetion, there was no eee nee in Bumbers of oes on sweet corn silks due
to. color. : pS

JAPANESE os |

Japanese beetle money diverted to fight Japanese.--In 1938 residents |
of Rochester, N. Y., raised a fund to combat the depanese beetle, which had

recently invaded the city, but $788.53 of this fund was not used. From time
to time attempts were made to divert the fund to other purposes, but the com-
mittee could never agree. * In January the committee voted unenimously. to turn
the balance of the fund over to the Red Cross "to aid in the Nation's gies
apaensh: the Japanese."

afety factors of Japanese beetle fumigation chambers. tested.--Since
the Pat of methyl bromide faiett as a basis for Japanese beetle cer-

tification, many nurserymen have constructed fumigation chambers, but none of
them have used gas masks while unloading the chambers, the period during which
the operator is most likely to breathe the gas. It has been assumed that
after a half-hour ventilating period the chember has been sufficiently cleared
to unload safely. To check further on the gas concentration at the time of
unloading, arrangements were made by the Treating Section of the Division
with R. D. Chisholm, of the Division of Insecticide Investigations, to coop-
erate in running a series of tests, analyzing actual concentrations of the

gas at different stages of ventilation. The preliminary tests show definitely
that a half-hour ventilating period is insufficient and that a longer period,
in most instances an hour, should be allowed, depending on the capacity of

the blower and the i peciecaes of the Bysbems :

Hefense ee increases eypsy moth ne OAR) work, cif large New Hamp-

shire lumber ‘company has a contract with an arms-manufeacturing plant in the
nonregulated part of Connecticut to furnish lumber for use in the construction
of National Defense articles. About 500,000 square feet of lumber is shipped
each month to this firm, practically all of which originates in the gypsy moth
regulated area and requires for the most part piece-by-piece inspection. Be-
cause of the sale of sawdust, shavings, and kindling wood from their mill, the

manufacturer will not process these by-products:in a manner ‘that would — -
eliminate all danger of gypsy moth infestetion being spread; therefore such
lumber shipments cannot be permitted to move to the manufacturing plant
under "limited permits." During January 191-gypsy moth egg clusters were re-
moved from 21 carloads of lumber inspected - oe for movement to this
firm. é ae Be ee at Ni “

Roving sy moth road inspectors check Christmas-tree shipménts.--Two
regular inspectors, working separately during December, checked on the move—
ment of uncertified Christmas trees: being trucked from the ‘gyosy moth regu-
lated area. These. inspectors ‘covered U, §S. Routes 4 and 7, and State Route
1}, an Vermont. Illegal shipments ‘intercepte ‘d comprise 1,486 individual and
607 bundles of Christmas trees; 5 tons and-4 bundles.of. ‘evergreen ‘boughs; 1
truckload, 1,200.fdet, and 38 ‘individual Logs; 1 truckload and 24:,000 board
feet of Lumber; 10 coeds of fuel wood; and 384 ‘cords 6? pulpwoud, Al prod-
ucts intercepted were either returned to the gypsy moth regulated area for
proper inspection and: certification or were. eis Cece Dye the inspector at the
point of interception. ; he a

W. P. A. Dutch elm disease ailaeat ion Aakatiech eeineieee to States.——
At the end of December the large force of security-wage workers on the eradi-
cation projects was placed on indefinite furlough, as a change in regulations
made it necessary to transfer sponsorship from Federal to State agencies, In
New Jersey and Connecticut approval for the transfer was given promptly and
workers were recalled-to duty on January 5 and, 6, respectively, with only a
slight loss of personnel, In Pennsylvania W. P. A. employees réturned to
work in the various districts between Janyary 15 and 27, with a loss of 153
men in the major work area and 68 in the Carbondale, Scranton,.and Wilkes—
Barre detached ‘areas. In Massachusetts 52 men were assigned to work and ree:
ported on January 19. The W. P. A. project in Maryland was approved but. wes
temporarily suspended because all of the men were needed on primary: National
Defense projects. The projects in Indiana, Ohio, and West Virginia have been
delayed until details of supervision and expenses heve been worked out. New
York has not yet Spr Rov eg a peed eet and the future theré is indefinite.

ee ee fields add to Duteh elm aieeat Bee ese eae oe
mers in Bucks County, Pe., -are cutting more trees than ‘usual this year.
Many trees have been removed to permit entrance to fields long abandoned, and
some small wood lots have been cleared. The principal object of these ac-
tivities is the cultivation of more lend, to-add to the national food supply.
Whenever elm trees are involved, Sanitation crews are usually needed to clean
up the slash and SE eee pees left by. the rai cagA

ar, ‘FOREST’ INSECT INVESTIGATIONS :

A midge as an enemy of Douglas: Pip Chrdia tease oe “Oe Evenden, of
the forest-insect laboratory at Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, reports that during the

harvest of Christmas trees on the Lolo Ne tional Forest. in December many trees
were found to be devoid of foliage in the: upper p2rt of thé crown. “Samples
were examined, and the only insect damage was an injury to the néedles by.
midge levaed imi injury appeared 25 2 .small brown spot about midway the —
length of the needle, from which ,in most instances, the larvae had apparantly
emerged by rupturing the thin outer tissues, In other needles. the larvae still
remained. This is the first record of: such injury that has been brought to
the attention of this laboratory.

‘Scolytus infestation iin’ different -types and sizes of elm wood.--W, C.
ween Morristown, N. J,, reports°on 6°locations in Pennsylvania where 297
elm trees were pruned of dead and dying branches during the winter of —.
1938-39, observed in August 1939, 1940, and 1941, pruned in September 1940 °
and 1941, then measured for area and examined for insect attack. Based on:
each 100 trees observed, 10 trees required pruning each year, averaging 7.7
square feet of material from 2.1 cuts per tree. In natural die-back mate-
rial 97.4 percent and in storm-broken material 70 percent of the galleries
of Scolytus multistriatus Marsh. were in 2~-foot sections more than 2 inches
in diameter.’ In storm—-broken material 2 inches in diameter and less, there
were 30.9 times as many S. multistriatus galleries as in the natural die-
back material. In sections of all diameters there were 27.2 times as many
S. multistriatus galleries in the storm~breaks as the natural die~back
material. ‘

Failure of S. multistriatus to reactivate Dutch elm disease fungus.--
The reactivation of Ceratostomella ulmi Buisman and contamination of S. multi-
striatus by feeding on elms with occluded infections have been investigated
by W. D. Buchanan, Morristown, N. J., and S. J. Smucker, of the Bureau of
Plant Industry. In an experiment extending over a 3-year period, 1938-40,
inclusive, they were unable to find any evidence to. indicate that occluded
infections became active through injuries made by disease-free S. multistri-
atus. It was also’found that S. multistriatus seldom became contaminated _
with C. ulmi by feeding on trees with occluded or active infections, and in
no case was the fungus recovered. from galleries made in tra B logs by beetles
that had fed on infected Secs bi

Recovery of sabbscawse sewfly parasite.-~On December 3 a: collection of
about 600 unissued cocoons of Neodiprion sertifer (Geoff.) was made by C. L.
Griswold, Morristown, These were made at 3 sites beneath red and Scotch pine
on the, property of the East Orange Water Reservation in Essex County, N. Jd.,
where Microcryptus basizonius (Grav.), an introduced hymenopterous parasite
ofGilpinia polytoma (Htg.), was liberated in August 1940. Between December
5 and 18, 1941, several hymenopterous’ adults, which have been tentatively
identified as Microcryptus basizonius.(Grav.), issued from the collected ma-
terial.

GYPSY MOTH AND BROWN~TAIL MOTH CONTROL

“Work now operating under Federally sponsored State program,-~Gypsy

moth field work was temporarily suspended on December 26 in order to complete
the change-over to Federally sponsored W. P. A. projects operating under the
State program, Owing to the careful preparations, the transfer was accom-
plished without delay, although the actual start of gypsy moth work under the
new plan was somewhat delayed because of inclement weather on January 2.

With few exceptions, all of the W. P. A. workers employed on gypsy moth proj-
ects in New England at the end of December were reassigned to gypsy moth work
under the new plan, although several men were later transferred to National
Defense trainee projects. However, it was necessary to terminate the ser-
vices of 146 W. P. A. employees in Pennsylvania, in order to reduce the force
to 400 workers, the number designated for that State. Gypsy moth work in
Pennsylvania was benefited by the relaxation of W. P. A. regulations to the
extent that W. P. A. gypsy moth workers may now work across county lines.

psy_moth. work in..New-England.--Large quantities. of. brush.and other
waste. ‘wood. accumulated é2t infested “locations in: ‘Séléctive thinning: and”
cleaning operations was burned in Janu2 LLViy: the light covering of.. snow. ee rs
viding ideal conditions. for. fire control. . The results of logging operations -
in different sections of the area provided contrasting potentialities. © Con=-
siderable white and paper birch wes cut in. southern Vermont, where. gypsy:
moth infesta tions. are known: to SaaS ie and several property. owners in. south-
ern Berkshire County,,. Mass. <s cut: their poplar, for. manuf cture into harrek <8
staves. - Both types. of. cutting remove species of. trees. pa articularly. favored ~
by the gypsy moth, and will tend to develop. more resistant” stands” OE. ‘tréés.
On the other hand, a. gypsy moth crew scouting. a large tract..of land: in @
barrier zone town has. been materially. ‘slowed down. because lumbering: -opera-.
tions carried on several. years ago left tree tops.and limbs. in ta ngled: masses
on the ground or lodged in trees, and much of the seedling and” sprout, Erovth ~
has developed malformed stems which will produce inferior lumber. Many scat-
tering small gypsy moth infestations have been found by the regular.employees
engaged in special. survey work in: northwestern Connecticut; but” no large in--
festations have been discovered. Most of the “egg” élusters found at several
of the infestations were old.. . 4

- i ad

Scouting and eradication work in Se eek eee of. a
townships. in Wayne. County, - Pa., 1 where male. gypsy moths were. recovered at.
assembling: cages during the flight season were examined. during the first. warty
half of the present fiscal year. Approximately 9, 600 acres were. scouted ins
South Canaan Township, and about 15,800 gypsy moth .egg.clusters were ee
and creosoted; 3,785 acres were examined in Paupack, Township, -and 312 egg
clusters were destroyed; and 782 egg clusters were creosoted on 450 acres in
Salem Township, No egg clusters were found in.Cherry Ridge: or.Canaan, where
assembling cages also attracted male moths.” “Some: of-the infestations wére -
definitely delimited before the. suspension of work,.but the forest growth...
around several cages that attracted moths still remains to be examined. Ex.
termination work, which was in progress at infested sites during the fall,
was also resumed. These towns, 2lthough just outside the Pennsylvania. quar—"
antined area,.are in territory subject. to-wind- epead and. where, ‘seattered
infestations have previously. been found, ..

Lot inspection and Christmas-tree and bough examinations, summary.--As
a precautionary measure,.lots located within the barrier: zone, where ever-
green boughs and Christmas trees were cut for shipment outside the zone,
were examined during the Christmas shipping season,.in.order that all.gypsy
moth egg clusters’ mipht tbe destroyed by credsoting.before shipment was per~: --
mitted. . In many localities individual inspection of trees and boughs was
necessary because. cutting had been starte od before the inspection: of the ee
lots could be completed. In Vermont more than 800 acres were examined in <=
14 towns located within the barrier zone in Addison, Bennington, Chittenden,
Orleans, Rutland, and, Washington Counties. No infestations were found. In:
Massachusetts more than 1,550 acres in 8 towns in .the barrier. zone area were.
exemined in localities eucee Christmas. trees.and boughs were cut, With the
exception of Monroe, Franklin County, 211 of. the towns whe re. inspections
were made were in Berkshire Copnty, .and most of them.were. adjacent to the
area under quarantine. The lot inspections in Massachusetts resulted in the
discovery of 58 gypsy moth egg clusters, .a all of .which were destroyed. None.
of these egg clusters were found on evergreens or ‘boughs. cut for, shipment. to
outside areas. In Connecticut a total of 2 , nl trees pia nted and grown on 2

farms in Litchfield County, especially for sale as Christmas trees, were
examined prior to shipment. Most. of them were transported from the farms
to Waterbury, Naugatuck, and Litchfield, where they were sold to customers
passing through the area, and under conditions where the final. destination
was not actually known at the time the trees were inspected. No gypsy moth
infestation was found as a result of this work. :

PLANT DISEASE CONTROL

- Self-incom atibilit in Weavers Ribes species of Western States.-~In
California and Idaho,during the spring of 1940, controlled cross- and self-
pollination tests were made on the flowers of. the following Ribes species:

R. glutinosum, R. nevadense, R. roezli, and R. viscosissimum. Tests on R.
roezli were repeated in 1941. Cross-pollination was successful for all of
the species just noted, and produced 163 mature fruits from 621 pollinated
flowers. Self-pollination of the same 4 Ribes species under similar condi-
tions failed to produce a single mature fruit. It is concluded, therefore,
that the seed—bearing fruits of these k Ribes normally result front cross-
pollination in nature. Seeds obtained in n the controlled cross-pollination
tests were viable and canpared favorably with naturally formed seeds of the
same species in-respect to average number per fruit, size, color, and weight.
We cannot conclude from these tests that isolated bushes of R. glutinosum,

R. nevadense, R. roezli, and R. viscosissimum will never produce mature fruits
under natural conditions, because little evidence is available on the dis-
tance of flicht and habits of insects in ‘searching for and pollinating Ribes
flowers, and because the possibility of. ‘some degree of self-compatibility
must be entertained. The chances of fruit production, however, would appear
to become progressively poorer as the number of Ribes per acre is reduced by
eradication, Also, because rodents have a strong liking for fruits and seeds
-of Ribes, their consumption of fruit becomes more important when viewed in
the ete of a diminishing crop.

hee Ws P, Ae project _approved for conte: barberry eradication in
Tllinois.--At the termination of the F. A. program on December 31 it was

necessary to start an entirely new State W. P. A. project in Illinois to re-
place one previously in operation. The proposal was planned in consultation
with district and State officials, was processed and approved on December 18,
and funds were made available on December 26 for use beginning January l.
Field work is contemplated for all counties in which a Federal agency pro-
gram was in operation:in December. Practically all the same supervisors and
foremen were assigned to the new project, according to R. W. Bills, State
leader. About the only difference between the present project and the old
one is that the new one is on the district basis, with each district project
operating as a complete independent Dbatiicis eee \ superintendent is in charge of
each project, aided by a finance officer or timekeeper, and an assistant
Superintendent or State inspector. Increased industrial employment and Na-
tional Defense jobs have limited the number of qualified men available in
counties where work was necessary. One county unit had to be closed at the
end of January in favor of a certified National Defense project.

Winter survey effective in North Dakota.--For the first time in the
history of the barberry-eradication project, field work was conducted in
North Dakota throughout December and January. G. C. Mayoue, State leader,

=tO=

states ee the. project is operating. satisfactorily, as weather! conditions
have been unusually. favorable, with practically no snow. Since the’ “‘be-
ginning of the survey early in November, there has been no delay due to in-
element weather, except for a few days early in January. Crew work will be
continued the rest of the winter, unless interrupted by inclement’ wéather
and poor roads,

State W. P. A. project in eee ane January 1, 1942, the
field program of work in Nebraska was supplemented with a- State W. mea Ae

project. M. #. Yount, State leader, says the project provides for 12° cal-

endar months. of: pees on, with an average field force. of approximately: 52 as
employees, divided into.2 units--l-in Cedar and qejneeny, eo ee and the ©
other in Gage, Taos sand: Nemaha Counties. . fae

Pink ponent populations. 3 in 1 Presidio (do mebareen of green ~~
cotton bolls to determine the seasonal: abundance of the pink bollworm, and’
examinations of the. soil and surface debris to determine the overwintering
populations in the Presidio Valley-have béen completed by L. Ws Noble and
O. T. Robertson; of thé Presidio, Tex., laboratory. Twenty-seven represen- —
tative fields were used for the biwe ekly green-boll examinations from:-Aug- ‘-
ust ‘l-to October 15. At the last. examination the bolls. infested ranged from |
1 to 100 percent, with-an average of 49, 8 percent. Some of the fields hav= |
ing high populations in 1940 were given special, attention in the clean-up, :
and were plowed and. irrigated last winter. In these fields the infestations —
were lower throughout the season than last year... The population in green. |
bolls at the last. examination averaged 20,507. larvae per acre this-fall, as
compared with 22,789 -in 1940, and 28,272 in 1939. The populations for: the:
last 3 years Gane been much lower ae for the period 1935-38. - The examina-
tion of soil and surface trash in the 27. fields for hibernating larvae was
completed the last week of January. The average: number of: darvee. present
this UE in ee with previous Wears wars: shown in oe foros.
tables

LC ONe inners Surface ‘trash : Soil po PODAY pame -<ceered:
ie :. Number --g <:; Number. : Number —:-* Number
1939-2 2ses <P 6 .k6 “Che 1269... Ae gals ot a ae
194,0-=----: ae tee So 21 (83 0 Sve ahte es SeOaioe

298). Reo ee Lee

There was little difference in the total overwintering: population, as
compered with previous years, but fewer larvae’ w-re:found in the soil,
probably owing.to the greater amount of soil moisture. ..The rainfall tor £he
lest quarter was 4.48 inches, and for the year 23.53 inches, &s compared: |
with a normal ennual rainfall ‘of 8.45 inches. Twelve of the 27 fields ex- |
amined were flooded by the overflow of the Rio Grande on October 14-17 .and a
the soil population in these fields wes only one-third as. great. as in the
15 unflooded fields. Nine fields sampled before and after the clean-up
showed a 72- -percent reduction in, population in the surface trash, as a result
of the elean-up and pasturage. The effect of pasturage could not be dif-

eee

ferentiated from that of clean-up. More fields than usual are being disked
and plowed, which covers the trash well and, together with the wetness of
the soil, should aid in further reduction in pink bollworm carry-over. In
the date-of-planting experiment under the large field cage the number of
_ hibernating larvae in the surface trash and soil was 2,05 per square yard
in the section planted March 31, 2.65 in the section planted April 20, and
13.23 in the section planted May 10. Although there was less difference be-
tween the populations in the March 31 and April 20 plantings than in pre-
vious years, the later the cotton was planted and the later the stalks were
cut and burned, the higher the overwintering population.

Boll weevil conference in Atlanta.--At the request of State agricul-
tural officials of Georgia, a conference was called jointly by P. N. Annand,
chief of Bureau, M. L. Wilson, director of Extension Service, and J. T.
Jardine, chief of Office of Experiment Stations, in Atlanta, Ga., on Janu-
ary 8 and 9, to consider the boll weevil problem in the eight Southeastern
States. The purpose of the conference was to present the research results
of the State and Federal workers in order to clarify the confusion regarding
control recommendations in the Southeast to afford an opportunity for the
discussion of control methods by technical people in the various fields of
cotton production, so that suggestions could be made for improving recom-
mendations, to obtain a better understanding of the boll weevil problem, and
to develop more intensive and unified action en weevil control by State and
Federal agencies. Invitations to participate were extended to various State
and Federal agencies interested in the boll weevil problem in the South-
eastern States, including the agricultural colleges, experiment stations, ex-
tension departments, State departments of agriculture, and other State agri-
cultural agencies in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Among the agencies of the Depart-
ment were Agricultural Adjustment Administration, Bureau of Agricultural -
Chemistry and Engineering, Bureau of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural
Marketing Service, Farm Credit Administration, Farm Security Administration,
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, Forest Service, Bureau of Plant Industry,
and Soil Conservation Service. Most of the State and Federal agencies were
represented and 92 people were in attendance. Much interest was manifested
‘in the reports by the State and Federal entomologists and extension workers
on the results of control investigations and the methods now being used in
different States. Ways in which the various agencies could assist in the
more general adoption of control measures developed considerable discussion.
At the close of the 2-day conference, committee reports on control recom-
mendations, research needs for boll weevil control, and extension and edu~-
cational programs were adopted.

PINK BOLLWORM AND THURBERIA WEEVIL CONTROL

_. Control program in south Texas.--In the semitropical area of the lower
Rio Grande Valley of south Texes it is necessary that the destruction of cot-
ton stalks following the harvesting of the cotton crop be followed by an in-
tensive campaign for the elimination of 21l volunteer plants, which would
otherwise continue to develop throughout the winter and early spring from
‘parts of roots left in the ground. Very little sprout cotton was present
throughout the lower valley area in January, and at the end of the month the
only grubbing that remained to be done was in the Brownsville area in fields
that had been under flood waters. However, with the advent of warmer weather

Eos

accompanied by: spring rains, it.will probably be necessary to again place _.
grubbing crews in the southeastern pert. of. the valley, where cond! itions favor
abundant. cotton growth and where. :the ‘he: aviest infestation has consistently ©
occurred, in an effort to prevent any fruiting plents being available for
build-up of infestation before the. 1942 crop matures. . Regulations were pro-
mulgated in January. by the State Dep-rtment of Agriculture,. setting February |
15 as the opening date for the ple nting of. the.19k2. cotton crop in the lower ©
Rio Grande, Valley. Such. action is. designed te delay the fruiting of the

crop so that early emerging spring moths will. find no food for sustenance.
Parallel planting regulations. were put into effect on. ‘the. Mexican side, of

the Rio Grande.

Big Bend of Texas and Mexico .--A. special program ws inaugurate odin

1938 for reducing the heayy pink. bollworm infestation in the Big Bend. area
of Texas end Mexico,” and results have been successful. Fields are cleaned
immediately after the crop ais harvested, and planting of the- subsequent crop
is delayed until April. 20, permitting the. peak of. spring moth emerrence to
cceeur before food is 2vailable for propagation, For the present season, ~
clean-up was completed late in January. Infestation. this year Was not high |
enough to necessita .te pick-up er hand raking of fic slds.

Control rogram in Glendale area of ages .--Pink. bollworm infesta- i
tion was found in e. small area in the vicinity. cf Glend- le, in the Salt River
Valley of Arizona, in the 1939 cotton.crop.. Since then. circumsta meces have
prevented the “suceessfal accomplishment. of control in that section and, as
a result, the 1941. cotton crop. showed a. substantial increase in infestation,
but ee are carrying out a program formulated by Federal end State au-
thorities, consisting of field clea in-up and culturel methods designed to re-.
duce the infestation in. the 1942 crop. The’ Agricultural Adjustment Adminis— |
tration is cooperating with State and Federal authorities. in preventing the
growing of stub or voluntger cotton in the c: ontrol area.

le: cotton eradication Effective Beecneen 31, ibis the Federal
W. P. A. project, which has “operated in .Florida for aoe years in connec- . |
tion with the eradics stion of wild cotton under the direction of this Bureau, _
was termineted and was superseded by a. State W. Pa A, project,.which, became .
effective on. January 2. Approximately 90 workers. were, transferred from the
Federal to.the State project. .From 16 to 38 Bureau. employees were slsc en-
gaged in. wild cotton eradication during January. Work, was. performed in the
Bredenton-Fort Myers, | Cape Sable, and Keys subdistricts, A total of 4,034
acres was covered,. from which 44430 mature plants, 170, 888. seedlings, and -
228 sprout plants were removed. or

TRUCK, CROP AND GARDEN. INSECT INVESTIGATIONS .

Mole cricket. species show differences in poison .
decided difference in susceptibility to a calcium arsenstc-bran bait between
two species of the same genus.of mole crickets was found by members, cf the
emergency research staff operating in conjuncticn with the mole cricket con-
trol program in central Florida during the pericd September to December 1941.
This organization, under the directioh. of C,:B. Misecup, Was. composed. of men @
from this Division, the Division of Domestic Plant Querantines, and the State 7
Plant Board of Florida. Vegetable growers had reported that the bait was... . @
proving less effective in 1941 than it was in 1940. A .series of laboratory

ee eee

“ie

and field experiments showed that the Puerto Rican mole cricket, or

"changa" (Scapteriscus vicinus Scudd.), was readily controlled by the cal-
cium arsenate baits, but that.’such baits produced only a moderate mortality
“against the ‘southern mole cricket (S. acletus R. & H.).” Sodium fluosilicate
shows the most promise as a control for both species, while wheat’ bran con-
tinues to be the most satisfactory bait material. Some evidence was found
that meat scraps increased the effectiveness of the bran baits, but no
other attrahent has proved economically desirable. A series of soil samples
shows a reversal in field populations during the last year, with S. acletus
now the predominant. form in almost all of the cultivated fields. This sur-
vey showed that S. vicinus matured much earlier in the season, as 75 percent
of the specimens collected in November were adult, in contrast to 20 percent
of adult S. acletus at the same time.

Sma] green leafhopper not harmful to sugar beets.--Field-cage ex-
periments, conducted in 1941 by 0. A. Hills at the Phoenix, Ariz., labora-

tory, to determine the effect of Empoasca solana De L. on sugar beets grown
for seed, showed that these insects in numbers up to approximately twice as
great as have ever been found in-the field, had no measurable effect, either
on the plant or on the seed produced, Insect-population studies in fields
of sugar beets grown for seed in the Salt River Valley of Arizona have shown
E. solana to be the most numerous insect in the fields throughout the sea-
son, and the data obtained by these cage studies will help to answer ques-
tions regarding its importance.

Preferred hosts of potato psyllid in Nebraska.--During the course of
field-plot experiments in 1941, R. L. Wallis, of the Scottsbluff, Nebr’,
laboratory, found under comparable conditions of natural exposure that horse-
nettle (Solanum carolinense L.) and Chinese lantern (Physalis sp.) were
definitely preferred as host plants by Paratrioza cockerelli (Sulc.) to po-
tatoes, tomatoes, and certain species of weeds which heretofore have been
considered its most important breeding plants. The average number of P.
cockerelli nymphs found on 50 leaves of each species of plant or crop included
in these tests were as follows: Horsenettle, 79.5; Chinese lantern, 75653
cultivated groundcherry (Physalis exocarpa Brot. ), 33.73 wild groundcherry
(Physalis lanceolata Michx.), 15.3; buffalo~bur (Solanum rostratum Dunal),
14.0; tomatoes, 6.53 and potatoes, 3.0. Wild groundcherry and buffalo-bur
have been considered previously the preferred wild host plants of the potato
psyllid in the Colorado-Wyoming-Nebraska area. Other host plants on which
anes psyllid nymphs ny in feeb te numbers include ete cre Mae

Lycium halimifolium Mill.), wild tomato (Solanum triflorum Nutt), Jerusalem. <
cherry, black nightshade (Solanum nigrum Le), epee plant (Solanum melongena L.);
tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), and ornamental pepper (Capsicum sp.). Horse- |
nettle does not grow extensively in the North Platte Valley but occurs abun-
dantly in other potato-growing areas of the West, and therefore may be an im-
portant psyllid breeding plant. Chinese lantern, a cultivated ornamental, is
grown very little and will probably be unimportant as a breeding plant.

Range fires increase hazard of beet leafhopper infestation in southern
Idaho.--J. R. Douglass, of the Twin Falls, Idaho, laboratory, says that the
Division of Grazing reports 1,040,689 acres of range lands, practically all
on the Snake River Plains, burned over. During the fire season,Bromus tec-
torum L. is the greatest range-fire hazard in the intermountain region, as

-1h-

it will burn Like ee “Ot: newly Cherie fields. ey successive. sce A
covers are Russian=thistle~(Saksola-pestifer A. Nels.), mustard,” éither flix
weed (Sophia ‘parviflora .(lam,) .Standl.) or: tumblemustard (Norta altissima.L.),
downy chess, perennial grassés, and shrubs, in the order given. Mustards and
Russian-thistle are important.spring and:summer weed ‘hosts.of Eutettix tenel-
lus (Bak.), while the grasses are nonhosts. ‘Observations made late.in the
season on a few burnéd-over areas showed that-Russian-thistle,: tumbleweed. ..

(Amaranthus.graecizans L.), tumblemustard, flixyeed, and:dovmy chess had ger—_

minated. Russian-thistle and tumbleweed ‘growing on one-off the large burned-
over areas germinated and produced seed:after the.fires If downy ‘chess is _
burned, under favorable conditions it may reseed itself and again form the.

cover; but under unfavorable conditions, such as. heavy grazing and trampling |
by stock, Russian-thistle and mustards may reappear. Thus, the procéss from
Russian-thistle and mustgrds to downy chess, cand . back Lo. iuseeo ee ney

continue in an a — a? ee ee ae fens :

nan A

Eakid eh it Sey eel aati Peer “from. wild host: enti sen :

dissecting wild host plants of Cylas formicarius elegantulus’:Summers in Octo~ .

ber 1941; K.°L. Cockerham and 0, tT. Deen, ,at ‘the Sunset, La., leboratory, -dis-
covered a number of-parasties in the weevil tunnels. = some -instances these.
parasites were actually feeding on weevil larvae. .‘Sevéen: species of wild: host.
plants, totaling 22) plants:and containing 328h specimens of sweetpotato .
weevil adults, pupae, and larvae were used in these -observations: » From plants
of Ipomoea heptaphylla (Rotth. & Willd.) Voight, 7 parasitic larvae and about
12 cocoons were’ :discovered.. ‘Three. adults: have emerged from.this material.
From I..quamoclit L, it larva ‘and 3 Gocoons were. recovered, “from which 2 adults
have emerged. From i hederacea Jacq., 1 -adult was neneuer ode - These para—
sites have been identified by C.F. W. “Muesebeck,. of .the. eee of Insect.
Identification, as: “Microbrecon ‘punctatus Muess <. Durine ‘similar examinations |
in 1940 a number of cocoons were recovered from. weevil tunnels:.and. ce were
eae 2s Microbracon, probabey, punctatus PY R. As Cushman.

ay the: veh a eter INSECTS. AFFECTING MAN AND ANIMALS... 0) 4

Coo ol ee Y aeae rhe gee “sot Le “nib “SSht rol « ~-Experimental
demonstrations in cooperation with the Texas A. & M.. Extension “Service on™
the use of a powered sprayer for treating cattle for cattle. grubs and lice.
in 3-counties in western Texas, was continued. by R.-We-YWells, of the Dallas, .
Tex., laboratory. In the southern half of Anderson County. more than 500
L-H Club ee and Future Farmers also attended lectures and demonstrations .
. given by E. W. Laake in 7;,comminities.. More than 30 additional Tectures’ and
demonstrations were given by the county agent’ ‘and is.. assistant, so that .
practically every livestock owner in this country . ‘has’ béen contacted. In-
terest in cattle grub control has been aroused to-such.an extent that prac-
tically every animal in the entire county is slated to be treated at least
twice during the current cattle .grub.season. .

{ FOREIGN -PARASITS INTRODUCTION

Yokohama station closed and staff interned,--In view of - the restrictions
on travel in Japan and the difficulties in the transmitting. of funds. for. the
conduct of the work in:that country, instructions were sent-to R. W. Burrell,

2 |
|

-15-

and return to the United States. . The station was accordingly closed and
arrangements made through the American Embassy at Tokyo for return transpor-
tation. Mr. Burrell and J. D. Maple, his assistant, sailéd from Yokohama
en the S. S. Tatuta Maru on December 2, 1941. Travel by Japanese steamer
was necessary, as no foreign ships were entering Japanese ports at that time,
Upon the outbreak of war on December 7, the Tatuta Maru returned to a Japa-
nese port. Advice received several weeks later, through the Swiss Legation
at Tokyo, indicated that Dr. Maple was et Yokohama and Mr. Burrell presumably
at Nagasaki. A cable was. received from Dr. Maple on-January 30, stating
that he was interned at Yokohama. It is hoped that arrangements can be made
later for the return of these two men.

FOREIGN PLANT QUARANTINES |

_. Additional records for National Collection.--Three adults of the euri-
biid Spathulina hessi (Wied.) were intercepted at New York on Helichrysum

sp. in mail from the Union of South Africa. A. Stone, who made the deter-
mination, states that this species had not previously been represented in

the National Museum. H. Morrison makes the following statement about the
coccids Aonidia pinicola Leon., which were intercepted at New York on pine

in cargo From Portugal: "This is an interesting collection.” Although placed
only from description, it seems without question to be Aonidia pinicola Leon.,
described from Spain. More material would be welcome if available. Not pre-
viously represented in the coccid collection." )

Another gladiolus smut _paper.--Since the information regarding gladiolus
smut and the fungus confused with it was assembled for the January 1, 1942,
News Letter (pp. 25-26) another paper has appeared, entitled "The Morphologi-
cal Distinction between Urocystis gladioli and Papulaspora gladioli," by
H. H. Hotson (Mycol. 34:52-58, Jan.-Feb. 1942). Mr. Hotson presents evidence
supporting the assumption stated in the News Letter, that a true smut of gla-
diolus does exist in Hurope and is not known to occur in this country.

Pine-cone rust intercepted from Mexico.-—-A pine cone transformed into a
rust gall by Cronartium conigenum (Pat.) Hedgc. & Hunt was intercepted in
baggage from Sierra de Teras, Nacozari, Sonora, Mexico, on December 2 at No-
gales, In Arizona this rust affects cones only of Pinus chihuahuana in its
_aecial stage, snecies of oak serving as alternate hosts. The intercepted
_ specimen, the first from Mexico, was turned over to Dr. Hedgcock to add to
the Department's collections. In Arizona, N. Rex Hunt found that soon after
the galls reached maturity most of them were riddled by insect larvae.

DOMESTIC PLANT QUARANTINES

Grasshopper conference at Denver.--Representatives of Federal and State
agencies cooperating in grasshopper and Mormon cricket control met at Denver
on January 19-20, to discuss the results of the 1941 work and to plan for
operations in 1942. The States were represented by State leaders and in some
cases directors of extension and commissioners of agriculture were also pres-
ent. The Extension Service of the Department, the Federal Crop Insurance
Corporation, and the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine had represen-
tatives in attendance. The over-all plan for 1942 wes discussed and adopted.
In general, the proposed program is similar to that carried out in 1941, the
extent of the infestations paralleling the outbreaks anticipated for that
year. Memorande of understanding are being developed between the Bureau and
each cooperating State and other agencies.

aes

Grasshopper control in 1941.--From reports of State leaders in grass-.
hopper. control and from Bureau records, it is estimated that the 1941 con-
trol operations conducted in 23 States saved crops valued et over. |.
$35,000,000. -These savings. represent a net benefit of $52.26°for each BAS
lar Been et by the Bureau. On the other hand, the States estimate grass-
SaEPes damage to crops at ao $21, ,000, 000. See

Cost of Mormon emis control ecdees in et Ly years.--The cost to

the Bureau for operations on the control of Mormon orickels digs Heeu reduced
from $1.45 per acre in 1938 to 48 cents per acre in 1941... Consistent reduc-
tions from year to year have been effected first, by the replacement of hand
dusters with power dusting machines; and second, -by adopting the use of poi-
son bait as a method of control, rather than re use of sodium arsenite dust.
The baiting method also permitted. control on a more extensive scale, opera-
tions having been conducted on over 550,000 acres in 1941, as” compared with ©
300,000 in 1938. Sodium fluosilicate baiting was used in 1941-0n 3 Rene
of the acreage worked, as Eepeaerd with 7 peregnt dusted.. -

- Use ‘of tractors cuts cost of removing diseased Bs 26 th Es P. As

labor no longer available for removing phony peach trees in Macon: ‘Gounty,:
.Ga., the project workers recently met the problem by the use of 3° tractors -
borrowed from the white-fringed beetle project. Fifteen thousand trees were
removed at the rate of 70 stumps an hour per tractor. The overall cost was
slightly under we cents ee ae as ee with ee ee ears by a as) Ob eat
labor. .-

' Citrus canker eee eae: on Mexican border.--Owing to ane existence of
citrus canker some 24 years ego at Laredo, Tex., and vicinity, a reinspec-
tion was made during the current winter of commercial graves and dooryard
plantings in this vicinity end also. on every property across the river in .-
Nuevo Laredo; Mexico. No citrus canker was found. The work was conducted |
jointly with the Texas State Department of Sees end the full CsOpeis
tion of the Mexican ovement. officials,

Highidipnks in: sweetpotato weevil control in 1941, --Under the Sooneeeae

sweetpotato weevil control programs conducted in 1941, surveys were made in
47 counties. Inspections in the commercial area of eastern Texas did not re-
sult in finding additional infestations. tside the reguleted areas in Mis-—
Sissippi,. Alabama, and Georgia, the results were:negative. ‘ithin the erad-
ication areas, operations were directed toward the maintenance of :a host-free
period during the winter and spring. There were released from quarantine

the Mississippi counties of Forrest, George, Jones,. Marion, Pike, and Walt—
hall, end the Texas counties of Nacogdoches and Cherokee. Since July 1937,
1,561 properties in the 4 ebove States have been found infested, and 1,316
peteasen from quarantine, lezving.245 properties on which active: “infeste ations
exist. The States of Georgia and Alabema revised their quarantines .during
the nee to permit the entry of Ssweetpotatoes from the western Pees of Florida.

| :
Texas sweetpotato-eradic=tion area extended, parr entire tele monn see
of Angelina, Sabine, and San Augustine ‘were added. to the eradication area in
that State-in January and cooperative. eradication operations were begun. The
aim is to protect the tier of counties immediately to the north, where eradi-
cation has apparently been accomplished, ‘and to include on the south a wooded

.
a ae

natural barrier for the protection of the larger commercial areas of
eastern Texas.

New treatment authorized for killing white-fringed beetles.--The treat-
ment of soil with either carbon disulfide or methyl bromide, applied asa
liquid, for killing all stages of white~fringed beetles was authorized —
through administrative instructions in the fourth revision of Circular B. E.
Pe Q..503, (which became effective January 95 19h2.

Misused versie caught «--A_ Cradade inspector at New York City re-
cently detected an apparently deliberate misuse of Japanese beetle certifi-
cates on plants with soil, the certificates having been issued for use only
with soil~-free cuttings.

e8}

CONTROL INVESTIGATIONS

Certain nitroparaffin compounds found toxic as fumigants for confused
flour beetle.--H. H. Richardson and A. H. Casanges, Beltsville, Md., have
found some of the readily available homologs of nitromethane to be toxic to
the flour beetle. This work was done in cooperation with M. S. Schechter and

He Wa & Haller, of the Division of Insecticide Investigations. Under lab-
oratory conditions nitromethane was much more toxic than was carbon disul-
fide. Toxicity increased from nitromethane up to l-nitrobutane, except for
nitroethane which was slightly more toxic than l-nitropropane, and 1-nitro-
butane appeared near the toxicity of methyl bromide, but it is much less
volatile than the latter. Substitution of the nitro group into the second
carbon group, rather than the first, reduced toxicity definitely in the pro-
pane and butane compounds tested. In general, the vapor pressure of these
compounds is rather low, nitroethane being in the same range as chloropicrin
in this respect. These nitroparaffins are fairly cheap and have other
qualities that make them appear worth further study es fumigants or other
types of insecticides.

INSECTICIDE INVESTIGATIONS

A simple method for preparing lantern slides.-~For the sake of clarity

and emphasis, it frequently becomes necessary to employ lantern slides for
presenting various types of data. Time and cost often make it inconvenient
to obtain slides prepared professionally by means of photography. On sev-
eral occasions this laboratory has resorted to an easy method of making
lantern slides by hand. These have served just as satisfactorily as slides
prepared by the photographic process. No elaborate equipment is necessary
and all of the needed materials are readily accessible. The method consists
essentially of cleaning glass lantern slides thoroughly and, after washing
and drying them, applying the subject by freehand with a steel pen and water-
proof drawing ink. The detailed directions have been submitted by F. Acree,
Jy., and H. L. J. Haller for publication in the Bureau's ET series.

Nitroparaffins as insecticides.--The deve lopment of an efficient method
for the vapor-phase nitration of paraffin hydrocarbons such as methane,
which is the predominating hydrocarbon in natural gas, ethane, and propane,
has made available commercially and at a reasonable cost nitrohydrocarbons
such as nitromethane, nitroethane, and others. The compounds are liquids,

and the lower members of the series ae slightly soluble in water. Nitro-
methane has a boiling point of 100° c. (the homologs, nitroethane,- etc.,
boil higher), there being a eked $ increase in the boiling point as the
number of carbon atoms in the compounds increases. ‘The compounds-are re-
active chemically and studies on them and their derivatives as possible ~
useful insecticides are being carried on by M. S. Schechter and Mr. Haller.
Nitromethane, nitroethane, l-nitropropane, 2-nitropropane, 1-nitrobutane,
and 2-nitrobutane have been tested by H. H. Richardson, of the Division.of
‘Control Investigations, as fumigants against the confused flour beetle and
were found to be effective. The preliminary studies gee ler ‘thet the ni-
ak aac are more toxic than the lower homologs...

New Sreectae Siesd,--U. S. Patent No, -23271;,350, covering 2 ‘com—
position of matter for use as an insecticide, was issued on January 27,
1942, to Lloyd E. Smith and H. L. J. Haller. It is concerned with ice
ing the solubility of rotenone in hydrocarbon oils commonly used in fly
‘Sprays.. Fhe procedure consists of heating substantially ‘pure rotenone with
‘a fatty oil for a time sufficient to effect a solution which is then. poured
into the hydrocarbon oil. By such treatment. the solubility of roténone in

deobase is increased rom G.0) to O27 Beene using e.- te

Corn borer tests ory organic compound -~-A large anette of organic
compounds have been tested under laboratory conditions, et Toledo, Ohio,
for. the control of newly hatched European corn borer larvae. The results
of these tests plus results of field tests with some of the more’ promising
compounds are recorded in E-557 of the Bureau's mimeographed series, en-
titled "Laboratory and Field Tests of Toxicity of Some Organic: Compounds to
the European Corn Borer," by D. D. Questel, of the Division of Cereal. and
Forage Insect Investigations, and S. I. hea a La: He ren end yeu
Vivian, of this Division. $12)

IDENTIFICATION AND “CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS

Blowflies susie poliomyelitis.--Blowflies carry the virus of polio-
myelitis, according to Paul, Trask, et al., Yale University School of Medi-
cine, New Haven, Conn. (Science 9, (2443): -395+396, 1941).-. .The ‘discovery
was verified by Sabin and Ward, Children's Hospital Research Foundation,
Cincinnati, Ohio (Science 94 (2451): 590-591, 1941). A summary of the re-
search work conducted by Sabin and Ward appeared recently in the weekly
magazine Time (Jan. 5, 1942). These reports indicate "greenbottle flies"
to -be chiefly concerned, although other species of flies are possibly in-
volved. Specimens collected from. traps in endemic areas during outbreaks
of infantile paralysis and used by Sabin and Ward in their experiments were
referred to this Division. -A number of different species of flies were in-
cluded, one or all of which may have carried the virus. Blowflies (Calli-
phoridae) represented were Phaenicia sericata (Meig.), Phormia regina (Meig.)
Protophormia terrae~novae (R.- =D.) Calliphora erythrocephala - ‘(Meig.), and
Cynomyopsis cadaverina (R.- afi Other flies were Ophyre. leucostoma (Wied.)
Musca domestica L., and Muscina stabulans (Fall.), species which belong to
the the family Muscidae. Of the listed flies only Phaenicia sericata is a
"greenbottle fly." Considering the comparatively large number of species
of flies in the experiments, it would seem that more careful trapping or
segregation of the test species is essential, It is possible that some of

SiO

the species do not carry the disease and, if they could be excluded
from consideration, control or clean-up projects might be simplified.

Notes on biology of Xyela_sp.--Observations on the biology of a
primitive sawfly, Xyela sp., togethsr with specimens, were sent in recently

by L. A. Hetrick, of the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station, West
Point, Va. Some of the species of this genus feed, as larvae, on pollen,
but the species reared by Mr. Hetrick form galls on the young shoots of
Pinus taeda L. The infested shoots are often numerous and usually die,
producing an effect on the tree like that of the pine-shoot moth (Rhyacio-
nia frustrana (Comstock)), The female sawfly possesses a more heavily scle-
rotized and more pointed ovipositor than is true for the pollen-feeding
species, whose eggs are inserted between the scales of the staminate cone
of the pine. This condition is probably an adaptation for the more diffi-
cult task of depositing the eggs in the yeung shoots. The larva of the
species submitted by Mr. Hetrick develops in the gall and, when full grown,
drops to the ground. Larvae were placed in jars with soil in an outdoor
insectary in May 1940, but adults did not emerge until Decemver 31, 1941.
Data are as yet insufficient to determine whether this long diapause is
usual for the species as a whole or, as so frequently occurs among the saw-
flies, for only a part of the brood. When emergence finally did occur the
pupal exuviae were found at the surface of the soil, which indicates that
the pupa is capable of considerable movement, at least from the cell to the
surface. It is equipped with heavily sclerotized mandibles, which are
functional, and no doubt these assist the pupa in its movements. Another
interesting fact derived from a study of the pupal exuviae is that the long
basal segment of the antennal flagellum is composed of nine fused segments.
Mr. Hetrick is continuing his study of this interesting species, From the
galls, he has reared two hymenovterous parasites, namely: Eurytoma tylo-

_ dermatis Ashm. and Habrocytus thyridopterigis Howard, Both of these also
parasitize the larvae of the pine-shoot moth.

==-000--=

UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

BUREAU OF
ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE

NEWS LETTER

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
BUREAU OF ENTOMOLOGY AND PLANT QUARANTINE
WerSo he ToD oR

FOR FEBRUARY 1942

A me ee ee we we ee ee me ee ee ee ee es ee ee ee ee we ee ee ee ee we i ee ae ee ee we a ee

Vel hci Now: by (Not for publication) April 1, 1942

Oe a me ee ee te et ee wee te ee ee a ee es ee es we es tn wn ee ee ee ee a ee ee ee we eres we ee ee ee we we ee nm ew wee ee ee ee ee es ees es ee

{ REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR

ADMINISTRATION

CREATION OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION

Executive Order No. 9069, issued under date of February 23, 1942,
provided for the consolidation of certain agencies within the Department
of Agriculture. Most of the Bureaus in the Department were included in
groups consolidated into several agencies; namely, the Agricultural Mar-
keting Administration, the Agricultural Conservation and Adjustment Ad-
ministration, and the Agricultural Research Administration. The Bureau
of Entomology and Plant Quarantine was included in the Agricultural Re-
search Administration. The paragraph in the Executive Order creating
this Administration reads as follows:

"The Bureau of Animal Industry, the Bureau of Dairy In-
dustry, the Bureau of Plant Industry, the Bureau of Agricul-
tural. Chemistry and Engineering, the Bureau of Entomology and
Plant Quarantine, the Bureau of Home Economics, the Office of
Experiment Stations, and the Beltsville Research Center, of
the Department of Agriculture, and their functions, personnel,
property, and records are consolidated into an agency to be
known as the Agricultural Research Administration of the De-
partment of Agriculture, which agency shall be administered
under the direction and supervision of such officer as the
Secretary of Agriculture shall designate."

Subsequent to the issuance of the Executive Order, Secretary
Memorandum No. 986, dated February 25, 1942, provided for the establish-—
ment and continuance under their respective designations as agencies of
the Agricultural Adjustment ,Administration, of those Bureaus which had
been consolidated into the Administration under the Executive Order.

This Secretary Memorandum is quoted in full, as follows, for the informa-
tion of all employees of the Bureau:

"). The Bureau of Animal Industry, the Bureau of Dairy In-
-dustry, the Bureau of Plant Industry, the Bureau of Agricultural.

erence Soa Engineerit 2 B
Quarantine, the Bureau of Home Ec

now form the Agricultural Rose een Tae i strct ion. Beet to
Executive Order No. 9069, are established and continued under
. the same respective designations as agencies of the Agricul- es ec

tural Research RS a Eee 5 ie? Sate Bia

"2. Each of the agencies ge Agricultural Research Ad- _.- = @

. * ministration shall have the same functions,. personnel, posi- >
tions, property, and records that constituted the agency of :
the same designation prior to the issuance of the Executive ‘ .
Order, except thats : . q

Nod meee

"(a) the activities of each of the agencies shall be |
subject to the direction and supervision of the rae
Administrator of the iets nc Research . i
Administration;

"(b) the Administrator may transfer’ to his immediate . eee:
office from any agency such personnel, property,
end records:as he may require for the proper
‘discharge of his duties;

"(c) the Administrator may take such action as he deems

- to be appropriate with respect to consolidating... =.
-or integrating the work of the several divisions, |... | .
‘sections, and units which are engaged in the per-. =,

formance of business, personnel, information, ad= |
ministrative, or other facilitating Services; and — Boge

(Cd) the Administrator may: take such action as he feels Set
oan advisable with respect to integrating or consolidat-— rae
ing the research of the several bureaus, divisions,
sections, and units in order to promote econany:.and: :
efficiency and to concentrate the Department's re- eat ig
search efforts on problems that are most vital to |

the production and utilization of agricultural psec
commodities. 4 k Beat ts

"3, The Administrator of the Agricultural Research Adminis- = =
tration may delegate to other officials. or employees of. the Ad—" crwiee
ministration or of the several egencies which constitute the Pa
Administration any of the authority now or hereafter conferred
upon the Administrator." . vos 5 as er

a wet i: ‘S
Naan eek “
ral

a. BUREAU EMPLOYEES CALLED TO THE COLORS OR TRANSFERRED
a TO SPECIAL NATIONAL DEFENSE ASSIGNMENTS =

.. ‘Barrett, W. L.; fests Ent. , Ins. Affecting Man ang Animals, inducted,
tgs

af ‘Select. Serv.

. eas | ees
ee: ‘ Correction.~--In the News Letter seeniad March 1, 1: Avs IX, No
the ae plein changes should be made in the list: ; a Stee

Klaus \dolph . ag Auto “sat Pa, inducted, Select. Serv., January 19,
Be oh erties “rae

Lowry, William L., Fld. Asst., Cotton Ins., inducted, Select. Serv.,
February 4, 1942.

; The dates previously given were those effective upon expiration of accrued
i leave. The dates given above show when the men actually entered military
service. . nae

FRUIT INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

s Propylene dichloride effective against peach borer.--Experiments
ee completed by Oliver I. Snapp,at the Fort Valley, Ga., laboratory,

show that, even in cold wet soil, propylene dichloride emulsion at a

; strength weaker than that required of ethylene dichloride emulsion, is

| very effective against the peach borer in midwinter in the South. One-
half pint of 15-percent propylene dichloride emulsion per tree, which is
5 percent weaker than the recommended’ strength of ethylene dichloride
emulsion, applied on January 30, killed all of the borers in 30 4-year-old
peach trees within a 2-week period. During the same period, that
strength and quantity of propylene dichloride emulsion killed &7.9 percent

- and euther ted. 6. 1 percent of the borers in See Panne ee 2r-old peach

trees.

Flavor of raisins affected by paradichlorobenzene.--In samples of

raisins fumigated experimentally with paradichlorobenzene shortly after FS
harvest, the flavor of some of the berries had been altered by the treat-

ment, according to Charles K. Fisher, of the Fresno, Calif., laboratory. | ag

Many of the individual raisins appeared to be unaffected, but occasional ;

ones had the sickish taste of certain flavors of cheap candy. An attempt
to reproduce the effect in the laboratory by exposing older raisins, both “a
to the crystals of aradichlorobenzene and to the vapor alone, resulted
in an abnormal flavor of ea somewhat different quality, 211 of the fruit . a
appearing to have been acted upon. There are records of this fumigant af- 4
fecting the flavor of the flesh of certain animals, the milk of cows, the me
eggs of Sep eenss and lard from hogs fed on eran that had been fue ‘
SWE a ee Caceres x a

a FRUITFLY CONTROL

_ Trap catches low.--Fewer Mexican fruitflies (Anastrepha ludens
Loew) were trapped during February in the Rio Grande Valley than in an re
other February since 1935. This is elso the first February since 1935
that. some infested fruit has not been found in the area. The results ob-
tained from field inspections and trapping operations make it appear that
this season's infestation is not only later, but is also going to be some-
what lighter than usual. Fruit is moving from the regulated area ata .
very rapid rate. Shipments certified by inspectors during February totaled
4,301.8 equivalent carlots, and for the season 21,336.9 carlots of fruit |
have been shipped. Weather conditions for field work were fair during the.
month. No damaging frosts or freezes have occurred this season. .

ia ee Set ee ee er ee ee a
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GRASSHOPPER CONTROL

A change in operations designation was made on January 29, when the

northern Oregon. A supervisor has ea asset to organize control work

Netion-wide radio sales campaign. It is anticipated that about 400,000

who is endeavoring to obtain a large order from a national advertiser.

| will continue to ship for this firm until the latter part of May. “Another

“4 fet chi in i
ei i) bi it (sip ey
‘ hf heap ee
-| ngs s, i
Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Control Projet be of Dames=
tic Plant Quarantines became the Division of Grasshopper Control, with _—

Dr> Claude Wakeland aay Chiei sig 2". : aR Eaie rs Ge
_ Conference on Mormon cnet Re of ohe
Division: conferred in February with State ‘representatives of those Mormon |
cricket infested States where control. will be undertaken in 1942. The ~
meetings were held for the purpose of discussing the general plan of work
contemplated in the cooperative control program and to draft a memorandum
of understanding outlining the procedure to be followed in each State.
Conferences were held with State representatives, in the order named, of Wyo-
ming, Montana, Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and. Nevada.. Earlyin: February z
crickets were reported hatching. along the Deschutes River in Wasco County;

which will be lice: SOON.

‘

— JAPANESE BE BILE CONTROL

-Mobilization of De artmen at equi nein for - Civilian Terese aoa

a mustang of the United States Department of Agriculture Regional Mobili- —
zation Equipment Committee of Defense Areas 1, 2, and 3, held in. Phila—
delphia on January 25 to 28, Erle G. Brewer, divisional chief, was Se- —
lected as vice-chairman of the committee for the Second Civilian Defense

egion, comprising the States of New York, New Jersey, and Delaware. In
this. capacity Mr. Brewer is accumulating records of . aa Department-owned
equipment in the Second Defense Area: that could be used in civilian de-
fense-.: He will also develop necessary contacts with State offices of the ™
Office of Civilian Defense within the Second A lreéa, SO that proper instruc—
tions. can be given, for the use of the material in dn emergency and, like-—
wise, that employees and nonemployees might be signed up as 0. C. D. en-
rollees, to’ operate the equipment for defense purposes. A separate office
in the- Bloomfield headquarters has been devoted to the storage of these
records and for activities connected with their collection and distribu-
tion. - . : : : ; aera : Si fe 3

_...- Special handling of. large-scale mail-order’ shi ments.—-Arrangements
were made by the New York City office to handle large-scale shiprents of ~
certified plant material in individual packages to be advertised on in

individual packages will be involved, all of which will be shipped within
as few days as-possible after the mail orders are received... -There. is also.
2 possibility of an increase of from’150,000 to 250, 000 additional ship-
ments ifa further tentative plen is accepted by the advertising agency.
As it is impracticable to affix a regular certificate to each of these

small packages, special rubber stamps have been provided for certifying

these packages.’ Inquiries have been received from a second plant grower”

Further large-scale ‘shipments are reported from the Philadelphia area ,where
rose growers-in-the West Grove, Pa., area started to ship roses: early in
danuary.- One grower started to fill orders for a national chein store and

grower has potted 40,000 roses, using soil fumigated with carbon disulfide, —
for shipment late in April or early in Mey.

Methyl bromide Poeet on. of canna roots,--The Division's portable
methyl bromide fumigation chamber was 1g used du during the month at a Long Is-
land nursery for a test fumigation of canna roots. A similar test was made
in December and the fumigated plants were forced in the greenhouse. There
was definite indication of injury, but this was apparently complicated by
the condition of the roots. The check plants also forced poorly because
of an insufficient rest period. The latest demonstration was to recheck
these varieties after a longer storage period. The plants were taken from
cold storage. and fumigated. Half of the plants were then set in the green-
house for forcing, in order to-compare them with those fumigated in Decem-

ber. The remainder were replaced in cold storage to be forced in the

spring under normal conditions. The cannas now being forced are intended
for use at the International Flower Show to be held in New York City the

latter part of March.

Nurserymen cooperate in travel conservation.--Inspectors have been
instructed to arrange their daily calls at nurseries and greenhouses so

that travel by truck will be reduced to a minimum, with corresponding tire
conservation. The nurserymen and greenhousemen have cooperated well in
these arrangements, often making extra efforts to space their shipments so
that a number of establishments in the same locality can fully utilize the
services of an inspector for an entire day, thereby eliminating call-backs
or further’ visits in that section during the week.

Mill ee brush to eee en mad: at eakeport,. Neaias
where large quantities of lumber for Government war projects is being milled,
recently installed a cylinder brush, about 6 inches in diameter, on the end
of the conveyor table, ahead of one of the planes, in order to study the pos-
sibility of removing gypsy moth egg clusters from the under side of boards
passing through the plane, when the under surface is to be left rough. The
brush is power driven and revolves in the opposite direction to that traveled
by the board. Owing to twist and warp in some boards, the mill is arranging
to move the brush closer to the plane. At this point the plane holds the
boards firmly. With this correction, it is expected that the performance of
the brush will be satisfactory.

First Aid instruction.e--Nineteen members of the Bloomfield, N. d.,
headquarters staff completed American Red Cross standard and advanced First
Aid courses on March 6. 0. Ns Liming, assisted by D. H. Slayback, was in-
structor. Both of these men are Division employees. Nine of those who
completed the advanced course are enrolled in a lay instructor's course to
be given in the Division's Bloomfield office from March 16 to 20, by an in-
structor from Washington, D. C. All appointed employees of the Connecticut
Dutch elm disease office are either taking or teaching First Aid. Most of
the New York personnel are similarly engaged. Men connected with the Dutch
elm disease office in Pennsylvania are ree prominent in First Aid training
in their section.

Increased shipments from defense plant.--In the Middleboro, Mass.,
district, the district inspector began issuing gypsy moth permits for the

movement of forest products from a fireworks plant last October. The first
month's shipments totaled 30 carloads. Permits were issued during February
for the shipment of 300 carloads of material from this establishment.

‘Sig He eance: AG set ee nuitdatei ates ws Dutch ae Pepe eda hard
We ny Buchanan, Morristown, N. d., reports that nursery elm trees planted
in 1938 and.enclosed in a large cloth-covered cage, were used-in 1941 to -
test the significance of.S. multistriatus Marsh. in. connection with the —
Dutch elm disease. Approximately 5,000 S. multistriatus emerged in the’
cage between May-14 and June 17 from: logs taken from diseased treés in- ©.
fested in the field. Ceratostomella ulmi was’isolated from’7.69 percent —
of 918 of the beetles that were cultured. Foliar. symptoms. of the Dutch
elm disease developed in 5 of 88 trees upon which the beetles. fed exten-

sively. C. ulmi was isolated from 3 other trees with discoloration in the :

1941 vascular sy: system, but these did not show external symptoms. The ' top. :
and upper part of the trunk died on one of the 5 that showed external symp-
toms, but only a few oe Ee ke died on a of the other eee that be-
came ated. ws We ag

Sp ecies and varietal differences in twig crotch injuries to elms = -
by S. multistriatus.--D. 0. Wolfenbarger examined several: thousand twig
crotches involving 15 species or varieties of elm, to obtain data on .-
species and varietal differences in twig crotch injuries made by S. multi-
striatus... S.J. Smucker, of ‘the Bureau of’ Plant Industry, . assisted in the
determination of species and, varieties of elm. It is generally accepted
thet twig crotch feeding by $. multistriatus is the principal means by
which healthy elm trees ere. inoculated with the organism causing the Dutch
elm disease. Any limitation of ‘this activity through the discovery of |

species, varieties, or strains of elm trees less favored for crotch attack

would be .a control measure for the disease. The data obtained from these.
examinations, together with the results of many observations on the more.
common elm species, have given no indication of any Saas So or aversion ——
by 2h multistriatus ee any peer ee or vara Mit

GYPSY MOTH AND BROWN=TATL HOT! CONTROL

oe of cMaien ee eae eyps y viet sont ogee ‘moth
field work was seriously handicapped during February in both the New

England and Pennsylvania areas by subzero-temperatures, accompanied: by.

high winds, and by the tnexpéerience and physical unfitness of many of the =~

available Wf. .P. A..employees. | Thus far.it ‘has proved impossible to —
fill the desired quota .for.any State where Federal gypsy moth work is-in

progress, despite the acceptance of older men and of. men with physical ~ . *

disabilities, and much of the recent work in somé: sections has been accon- :
plished by. regular ni ae stat SHE ee in gupe ry tary aie © eke

: Gypsy moth work in Vermont .--Gypsy hath! ceeatine work has bden' com— s
pleted in an extensive swampy area in the northwestern section of Swanton |.

Township, Franklin County, Vt,, where the Missisquoi River empties into:
Lake Champlain. The swamps, some of which are several miles long, have
been frozen over for some timée-and the scouts have ‘been able to reach and
examine without difficulty the dense stands of trees that grow. on ground
rising above the swamp level. Although most of the growth consists of wil-
low, red oak, white oak, poplar, gray birch, and other favorable food = ~~
plants, Swanton has never been found to be infested by the gypsy moth. —
Scouting work was also completed in Middletown Springs Township, Rutland —

CV Tee hp eee Oe erica ay Lgl rey 7 DTA? ~ Yt) SLT PU ites Te .7 he ey 7.
en "f , oat f ‘ «* 7 r

—7-

County. Five single-egg-cluster infestations and one two-egg—cluster
infestation were found. A gypsy moth infestation consisting of six egg
clusters was found in Bennington Township, Bennington County, and ad-
ditional egg clusters may be found later when ground conditions improve.
Chopping and burning work continued at a gypsy moth infested site in Wood-
ford Township, Bennington County. Several acres surrounding the infesta-
tion have been cleared and large quantities of dead and dying trees, brush,
and windfalls have been destroyed.

Gypsy moth ground crews burn brush and creosote egg clusters.--Crews

of W. P. A. laborers continued to burn dead, defective, and other worthless
growth in woodlands infested by the gypsy moth in the barrier zone section
of Massachusetts, although a heavy coating of ice and frozen snow rendered
burning conditions difficult in some locations. Because of unfavorable
ground conditions during most of the month, crews detailed to ground work
were obliged to confine their activities chiefly to the creosoting of gypsy
moth egg clusters found above the snow line.

Gypsy moth work in Connecticut.--Special survey work by a small crew
of regular gypsy moth employees was completed in an area of approximately

4,000 acres in Norfolk Township, Litchfield County, and a few widely scat-
tered egg clusters were found and destroyed. Several additional egg clus-
ters were destroyed in an area of about 1,200 acres in another section of
Norfolk Township by a Connecticut State crew working in cooperation with
this activity. Special surveys were also conducted in three additional
townships in Litchfield County. No gypsy moth egg clusters were found in
the southwest corner of Salisbury Township, where no scouting work had been
performed since 1937. Scouting on one of the highest elevations in Canaan
Township resulted in the discovery of 12 egg clusters. Three crews of

W. Pe A. employees also worked in Connecticut during February. One crew
was detailed to scouting work in Norfolk Township and two crews performed grou
work at infested sites in Litchfield and Salisbury Townships, in Litchfield
County.

PLANT DISEASE CONTROL

Spread of white pine blister rust in 1941.--The spread of white pine

blister rust during 1941 was featured by a southward extension of the dis-
ease on Ribes from central Virginia and West Virginia into northern Tennes-
see and North Carolina, and by the finding for the first time of large nun-
bers of cankers'on sugar pine in northern California and southern Oregon

in localities where Ribes were found infected in previous years. In the
Appalachian region the rust spread southward on wild Ribes for a distance
of about 134 miles. Infection on Ribes was reported for the first time in

_ 16 new counties and on white pine in 2 new counties. This southward ex-

tension of the rust was expected sooner or later and is not especially
serious from a control standpoint, as nearly all of the valuable white pine
stands within the newly infected counties already have been initially pro-
tected by the eradication of Ribes. In the sugar pine region of California
and Oregon many more cankers were discovered on sugar pines than have been
observed in past years. In southern Oregon the wet season and the increase
locally in the volume of aeciospore dispersal, resulted in general and heavy
infection on Ribes.e. The rust is now-more or less generally present in Ore-
gon in all counties where 5-needle pines grow. The disease was found for

the first time in Crater Lake National Park. Infection was confined to the

hes Annie eee dango fanee found
- increase in the. amount of disease. ‘on pines Obse Spi.
Jackson Counties, - and in- Klamath County 3 infection was found for the. first
time on both pine and Ribes. In California blister rust infections were
found for the first time on Ribes in Mendocine and Humboldt Counties in
the Coast Range, and in Sierra ra County in the Sierra Nevadas. ‘The rust has.
thus spread southward in the Coast Range for sdine 200 miles and in the -
Sierra Nevadas for 170 miles. The most significant find of the season was
the discovery of infected sugar pine near Cascade, in Plumas County, in
the southern end of thé Plumas National Fors Sty The- discovery of rust on.
suger pine so far south in the Sierra Nevadas and the ‘large increase in the
number of infected pines, is tangible evidence that the disease is beginning ©
to establish itself over a wide area in northern Califsrnia. The past year
_ appears to. have been unusually favorable for rust intemsification in the
western white pine region of northeastern Washington, siorth ern Idaho, and
ng northwestern Montana, because of abnormally wet condit?.ons throughout the
growing season. Infection on white pines was located for the first time in
1941 in. the Glacier National Park. Blister rust infection in the North
Central States was. found for the. firs* time om white pine: in -7 -countic s-and
on Ribes in 2 counties. In general, weather ¢onditions during the first
part of the summer were unsatisfactory for the spread o% the rust on Hibes,
me Ub! af fter the middle cf August they favored the spread of the disease on
_ both host plants. In the Northeastetn States blister rust hes been preva-
dent for many years, and the progress of Ribes eradication since 1918 has
brought the rust under control over extensive arcas where these bushes have
_ been removed and kept suppressed. In 1941 Ribes, in general, were from
moderately to heavily infected, notwithstanding ding the drougtht, yhich pre- -
vailed during most of the ficld szason. A few new pine Infection centers —
were found in some of the States in this region, but thege were areas where
the disease had been present for several yoarse. Old infection on white
‘pines is conspicuous in many ple.ces, but in most of these areas Ribes have
“¢ Ben kept suppressed and therefore new infection is absent. In the the country
_ as a whole, blister rust infection was found for the first time on Ribes
_ in 22 counties and on white pine in 11 counties.

my: The Cathedral Woods Logeede--S. H. Boomer, district blister rust.
leader in New Hampshire, reports that the famous grove of vihite pine in the
northern part of Conway, N. H., known as the Cathedral ‘’ooc's, has been cut
in the -interest ge National. Defense. For more than 70 years these woods’
'_) have been used as.a picnia area, as a starting point for vajrious. mountain —
trails and bridle. ie nnd as a landmark in this White Movtntain town. It
one of the most widely known stands: of white pine in the country. Ow
to the demand for box boards for ammunition-cases and aj.rplane crates,
Cathedral Yoods were cut early in 1941. The hurricane cf September
1938 uprooted 270,000 board feet of the best trees, and thegve were salvaged —
the following winter. ‘fhe 1941 cut amounted to 1,125,000 bcard feet. The
trees were very tall, funning up 5 and 6 logs. A considerable amount» of
red ring rot (Fomes pini) indicated that the stand was ready for cutting.
Fortunately 1941 was an excellent seed year, as was 1938, antl if fire can
be prevented this area should grown another grove of Cathedral pines.
There has been 2 large amount of cutting in this locality as a direct re=_ ;
sult of the war. The Merriman woods were cut in 1937-38, yielding 3,100,000
feet. The Pendexter pines across the town line from the Cathssdral Woods, —
, Ga toa 2; 200, 000 feet; the Gale woods in Lower Bartlett, 1 11%5,000 yy 3

“Akio
oh ss

the Smith woods on the west Side, 2,000,000 feet; the Lewis and Wood-
ward lots in Hast Conway, 2,500,000 feet; and several other lots in
the section were cut. Practically all was white pine.

Towa counties allot funds for barberry eradication.-~County
boards of supervisors in 12 of the 16 Iowa counties in which crews were
employed in 1941 made gash allotments or furnished automotive equipment
for use on the barberryeeradication project, amounting to $6,473. The
funds were used for purchases of gasoline, oil, repairs, and parts for
Government-owned trucks; operation cost of county-—owned trucks; rental
of privately owned trucks and passenger cars; chemicals; and miscellane-—
ous items. D. R. Shepherd, State leader, advises that the cash allot—
ments were substantial and .in some of the counties sufficient to pay all
nonlabor costs of the project.

Suspension of We P. A. projects will affect barberry eradication.-—
The stem rust control project is generally recognized by W. P. A. officials

as being next in importance to certified Defense projects, and in 1.State
the project has been definitely classified in this order. There has been
a gradual increase in the number of certified workers assigned to barberry
eradication since January 1, until now there is a total of 1,891 employees
on the 15 State projects operating. Some reduction in the scope. of opera—
tions during the active farming season is anticipated, in order that la-
borers will be available to work. on farms. Notice has been given by W. P. A.
that their projects will be suspended in numerous agricultural counties,
and in other counties W. P. A. employees will be released for farm work
when requested by farm operators. The availability of labor will necessi-
tate adjustments in the barberry-eradication field program in most States;
however, this problem has been given thorough consideration in formulating
plans for the most beneficial: operations.

Initial intensive survey to be continued in southern Indiana.--
Stanley Castell, State leader, reports that a survey for rust-susceptible bar-
berry’ was completed in 43 of the 92 counties in Indiana during 1941.

These 43 counties will require no further organized survey until 1946.
There are no Indiana counties in which subsequent survey will be required
in 1942. It is planned to apply all available labor this year toward con-
tinuing the initial intensive survey in the 29 southern counties remaining
to be completed. Operations are now in progress in Morgan, Owen, and
Posey Counties, which are included in this group.

COTTON INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

Visitors to boll weevil and bollworm control experiments.--K. P.
Ewing, of the Waco, Tex., Laboratory, reports that several of his 1941 ex-

periments on control of the boll weevil and the bollworm showed such re-
markable contrast between dusted and undusted cotton that they were opened
to the public as demonstrations during September and October. Jd. C.
Patterson, county agent of McLennan County, cooperated very closely with

the Waco laboratory in presenting these demonstrations to the public

through a publicity campaign in the local newspapers, over the radio, and
by circular letters and telephone calls. Visitors included farmers, bankers,
merchants, oil-mill men, ginners, cotton breeders, and representatives of
various agricultural agencies, such as the Farm Security Administration,
«Soil Conservation Service, Extension Service, Texas Cotton Association, Texas

Juarez Valley, from the vicinity of Guadalupe to Vado de Cedillos, ora

Farm Bureau Federation; =H Clubs, and Comminity Agricultural Associa-
tions, also graduate: studefits’in entomology at Texas A. & M. College.

No attempt was made-to‘keep-an accurate record of the number of visitors
but it is conservatively estimated that several hundred visited the
fields. At least 75.visited.1° experiment. on September 26 between the
hours of 9 aem. and 12 m., when the county agent, assistant county agent,
and Mr. Ewing were present to explain the measures used for boll weevil
control in that particular experiment and to make mess ions for
control of other cotton PABC chs

Effect of temperature and humidity on hatching of bollworm eggs.-~

Preliminary tests to determine the effect of temperature and relative hu-
midity on the hatching of eggs of Heliothis erepeera Hbn. were conducted
by E. E. Ivy at Waco, Tex., last season. Eggs of uniform age, size, and
shape, deposited by moths confined in black-percale cages, were used. A
minute coating of albumen. was smeared.on a microscope slide and 25 eggs.
were transferred to one end of the slide with a moistened camel's-hair
brush. The slides with the eggs sbove the liquid were placed in staining
jars containing. ‘solutions that maintained relative humidities of approxi-
mately 7, 25, 31, 37, 46, 56, 73,°80, 90, and 100 percent. The jars were

es with cover glasses and placed in an electric incubator that main-

tained temperatures within 2°-3° variation. A maximum thermometer was
placed with the bulb at the same level as the eggs and the maximum tempera-
ture noted for each test. Seven tests with 250 eges each were conducted.
In each test a slide with 25 eggs.was maintained at each of the relative
humiditics and exposed to the same maximum temperature. At 96.5° and 99.5°
F. maximum temperatures bollworm eggs were resistant to both low and high
humidities, but eggs were not resistant to low humidities and were ad-
versely affected by high humidities at higher temperetures. Hatching of
eggs exposed to a maximum temperature of 99.5° increased from 44 -percent

at 7~-percent relative humidity to 100 percent at 100-percent relative hu-
midity» -When exposed to 103.5% maximum temperature no hatching occurred
at relative humidities of 31 percent or below and at 105° maximum tempera-
ture no hatching occurred at relative humidities of 37 percent or below.

At maximum temperatures of '103.5° and 105° the largest hatch--13 percent
and 3 percent, respectively--occurred at 80-percent relative humidity.
Only a few eggs hatched when exposed to a maximum temperature of 105° and
no hatching occurred et 105.5° maximum temperature. The average hatch of
eggs held at the 10 reletive humidities tested with each maximum tempera-
ture was as follows: 96,5°, 81 percent hatch; 99.5°, 71 percent; 103.5°,
e2 percents 40k”, 1) percent; 105”, °S percenteng0s.5" 5° 0 percents

Pink bollworm in the Hl Paso and Juarez Valleys.--A survey of pink
bollworm abundance and general crop conditions.in the El Paso and Juarez

_ Valleys was made in October by W. L. Lowry and .0, T. Robertson, in coopera—

tion with the Division of Pink Bollworm Control. In the El Paso Valley -
inspections of nine fields located from the vicinity of Fabens, Tex-, to
the lower end of the valley, or a distance of 60 miles, showed an average
of 9 percent of the bolls infested and O.44 larva per plant. This is com-

pared with less than 3-percent boll infestation and an averase of less than ~

O.1 larva per plant in 1939 and 1940. Cotton had been. completely defoli-
ated by the leaf worms but this occurred too late to affect the crop, ex-
cept in a few late-planted fields. Inspections made in six fields in the

if rather heavy general infestation

ion and in practic2lly every field visited casual

: showed-the | presence of live aes and exit holes. -At all
gins’ the seed wes being sterilized, the lint passed through steel rollers,
"and the gin trash burned, as a as of the control regulations.

TRUCK cROP AND GARDEN INSECT INVESTIGATIONS

Seed om varieties affected. by Lygus bugs.--Field cage studies,
conducted by O. A. Hills at the Phoenix, Ariz., laboratory, during 1941 to

determine the relative a of various varieties of sugar beets
_ grown for seed to injury by Lygus bugs indicate thet of the five varieties
_ tested all were equally damaged by insects. Results of previous work by
3 of: this laboratory have shown that Lygus bugs reduce the percentage of viable
af seed produced. - Several varieties: of sugar beets are grown for seed in the
0 ‘Southwest and in’ some years certain. of theSe varieties apparently produce a
- lower percénvage of viable seed than other varieties, and the question of |
i possible differences in susceptibility to Lygus damage has arisen, -Results
) of the investigations last year indicated that the varieties are similarly
4 ges a by LYBUS
bik ie Tale, pyrophyllite, clay, and sulfur as diluents for pyrethrum and
et, cube.--As the result of field-plot experiments in a 1941 fall-crop planting
of c cabbage at Charleston, S.-C., We J. Reid, Jr.e; found that a clay of the
x type generally used as a diluent in insecticides proved significantly in-
be ferior to tale, pyrophyllite, and sulfur as a diluent for pyrethrum powder
in the control of the cabbage looper. No significant differences between
a tale, pyrophyllite, and sulfur were demonstrated. The cube-dust mixtures
+e containing tale and pyrophyllite tended to be superior to clay and to a
lesser extent to sulfur at the time of an insect count, made during: the
third and fourth days after the last of the two insecticide applications.
A count made approximately 1 days after the last application indicated ©
that there were no significant differences between the diluents used Witt
cube. In reducing the numbers of cabbage loopers, the pyrethrum-dust mix—
tures (which contained 0.2 percent of pyrethrins) were highly superior. to
the cube-dust mixtures (which contained 0.75 percent of rotenone) at the’
time of both counts, but a significieant interaction between insecticide
materials and diluents was shown at the second count. ‘When data on the
‘two insecticides were grouped, clay was shown to be greatly inferior against _
the larger loopers to tale and to pyrophyllite, but not to sulfur, at the
* time of the first count. At the second count. the dusts containing clay were.
decidedly inferior to all the others, but there was a significant inter- 4
aetion between insecticide materials and diluents. In reducing the num
_ bers’ of Agrotinae, consisting principally of several species of true cut~
-: worms, and the corn earworm, there were no significant differences between
* dust mixtures, insecticide materials, or diluents at the time of either
count. There was, however, 2 tendency for the pyrethrum dust mixtures to
reduce ‘the ues of a larvae.

ait

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’ im eT.

ae (oes superior to fixed nicotine or hellebore in control of eae
“gabbas se Looper In a expe ‘iments ce Sates by Mire Reid on a a ; om

tas § brig p Ue #2 at peauw oJ . his
SATE s ‘*o aN, a Asal decal Nt, 7S a ae Merit oaye | Severe et ceemenr este

tistical analysis of data showed thet where the crops were not rotated,

had populetions significantly greater than third-year alfalfa. Two-year
rotations of corn and wheat had significantly greater populations than corn

- but most of them could not be proved significantly different. This season,

percent of Cpmenheine were Noe Beni ricantie different in giving an. ox
ee control of the cabbage looper and were highly superior to both.
e fixed-nicotine-dust mixture containing 4.66 percent of nicotine and co .

a dust mixture containing 50 percent of a domestic hellebore powder. Hach
of the dust mixtures was applied four times during the plant-heading period
and all contained pyrophyllite as the diluent. The hellebore-dust mixture
wes significantly superior to the nicotine—-dust mixture at the time of the
first count, but not at the second count, and neither dust mixture pro-
vided worth-while control of the looper. Against the Agrotinae, the nico-
tine-dust mixture tended to be most effective at both counts, and was sig-
nificantly superior to the dust mixtures containing pyrethrins at the sec-
ond count. The reduction of the Agrotinae by nicotine-dust mixture evi-
dently was confined to the small larvae and did not affect the numbers of
medium and large spccimens, which do the chief damage. The experiment in-
dicetes that the use of a pyrethrins-impregnated—dust mixture offers a pos-
sible means of greatly conserving supplies of pyrethrum, as much as one-

third to one-half in the case of cabbage caterpillar control, a saving es-
pecially valuable under war-time conditions. The fixed-nicotine and the
domestic-hellebore mixtures did not prove promising.

Crop rote oe affect wireworm populations.--That crop rotations

have an important effect on the population of and damage caused by the sugar-
eet wireworm and the Pacific coast wircworm in Washington was corroborated
by K. &. Gibson, of the Walie Walla, Wash., lIsborntory, when the complete
series of 102 crop-rotation plots on the Irrigetion Branch Experiment Sta-
tion at Prosser, Wash., was sifted in Merch 1941, for the third successive
year. Alfalfa, sweetclover, wheat, sugar beets, corn, and potatoes are
grovm in these rotations. Ten 1/h-Square-foot samples of soil, dug to a
depth of 2 feet, were sifted from’each plot. Relatively low wireworm popu-
lations (not over 3.3 per square foot) were found where alfalfa succeeded
itself, where suger beets followed any of the other crops, wh-re corn or
potatoes followed sugar bcets, and where potatoes followed alfalfa. The
highest populations were found where wheat or sweetclover succeeded sugar
eets, corn, or potatoes, where corn succeeded wheat, and where wheat or
potatoes succeeded themselves or each other. The depressant effect: of al-
falfe and sugar beets on wireworm populations is shown and, conversely, the
tendency of irrignted wheat and potatoes to build up populations. A sta-

both potatoes and wheat had average mean populations significantly greater
than sugar beets or alfalfa. Also 2-year rotations of potatoes and wheat

and sugar beets. Other differences were shown between various rotations

wheat and corn showed the largest percentage production of adults of all
the crops, and also the largest actual number of adults per square foot.
Alfalfa and sugar beets were the poorest crops for adult production. Per-
centage production of adults and actual numbers per square foot were higher
this year than last. A comparison of several years! siftings shows that
the low wireworm populations in these plots remain fairly constant year
after year, whereas the high populations tend to fluctuate rather widely
below a maximum of approximately 20 per square foot, Limonius californicus
(Mann.) does not seem to be competing successfully with L. canus Lec. in ©
this series of truck- and forage-crop rotations, the former showing numer:

‘ plots. ‘rt Eee aons each year. The average mean
ion for the entire series of plots was 4.03 per square
foot this season, as compared with 5-08 last season. The adult popula-
tion was larger this year than lest, but the larval population consider-
ably smaller. Potatoes were grown in 22 of ‘these plots and were examined
in October 1941 for wireworm damage. Those that succeeded alfalfa in ro-
‘tations showed the least damage, and the greatest’ damage was shown where
potatoes succeeded themselves.

INSECTS AFFECTING MAN AND ANIMALS

7 Control of cattle grubs.--E. W. Laake, of the Dallas, Tex., labora-
_ tory, reports that excellent results in the control of cattle grubs have
been obtained by using a mixture consisting of equal parts of cube and

wettable sulfur dusts.

podium silico fluoride as a_substitute for sodium fluoride for chicka aa
lice.--Preliminary tests reported by Roy Melvin, of the Menard, Tex., labora-
tory, indicate that sodium silico fluoride of 35 percent purity was not so
_. effective as sodium fluoride, but that sodium silico fluoride of 98 percent
‘purity was approximately equal in effectiveness to sodium fluoride. No in-
_jurious effect has been observed from the use of these materials.

"FOREIGN PLANT QUARANTINES

Seed cotton as Resin aa Thine small mail packages of souvenirs from
Quito, Ecuador, were found to contain cotton packing when examined recently —
| by the Custons inspector at Buffalo, N. Y¥., so he set them aside for plant—
; quarantine inspection. Approximately 1,000 cottonseeds were found in the |
_ - cotton. Characteristic pink bollworm injury was found in a number of seeds
_ but no living specimens were seen. Photographs of the material were made

- .- by a Postal employee and prints supplied to this Division. This affords
another illustration of the necessity for. keeping a:close watch on packing
_ materials and of the value of the hearty cooperztion extended by Custans

Sy and Postal Services.
DOMESTIC PLANT QUARANTINES

Sweetpotato weevils found in Brooks County, Ga.--Sweetpotato-weevils
_ were discovered in Brooks County, Ga., on February 10 by a State inspector.
_.. Further delimiting surveys, conducted in the 5-mile environs of the infes-.
ted property, resulted in locating six infestations. The survey is not yet
complete. Weevils have not heretofore been found in Brooks County in the
-Federal—State activities of the last 4-1/2 years. The growers are entering
a. into the eradication program with considerable interest.

Ben Guan ahaes: Pes.
on the expansion of atten i ie asinine to the various dheobares bio; ag
logical control, in order to reduce the destructiveness of this pest. The Be
dissemination of parasitic nematodes on an experimental control basis is
proposed. More widespread cultural procedures and crop rotetion practices
as an aid to profitable farming in infested areas will be “encouraged asa
supplement to suppressive measures. Progress in the treatment of nursery
stock and soil was indicated in the modification of such regulatory require-_
ments. The report of the recent white-fringed beetle survey conducted in =|
South America by the Division of Foreign Parasite Introduction gave informa— —
any tion of importance to the control and regulatory activities, porticularly
Hs as to the seriousness of the beetle as a pea of potato -plants ‘and of the
tubers in field and storage.

a: Strawberry root weevil found in air shipment.--A shipment of dor-

-mant rose bushes consigned by airmail from Petchogue, N. ¥., to Fairview,
A Oreg., and intercepted by ae transit inspector at New York City on Febru-
3 ary 9, was found to contain a larvae of Brachyrhinus ovatus (f.). ee hres
ae the second time this Suen has been intercepted by a a transit inspector
re during the current fiscal year.

Ge, Transit inspectors' conference.--Transit inspectors from New York,

_ Boston, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Chicago met in conference at New York on

we Februery 18-19. Inspectors of the Japanese beetle force, as well as Wash-
ington representatives of the divisions of domestic and foreign plant quar-
antines, were also in attendance. Because many transit inspectors are
working alone at their posts, meetings of this kind are met with enthusi-
asm and are found to put new life into the project. Recommendations rela=
tive to quarantine procedure end exemption of certain articles from certifi-
cation were made at the meeting, 2nd the work of transit inspectors in rela= |
; tion to national defense was discussed.

B New motor freight terminal at New York.-~The New York Port Authowtee
_ | recently announced plans for construction of a $2,000,000 freight terminal ©
/ in lower Manhattan, to facilitate the accommodations for some of the 10, 000
. _ trucks that pass through the city daily. According to a recent survey by
the Authority, there are 174 motor-freight terminals in Menhattan alone.

CONTROL INVESTIGATIONS

ote - Injections change resistance of roaches to insecticides.-~The in-
‘sa jection of Chinese ink (carbon) particles in suspension in a physiological —
saline solution has been reported by &. R. McGovran, J. F. Yeager, E. L.
Mayer, and Sam C. Munson to cause a variation in the resistance of nymohs
of the American roach to pyrethrum extract in acetone and votassium fluoride
in water, when these insecticides were applied as contact insecticides. Af-
ter the ink was injected many of the blood cells in the roach took up the
microscopic particles of carbon so that these cells were often filled with —
black particles, In some cases these cells adhered to each other to form.
clumps, some of which, no doubt, lodged in the tissues of the insect. In-
this manner many blood cells were removed from circulation through the in-
sect and some of the functions of the cells that were partially or com
Ne vanene aie with ink Sethi Seay may have pa interfered with. Howeve

Biee

Sa not cause appreciable oe ee, of tne roaches treated with acetone
or water that did not contain an insecticide. The solutionsof insecti-
cides and the acetone and water treatments mentioned above were applied
with a micropipette which delivered a measured dose on each insect. The
liquids were applied between the wing pads of the nymphs and their body
? wall. As only a small quantity of water or aqueous solution (2.5 lembda
per gram of body weight) could be applied without the probability of some :
of it being rubbed off by the roaches, even though they were confined in-
. dividually, it was necessary to use a material that was quite soluble in
water. For this reason potassium fluoride was used, instead of sodium Ye
fluoride, as 2 sufficient amount of the potassium compound to kill the in-
sects could be dissolved in a volume of water that it was practical to ap—

me ply and have retained on the insects. The insecticides were applied 24

: hours after the roaches were injected. The results showed that the injec-— .
> tion of ink caused a reduction in the resistance of the roaches during ;
i part of the first-week of the tests and an increase in the resistence of

4 the roaches during the latter part of the second week. When ink-injected

roaches were treated with pyrethrum extract their resistance appeared to
K be slightly increased, as compared with saline-injected roaches, but the
difference was not statistically significant. This varisble response of
the roaches indicates that the physiological mechanism within the insect
that builds up its resistance to insecticides may be intricate and that
the physiological mechanism may be different for each insecticide. The ~
fact that carbon particles have great powers of adsorption for certain ma-
terials may account for some of the effects observed. The injection of
trypan blue dissolved in saline into roaches that were subsequently treated )
with pyrethrum extract or potassium fluoride showed that trypan-blue in- a
‘jection did not produce an appreciable change in the resistance of the
insects to the i1secticides. The injection of trypan blue deeply stained
the pericardial cells, indicating that they had taken up large amounts of
the dye. This indicates thet either the dye in the cells did not inter-
fere with their function in maintaining the resistance of the insect to
the insecticides used, or thet the pericardial cells do not assist in de-
toxifying these insecticides within the insect, or that whatever change
was produced in the pericardial cells by the dye was masked by the effect
of the dye on the remaining tissues in the insect.

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INSECTICIDE INVESTIGATIONS

New fungicides and insecticides patented.--Three public service
patents have recently been issued to R. H. ee United States Patent

2,269,892, issued January 13, 1942, claims a fungicide and insecticide, -
containing és its essentially active ee en era a heavy metal salt of the
dithiocarbamic acid of morpholine. United States Patent 2,269,893;
issued on the same date, claims an se eee containing as its essen=
tial active ingredient the morpholine salt of the dithiocarbamic acid of
morpholine. United States Patent 2,272,044 claims an insect repellent,
containing as its essential active ingredient dimorpholine thiuramdisul-

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BES CULTURE

Expeller grades of soybean flour for feeding bee colonies.--C. We
Schaefer and C. L. Farrar, Mscison, Wis., 1) report that greenhouse colonies

fed three brands of soybean flours treated by the expeller process reared
42 percent more bees than did colonies, fed four brands of soybean flours
refined under the chemical extraction process. Six colonies fed three
brands of flour treated by the expeller process reared 37 percent as much |
brood as did two colonies fed pollen alone. Eight colonies fed four brands ©
. of flour treated by the chemical process reared 26 percent as much brood.
ig é check colony reared 9 percent as much brood. The two colonies fed pol-
eS len alone averaged 14,500 bees reared between December 4, 1941, and Janu-
a ary 29, 1942. Where the seven brands of soybean flour were supplemented
with 25 percent pollen, three colonies fed expeller grades reared 83 per-
cent as much brood as did those on pollen. Four colonies fed flours pro-
duced under the chemical process reared 46 percent as much brood as those
on pollen. Three colonies started as checks, or failing to respond to the
Oe original food during the first period, reared an average of 7,200 bees when
& fed expeller grades supplemented with 25 percent pollen during the last
three periods, as compared to 550 bees for the remaining check colony. Two
other brands of the chemical type of flours were found unfit for bee food. |
One became gluelike in consistency when mixed with sugar sirup, which the
bees could not handle, and the other soured soon after it was mixed. The
i) amount of water used by. the colonies was directly proportional to the amount
E of brood reared under the same environmental conditions. Colonies in the
greenhouse with low humidity used nearly twice as much water as did those in |
a greenhouse with high humidity. Probably an average of less than 20 per= |
cent of the eggs laid in all test colonies were developed into bees. Fifty=
four percent as much sealed brood was measured as unsealed eggs and larvae; |
-however, measurements were made at 12-day intervals, the normal period for |
sealed brood, whereas the unsealed brood represents 8 days of egg laying.
Thus the ratio should be reduced from 54 percent to a theoretical 36 percent |
had none of the eggs or larvae been removed. The measured ratio of sealed
a to unsealed brood for the pollen colonies was 60 percent; expeller flours pie
‘A plus pollen, 61 percent; chemically extracted flours plus pollen, 59 percents
expeller flours alone, 49 percent; chemically extracted flours alone, 46 per
cents; and check colony 32 percent. The theorctical ratios in each case would
|

be two-thirds the measured ratio, which would obviously be too high. Light :
nosema infections were found in 18 of the 30 colonies in the test. In laste
year's tests, severe nosema infections were found in all 30 colonies. The ©
; reduction this year may be due to the use of inverted "pepper—box" feeders; |
is whereas last year water was provided in open vessels. In both years the |
water containers were washed in hot water every 3 to 4 days. t

Lecce act:

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