The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1901-05-08
A Great GraSsllopper Hunt.

LINCOLN, NEB April l9.-In Ne
braska the farmers and scientists are
organizing grand grasshopper hunt.
1t will be the first time that anything
Of the kind on so large Il scale has
been attempted. 1t is not intended
that on stated days the ncighbors shall
meet, cncirclc given territory and
driving the grasshoppcrs before them
into a constantly narrowing area, beat
them to death, as in the wolf hunt Of
old. This is to be scientific expert;
mcnt.
Prof. Lawrence Bruncr, who is re
garded as the greatest authority on
graSslioppcrs in the world, and was
employed by the Argentine Ecpuhic
some years ago to rid that country of
devastating locust>, is to BE- the leader
of the hunt. and h is now sending
out circulars explaining lis mode Of
attack.
There ar" tvnnty >ier!es os grass
braska is afflicted with nine Of these.
Each belongs to Il breed that multi
plies exceedingly md DOE, great dam
age to vegetation The four most
numerous species are the two. lined
the dlFercntial, thcrcd legged and the
lesser migratory. The two first named
are, when full grown, an inch and Il
half from forehead to tip Of wing, and
the others only Il rifle more than an
inch, with bodies in proportion
The Matching is all done in The
earth. The female seeks IL layoritc
spot and lay her eggs. One female
will lay 100 eggs in a season. Usually
only single generation of these in
sccts is raised in year. 1t is cal
culatcd that under favorable conditions
the number is increased fifty times
each year.
This is what has happened in west
crn and southwestern Nebraska, in
the alfalfa country, where no farmer
is content unless lie gets four crops
year of that forage plant. The hop
pcrs are ovcrrunning everything and
the farmers have begged the scientists
to relieve them. The scientists say
that the unusual increase in the hop
pcrs is duo TO the fact that several
seasons have been very dry in that re-
gion, which lessons the liability Of
the hopper to disease and at tho same
time kills off the parasites that look
upon hopper meat as the darkcy does
upon possum.
The scientists have tried several
old remedies but they haven't worked
well. Insect t-dcstroying fungi halted
the hoppcrs for time, but they seem
to have secured an antidotc for some
of these fungi and the only death
dealing fungus is that known to botan-
lists as Empusa gryllae. This causes
an epidemic wherever it can be propa-
gated.
When once attacked the hopper
climbs up the stem Of some weed or
other plant and securely attaches it.
self by tightly hugging the plant with
it's front and middle legs. In this po-
sition it dies. A few days after death
the body opens at the joints and the
dust-likc spores csrry the poison on
the wind to be deposited where some
other hopper is making a meal on veg
citation.
The most popular method of fight
ing the grasshoppers has been to har-
row or disk the land in which grass
hopper eggs have been deposited.
This stirring of the soil not only de-
stroys many eggs but also exposes the
remainder to the sun or the birds and
parasites. 1t is also a good thing for
the alfalfa crop. Cross-disking gen.
orally ends the grasshonpcr plague in
that Immediate ncighborhood, but it
is necessary to go not only over cult
vatcd land but also along irrigating
bitches, old roads and deserted break
ings.
The various remedies have been
tried, but still the grasshoppcr -four
ishcs and threatens Tie crops. And
so the grand hunt is to take place.
There will be no firearms, no clubs.
1t will be hunt by machinery.
The machine is called the hopper
dozer and can be operated by hand or
horse. 1t is made of stovcpipc iron
by turning up the sides and ends of
the sheet about four inches SO as to
make long flat pan about four inches
in depth. This is mounted on run
ncrs varying in height according to re-