The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-06-07
OUR ECCENTRIC VISITORS.
THE CrRTOUS INSECTS TINT CHTRRUP
ONCE ~ SETESTEEN IEIRS.
Intervening Fact. About Locust. - Living
Nearly "a Score or Years In the Ground aud
then seeking Light for IA Month Habits.

Interesfirs Facts About Iocusts Living
Nearly "a Score OF Years In the Ground aud
then Seeking Light for "a Month Habits.
The locusts which are wcighting the twigs
and shrubbery OF northern New Jersey and
Staten Island appear this year in fulnlmcnt OF
scientific prophecy. They have history like
that Of famous comets. This" said n savant
in entomology Yesterday to Sun rcprcsenta-
tive is brood No. 7. OF fifteen distin t broods
Of seventeen year lo,rists whose goings nnd
comings have been recorded" Then he took
up a book. written years ago. and read from it
the following prophecy made 10y Prof Reilly:
In the year 1877. and Mt intervals " sevcn-
t"en years thereafter. these lncusts VIII IN MI
probability APPEAR in the vicinity ~ 'huyl"r-
VILE. y. Y. and from thence along both sides OF
the Huds.n TO ~ mouth. east into Connecticnt
H. FIR ns New Haven. aud west across the north
part OF New Jersey into Pennsylvania.
The part Of the prophecy relating to New
Jersey hns been fulfilled. The remaining re-
Rions Will be heard from with interest. In this
year. also. other broods are due in Dearborn
county. Ind; Kalamazoo Mich: and in parts
OF PENNSYLVANIA. North Carolina. Virginia. and
Maryland The brood whose pioneers have
Just appeared in New jersey were recorded 10y
Prof. Potter OF Connecticut IA having irSt been
remembered in l12i and III having appeared
with regularity every seventeen years sine
down To- 1926. Sine that time other observers
have recorded thcir appearance with equal
rtssNlarV ,,,,, ,,oso ,o,,,s.s - xcvr ro-scr .
cont nucd III" gentleman. the first thing that
people ought t. know IL that they are not lo-
Gusts. for the same reason that "A duck IL not an
elephant. They are large four winged ni's.
True lp usts are Il the grasshopprr trihc.
Ihry have JAWS that they work sid, ways. the
SANE NJ what are called pinrhhucs. They eat.
These largo ncs. or cicadns, don't eat They
have nothing. to rat with. They don't want Ia
emit They don't live long enough to eat They
don't come To- the surface of the earth for that
purpose. They have suckers with which they
might. perhaps. surS ny luiTs. h9i they Ger
seen IN Europe 10y the early settlers here. and
when they nearda whirring ia the woods. and
saw black clouds in th" air. their minis went
back e. Egypt aud they called the insects
lO'usts."
Tner. are all sorts Of errors regarding the
mysterious visitors. Some say they sing with
their mouths. ami others that the nplse u made
with th'r wings. Tn" truth X that one may
cut oil both their heads and their wings and
they Will still sing. In the chez Of the insect
are two little drum heads formed of thin meme
bruno Bv mus lular action air Is forced against
THESE. caus. IL them To- Vibrate. The knowledge
that these lo u~ts appear only once IN seven
t"'n years has been widely circulated. yet II
frequently happens that swarns Of them are
So IA IN IN" same region at shorter Intervals.
Thus is what puzl"s farmers. The writer's m
dormant explained the Il fcuy IN this way:
A brood appeared on Long Island IN 1865. Ii
will APPEAR a4.uln IN 1855. Now. supp ~ "A part
fly or be- blown over TO Long Island. i would
breed there md rrnppear in ls3l Then the
RS dent, 81 Long Island would say that loeusts
! had appeared Hit-r n ne years mi. rival. II IL
! tins tapping of hrood- that makes the mystery.
| Their. ~ also tnirtr-n-yrar locust Ii hap
| pens sonnet mos that "A brood Of iIc-. appear Al
| the sam" tim" anu place with their cousins ot
/ the LONGER period. This occurred some years
ago IN ONO and Pennsylvania. Their numb"rs
were terrifying. Tn" country people scanned
the VS. ON their wings. and felt sure that u war
WAS com ng. as ind,~'d IL did. Those broods
cannot appear ngaln muitancousl until thir-
! % - their last simultaneous advent
| LOrustS al ways emerge from tn" ground about
tn" trst Of june, and the last Of them dsap-
| pear about th" first OF July. The males come
FIRST hy several DAYS. and MI the woods with
| tn-r singing bcior" the females ar" visible.
| They ar" the only true Ventrilogulsts singing
from Their siomachs. The females do not sing.
| very curious piece or inset engineering o'-
! ours when pupa Is about to emerge into the
| air. In rus- the ground be- inarshy. II builds a
| chimney or rather an upright tunnel through
tie mir from four ~ SIX in hos hiEh. II IL hullt
| wholly from tie ms "a" andwthout anyaperiurr.
The mud = pushed upwari and outward above
| not. as u mater Of course. emerge from the top.
II the ground dries during It's lahors. II seeks q
| 20 M IN the chimney where the earth Is Of the
little round hole tor exit. When the pupa
| climbs gut upon niwis. II has NJ time g.
lose, lis tr"ns 'n."ni shell dries .Pni
sim"H Ms accurat'ly The Edy and icr-
hriug drawn - & tnt lnttcr Ike uNrra.-. Tho
inset soon shunl = II oil. A. soon ~ rs body
Thr-'' ARE wonderfully Developed IN suh-ttu ,
and str'n sth. and harden ~ they dry. III,
wuo," pr1 os- OF " NJ development a. upi,-
less than sixty minutes. Ait'r pa ring. the
females d"ro-.t their eggs in the bark oi tender
iwi-s OF various tres and h"rbac"ous plants
They have not been known 10 do So IA eyer
greens. II ls thought u" gum might imur'
tlr pro- @oVp1sl,1r. ana tne pfqI'n l M
pos tor 1i's NJ bruises IN" bark and tender
woody hber.. This u the only damage done hy
the locust. II klll~ the twig. hut never the tree
Or hard- arr thus damaged 10y them.
The only successful method OF lighting locus,s
yet recommended ~ the breaking of Of these
lwis- hrlur" the eggs nave time 10 nat III. In
tire" or tour weeks III" newly hnth"d gruh-
drop 10 thu ground and hurrow beneath til,
: st convcrsrd with. is Their true home. They
Were, h." SAID. Created To br grubs, They
1--we In the earth seventeen years. FEEDING on
vegetable matter. aud only r'app"ar on the sur
la" 10 rrprOdu e their kind alter the law o
their beng. They do not eat above ground.
one OF the curious IMPRESSIONS prevailing
among some Of the New Jersey farmers Is thi
the loou7iS have come 10 make way with ut
The natural enemy Of tho locust Is the hand
som" black AMI gold wasp called the digger
Its method II To paralyze the 10, art with stlug
ana urn 10 larry u J." us h"," IA me srouhl
Having deposited II there II dos not eat It, hu
young OF the wasp when hat he'd feed upon th'
locust. which dies under their ruNaasr :
Th'se wasps are smaller nan the locusts. an,
cannot carry them tar. the gentleman above
quoted recently hoard loud NOISE on the
ground near him and DIS overcd that wasI
hhi Just conquered lts victim. tn" lo usi lal
heipl, - on it- back. Then the wasp straddiet
him lenid hwise Just rs a high -whoeled boilr
wagon drives over boiler. and graphing HIN
with two or It's legs, struggled hlOnA IN" "Hrtl
with II toward the trunk OF tree. The wnsI
was evidently unable 10 rise with 1t from tn
earth. 1t could. however crawl NJ the bnrk %
the tree 10 "A high iub. When 1t had done 81
IL took good start. and sailed away through
the ar with us heavy burden. gradually de
, s'rnding to the earth. Ii followed Hn'
found tp have allght"d near "A wasp hole. int
VIII IA II soon dragged lis yictlm. The wasp
feed on what are called dos day locusts tnruusi
the summer These, with the smaller jun
locust are annual. The sryent'en-y"ar locust
have no stiu-s. II painful wounds are eve
really made by them. II mus, be- by the oNipos to
of the female. The appearance OF the Insect
IN any particular region Is proof that the lHn'
there was tlmbered seventeen years before.