CHINCH-BUG (from Sp., Port. chi»chr, It. eimice, from Lat. eimrx, hug, and Engl. bug). A small blackish bug (Blissus lcueopterus), with wing-covers marked with a 6-shaped dark line. It belongs to the Lygzeithe, one of the most extensive and injurious families of plant-bugs. of which some 175 species belong to North Amer ica. The chineh-bug is spread all over the United States and throughout Central America and the West Indies: and is the most destructive bug. and probably the most destructive insect in the country. especially in the Nlississippi Valley. It appears in incalculable numbers in dry seasons, and the Department of Agriculture places the average annual damage at $20,000,000. The adults live through the winter in old grass and rubbish. Early in the spring the female lays 500 or more eggs on the roots and stems of grain. The young, at first, are red in color, and, clustering in crowds on the stems and leaves of grain or maize, suck out the juices and kill the plants. W'heat suffers most. There are two gen
erations in a year. When arriving at maturity the broods scatter, and should a strong wind be blowing at the time the insects are on the wing, they may be blown or carried many miles. Wet and cold springs and severe winters help to keep down the number of this pest. In Kansas sev eral contagious diseases that attack this bug have been discovered, and to facilitate the spread of such diseases infested chinch-bugs are sent to various parts of the State with alleged en couraging results. Several illustrated mono graphs of this species have been issued, of which the most complete is that. by F. M. Webster, The Chinch-bug (Department of Agriculture, Wash ington. 1898).