128 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Imperial Agricultural College, 



Sapporo, Japan, Dec. 7, 1898. 



Dear Sir, — I have duly received your letter. Dr. J. Fletcher, of 

 Ottawa, Canada, has already suggested to me that Larvermi herellera 

 might be identical with your British Columbian Argyrcst/iia conjugella, 

 Zell. I have received from him a report concerning it, and am convinced 

 that it must be quite identical. Fhe mode of affecting the plant differs 

 from that of yours, as I have mentioned in a paper published by the 

 U. S. Division of Entomology (Bull 10, U. S. Div. of Ent., 1898), but 

 some larvcC in this country seem to attack the fleshy part of the apple 

 just in the same way as the larvae of Try pet a do, tunnelling in every 

 direction, especially through the superficial part of fruits, and disfiguring 

 them. When an. apple is attacked by these larvae, this fact is manifest on 

 the outside of the fruit by a dusky green track, somewhat depressed, over 

 the tunnels. 



Owing to a very wet season this year the insects were scarce, so that 

 I could not obtain many specimens to rear, but I send you a single 

 specimen of the cocoon, which may be of use for identification. I do not 

 think that this insect is indigenous in Japan, but has probably been intro- 

 duced from some foreign country. Formerly I thought that it must 

 have been introduced from your country, until 1 was informed by Messrs. 

 Howard and Fletcher that this was very unlikely. Carpocapsa porno- 

 nella, Schizoneura lanigera,Mytilaspis poinorum^ Coleophora malivorella, 

 and Caccesia rosaceana, etc , have all been introduced here from America, 

 and are all of them doing much damage to our horticulturists. I am not 

 yet positive where the eggs are laid, but the first trace of entrance is 

 always on the side, so I naturally assume that the place where the eggs 

 are laid must be on the side. In Sapporo the earliest varieties of apple, 

 such as Fameuse, Red Astrachan, etc., are more liable to be attacked, and 

 the late varieties are less injured. The season during which fruit is 

 liable to injury continues from June to November. I have often found 

 the insect in stored apples even as late as the end of November. 



The spraying of trees against this insect is not practised, but in 

 autumn the ground under the affected trees is scratched and raked, so as 

 to expose the cocoons to thawing and freezing. The cocoons are 

 not very deep in the ground, at most about two or three inches. Last 

 year I sent Dr. Howard a single specimen of the imago, and regret that 

 I have not any other good duplicates on hand, but I will send you some 

 next spring if I am successful in rearing. Yours truly, 



M. Matsumura, Asst. Prof, of Entomology. 

 To E. A. Carew-Gibson, Victoria, B. C. 



Mailed May 3rd, 1899. 



