New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-06-23
MONTHLY RECORD OF BUGS.

We had intended TO say nothing more about
agricultural bugs this summer, but we find that
several thousand people have subscribed 1or Inc
Tribune solely to obtain its unrivalled rural
insect reports and we feel that ii would be doing
these readers a gross injustice to drop the pug
department. We therefore propose publishing
a monthly report on bugs and entomologlsts, under
the general title of The Bug Editors Easy Chair;
Being a General Survey of Country Bugs and
Insect Scientists Throughout the Civilized World
These reports will necessarily be rather technical
and scholarly but it is our hope that they may not
prove entirely ninterestng to the general reader
Looking over the field for June we find, on the
whole. that farm land vineyard insects are fairly
active A particularly bullish tendency Is noted
in California, though no great damage Is pelng
done DR. Bchr, the entomology or the Academy
Of Sciences. has discovered that the titmouse is
an enemy of the scale-bug and green aphls, which
feed on fruit trees The Doctor proposes to i'm
mort the titmouse in large quantities. 1t should
multiplv like the English sparrow the Doctor
may wish that he had stuck to the bugs. In
Tcbama County grasshoppcrs have appeared.
Tbrco mon recently caught 500 pounds of grass
bonners in two hours What they wanted of them
Ue do not know There is no market for grass
bonnors so far as we are aware. Orchard owners
arc said TO be saving their fruit by covering their
treos with rbans The demand for tree bags should
he good. and it must be an excellent place for
owners Of secondhand balloons to work them OIL.
But California is active, as usual, and has just
sent Professor Albert Roebell To Australia to get
n lot of parasitic and predaceous insects IL was
the Professor who last year introduced the Nedaha
cardinals. or Australian ladybug, which preys
on the icrrya DR.. Dintner had some of them,
but we do not know if they lived through the
winter. Australia is said to be oveTun with
insects whose chief aim in life is to destroy other
insects Those are the kind OF bugs that are
wanted in this country.
Coming East we find less activity among out
door insects Meriden. Conn, correspondent
sends MS an interesting newspaper clipping about
new bug in Windham County. 1t is eating
I'M the grass. and is shaped like a raZor-back hog,
but much smaller, trust. Ii jumps like a
orasshonper and puzzles local scientists Prof.
Van Benschoten. of Middletown, has also dis
| covered a new insect. lie was - down on his
/ hands and knees the other day examining his
currant bushes when he saw a strange bug
attack and kill currant-worm The Professor
ran and told his neghbors and "A general search
| being made a number of the new predaceous bugs
were found The Professor has fitted up sort
Of n bug hot-bed and will raise them in large
| quantities. selling them 10 cuI'anCSroWers au
ten cents n dozen, or 81 a pint. In Massachusetts
| the authorities seem to be getting the upper
hand Of the gypsy-moths, mention OF which was
made earlier in the season. The Gypsy-Nloth
Commission has just discharged thirty men who
have been guarding the roads which lead from
Maiden Medford, Everett, Mclrose and neigh
boring towns TO examine all persons ana vehicles
TO see that no moths were concealed about them.
Fraud is charged i'm this police work. Last year
only three m9Is were actually found on teams