12 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



CANADIAN GALLS AND THEIR OCCUPANTS— AULAX 



NABALI, N. S, .^ 



BY WM. BRODIE, TORONTO. 



Gall at the base of the stem of Nabalus altissit?ius, usually in masses 

 surrounding stem, often extending down on main root, rarely on main 

 fibres of root, usually about an inch under the ground, sometimes partly 

 above the ground. Galls roughly spherical, 5 mm. -10 mm in diameter, 

 each containing i-io cells, usually aggregated in irregular cylindrical 

 masses of 2-14, resembling small knobby artichokes or irregular small' 

 white potatoes. The interior of the gall has the appearance and con-' 

 sistence of a raw potato. They are mature about the middle of 

 September, and retain their white appearance through winter, but in 

 spring the colour darkens. They dry up when the interior presents the 

 appearance of a congeries of corky, fibrous folds. The average size of 

 20 of the cylindrical gall masses was, diameter, 14XX; length, 22xx. The 

 cells are small, closely confining the larva. 



In the spring of 1880 a friend handed me one of these galls, and 

 informed me he had found it on the stem of an aster. For several 

 seasons I carefully searched our asters, but failed in finding the gall, and 

 it was not until the spring of 1885 when I found it oil the root of 

 Nabahis altissimns. My friend had mistaken the nude, dry stem of 

 the nabalus for an aster. 



In April, 1887, I made a collection of 33 gall masses from Nabalus 

 altissimus growing on clay banks in open woods in St. James's Cemetery, 

 Toronto. 



The galls were at the base of the stem, immediately above root. 

 Usually the mass of galls surrounded the stem; occasionally but a few 

 on one side. From these galls I reared 115 producers — 79 5 s, 36 ^ s, 

 and 57 parasites, ^ s and $ s, of two species. 



The producers came out 1-6-87 — 9-^-^1') the parasites were a few" 

 days later. 



A collection was made from Nabalus roots growing on clay soil in 

 open woods a iQ.\v miles north of Toronto, 20-10-88, and kept in a glass 

 jar over winter. These galls were nearly spherical, 5X-10X dia., usually 

 grown together in masses of 2-14, usually quite surrounding the stem, 

 each nodule having from i-io cells. 



These gave producers 17-5-89—285-89; parasites 21-5-89— 1-6-89. 



