Bureau of Entomology
Encyclopedia
The Bureau of Entomology was a unit within the Federal government of the United States from 1894 to 1934. It developed from a section of the Department of Agriculture
which had been working on entomological researches and allied issues relating to insects.
was organized at Philadelphia
in 1859, incorporated in 1862, and known until 1867 as the Entomological Society of Philadelphia. On Friday, May 18, 1866, Mr. O'Neill requested an appropriation from the Congress of the United States to maintain the organization's publication Practical Entomologist. The request for Federal funds established a connection between the organization and the Federal government.
The Department of Agriculture
was created on July 1, 1862. It included four bureaus, one of which eventually became identified with the Bureau of Entomology. An "entomological division" in the Department of Agriculture existed in 1872, according to Congressional records.
was introduced by accident from Europe
into Massachusetts
about 1861. The sweet potato weevil was first discovered in 1875. About 1892, the brown-tail moth
was introduced near Boston from Europe. The boll weevil
entered Texas
about 1892 in the vicinity of Brownsville
. The Argentine ant
was first discovered in the United States at New Orleans
in 1891, New International Encyclopedia
and the alfalfa leaf weevil was first discovered in Utah
in 1904. Establishing control over an increasing number of insect pests and insect-borne diseases led to the establishment of the Bureau of Entomology.
has to had to deal, resulted in a number of discoveries of great importance. A disease of the brood which had often been mistaken for one of the foul broods and to which the name "sacbrood" is given was found to be due to a filterable virus
. The deadly Isle of Wight disease of the adult bee, occurring in Great Britain
and on the Continent
, was discovered to be caused by the mite Acarapis woodi
in the tracheæ, and an embargo was placed upon the importation of bees in order to prevent its introduction into the United States.
. A quarantine against insect pests and diseases from abroad was established and maintained, inspectors having been stationed at every port of entry by land and sea. Quarantines were established within the United States against the spread of a number of important pests. The investigational and control work was carried on by the Federal government through the Bureau of Entomology and the Horticultural and Insecticide and Fungicide Boards. In the States the work was conducted by the experiment stations
, State entomologists, and in several instances by crop pest commissions. The Federal Bureau of Entomology administered the work through its several divisions. In 1924 it had 83 field stations in 32 states and Territories and three foreign countries.
Many States have enacted laws which have created State Boards of Entomology. The interstate spread of pests has been prevented to a large extent through State regulations requiring that nursery stock be free from infestation, and these are enforced by rigid State inspection.
in the Laguna district of Coahuila, Mexico, within 200 miles (322 km) of the Texas border, was discovered, and an embargo was placed upon the importation of Mexican cotton. Infestations were found in several counties in Texas and Louisiana. The infested areas were at once quarantined and eradication work was pressed with vigor under appropriations by Congress. The pink bollworm originated in India
and has been spread to many cotton-producing nations by man.
.
The European corn borer
attacks all of the corn plant above ground except the leaf blades.
was introduced from Japan with nursery stock and became established near Riverton
, N. J.
, where it was discovered in the summer of 1916. By the fall of 1922 an area of 773 square miles (2002 km²) had become infested.
in 1916. It is supposed to have been introduced with flowering cherry trees from Japan.
had it lasted for longer than two years.
was first discovered in Hawaii
on the Island of Oahu
in 1910. Its introduction into the Island of Bermuda
many years earlier had destroyed the fruit-growing capacity of that island. Congress provided appropriations to prevent its spread to the mainland.
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
which had been working on entomological researches and allied issues relating to insects.
Early developments
The American Entomological SocietyAmerican Entomological Society
The American Entomological Society was founded on March 1, 1859. It is the oldest continuously-operating entomological society in the Western Hemisphere, and one the oldest scientific societies in the United States. It is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
was organized at Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
in 1859, incorporated in 1862, and known until 1867 as the Entomological Society of Philadelphia. On Friday, May 18, 1866, Mr. O'Neill requested an appropriation from the Congress of the United States to maintain the organization's publication Practical Entomologist. The request for Federal funds established a connection between the organization and the Federal government.
The Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
was created on July 1, 1862. It included four bureaus, one of which eventually became identified with the Bureau of Entomology. An "entomological division" in the Department of Agriculture existed in 1872, according to Congressional records.
Insect pests reach the United States
The gipsy mothGypsy moth
The gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, is a moth in the family Lymantriidae of Eurasian origin. Originally ranging from Europe to Asia, it was introduced to North America in the late 1860s and has been expanding its range ever since...
was introduced by accident from Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
into Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
about 1861. The sweet potato weevil was first discovered in 1875. About 1892, the brown-tail moth
Brown-tail
The brown-tail is a moth of the family Lymantriidae. It is distributed throughout Europe.The wings of this species are pure white, as is the body, apart from a tuft of brown hairs at the end of the abdomen. The brown coloration extends along most of the back of the abdomen in the male...
was introduced near Boston from Europe. The boll weevil
Boll weevil
The boll weevil is a beetle measuring an average length of six millimeters, which feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central America, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s,...
entered Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
about 1892 in the vicinity of Brownsville
Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville is a city in the southernmost tip of the state of Texas, in the United States. It is located on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, directly north and across the border from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Brownsville is the 16th largest city in the state of Texas with a population of...
. The Argentine ant
Argentine ant
The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, is a dark ant native to northern Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and southern Brazil...
was first discovered in the United States at New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
in 1891, New International Encyclopedia
New International Encyclopedia
The New International Encyclopedia was an American encyclopedia first published in 1902 by Dodd, Mead and Company. It descended from the International Cyclopaedia and was updated in 1906, 1914 and 1926.-History:...
and the alfalfa leaf weevil was first discovered in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
in 1904. Establishing control over an increasing number of insect pests and insect-borne diseases led to the establishment of the Bureau of Entomology.
Insect pests
The Bureau of Entomology conducted researches into methods which could reduce the spread and the frequency of occurrence of insect pests. It developed various approaches towards accomplishing its goals. The introduction of the natural enemies of insect pests has brought control of many insect pests.Beneficial insects
Investigations of bee diseases, the greatest handicap with which the beekeeperBeekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
has to had to deal, resulted in a number of discoveries of great importance. A disease of the brood which had often been mistaken for one of the foul broods and to which the name "sacbrood" is given was found to be due to a filterable virus
Virus
A virus is a small infectious agent that can replicate only inside the living cells of organisms. Viruses infect all types of organisms, from animals and plants to bacteria and archaea...
. The deadly Isle of Wight disease of the adult bee, occurring in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and on the Continent
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, was discovered to be caused by the mite Acarapis woodi
Acarapis woodi
Acarapis woodi is a mite that is an internal parasite of honey bees, originally described from the Isle of Wight. Tracheal mites are related to spiders and have eight legs. Acarapis woodi live and reproduce in the tracheae of the bees...
in the tracheæ, and an embargo was placed upon the importation of bees in order to prevent its introduction into the United States.
Later developments
Resorting to legislative means, Congress enacted the Federal Plant Quarantine Act of August 20, 1912, which immediately became effective as to certain quarantines, and was administered by the Federal Horticultural Board, consisting of five members appointed by the Secretary of AgricultureUnited States Secretary of Agriculture
The United States Secretary of Agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The current secretary is Tom Vilsack, who was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on 20 January 2009. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other...
. A quarantine against insect pests and diseases from abroad was established and maintained, inspectors having been stationed at every port of entry by land and sea. Quarantines were established within the United States against the spread of a number of important pests. The investigational and control work was carried on by the Federal government through the Bureau of Entomology and the Horticultural and Insecticide and Fungicide Boards. In the States the work was conducted by the experiment stations
Agricultural experiment station
An agricultural experiment station is a research center that conducts scientific investigations to solve problems and suggest improvements in the food and agriculture industry...
, State entomologists, and in several instances by crop pest commissions. The Federal Bureau of Entomology administered the work through its several divisions. In 1924 it had 83 field stations in 32 states and Territories and three foreign countries.
Many States have enacted laws which have created State Boards of Entomology. The interstate spread of pests has been prevented to a large extent through State regulations requiring that nursery stock be free from infestation, and these are enforced by rigid State inspection.
Pink bollworm
In November, 1916, the occurrence of the pink bollwormPink bollworm
The pink bollworm , , is an insect known for being a pest in cotton farming. The adult is a small, thin, gray moth with fringed wings. The larva is a dull white, eight-legged caterpillar with conspicuous pink banding along its dorsum...
in the Laguna district of Coahuila, Mexico, within 200 miles (322 km) of the Texas border, was discovered, and an embargo was placed upon the importation of Mexican cotton. Infestations were found in several counties in Texas and Louisiana. The infested areas were at once quarantined and eradication work was pressed with vigor under appropriations by Congress. The pink bollworm originated in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and has been spread to many cotton-producing nations by man.
European corn borer
Late in the year 1917 the widely distributed European and Asiatic pest Pyrausta nubilalis Hubn., a moth whose larva is a borer, was discovered to have become established in an area approximately of 100 square miles (259 km²) in several counties in eastern Massachusetts, where it caused serious injury to corn and particularly to sweet cornSweetcorn
Sweet corn is a variety of maize with a high sugar content. Sweet corn is the result of a naturally occurring recessive mutation in the genes which control conversion of sugar to starch inside the endosperm of the corn kernel...
.
The European corn borer
European Corn Borer
The European corn borer , also known as the European high-flyer, is a pest of grain, particularly maize. The insect is native to Europe, originally infesting varieties of millet, including broom corn. The European corn borer was first reported in North America in 1917 in Massachusetts, but was...
attacks all of the corn plant above ground except the leaf blades.
Japanese beetle
The green beetle Popillia japonicaJapanese beetle
The beetle species Popillia japonica is commonly known as the Japanese beetle. It is about long and wide, with iridescent copper-colored elytra and green thorax and head...
was introduced from Japan with nursery stock and became established near Riverton
Riverton, New Jersey
Riverton is a Borough located in Burlington County, New Jersey. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough had a total population of 2,759....
, N. J.
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, where it was discovered in the summer of 1916. By the fall of 1922 an area of 773 square miles (2002 km²) had become infested.
Oriental peach moth
The Oriental peach moth was first discovered in the District of ColumbiaWashington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
in 1916. It is supposed to have been introduced with flowering cherry trees from Japan.
Pine shoot moth
The destructive pine shoot moth was discovered in 1914 to have been introduced from Europe and to have become established in 10 localities in three States from Massachusetts to Pennsylvania, and the following year from 20 localities in nine states, in none of which except on Long IslandLong Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
had it lasted for longer than two years.
Mediterranean fruit fly
The Mediterranean fruit flyCeratitis capitata
Ceratitis capitata, the Mediterranean fruit fly, or medfly for short, is a species of fruit fly capable of causing extensive damage to a wide range of fruit crops...
was first discovered in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
on the Island of Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
in 1910. Its introduction into the Island of Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
many years earlier had destroyed the fruit-growing capacity of that island. Congress provided appropriations to prevent its spread to the mainland.
Some other insect pests
- European red mite
- European earwigForficula auriculariaForficula auricularia, the common earwig or European earwig, is an omnivorous insect in the family Forficulidae. The European earwig is a common household insect in North America. Though they frighten many, they are harmless but tend to take up habitation within the home...
- European satin moth
- Australian tomato beetle
- Camphor thrips
- Pea moth
- Fruit-tree leaf roller
- Potato leaf hopper
- Codling mothCodling mothThe codling moth is a member of the Lepidopteran family Tortricidae. They are known as an agricultural pest, their larva being the common apple worm or maggot. It is native to Europe and was introduced to North America, where it has become one of the regular pests of apple orchards. It is found...