OF WASHINGTON. 55 



same wormy condition. In both instances the fruit was perfect, 

 so far as external appearances were concerned. There were no 

 visible ruptures or punctures in the skin, and the flavor of the 

 fruit, as I afterwards tested, was sweet and luscious. The mag 

 gots were about one-third of an inch long, of a dirty whitish 

 color, and worked their way freely through the pulp. 



The pieces of orange together with the larvae were placed in a 

 glass dish in the bottom of which about three inches of clean, 

 loose dirt had been previously placed and dampened. The dish 

 was afterwards covered with a piece of glass. After three or 

 four days the fruit became very mouldy, but the larvae continued 

 feeding until January 18, when two of them, now about u mm. 

 long by 2 mm. wide at the posterior end, went into the ground. 

 They burrowed about in the earth for several days, one of them 

 pupating the 2ist and the other the 24th. Two dead larvae and 

 one full-grow r n in good condition were removed the 2Oth and 

 placed in alcohol. The first adult, a male, issued February 28th, 

 or just thirty-eight days after pupation. Four days later that is, 

 March 3 a second fly, this time a female, emerged after passing 

 thirty-nine days in the pupa stage. These results agree fairly 

 well with those obtained by Mr. Bruner. In his experiments he 

 obtained the imago about forty-one days after the formation of 

 the pupa. 



I made careful inquiry about the source of the infested oranges 

 and finally traced them to a large commission house in Chicago. 

 After some correspondence with the proprietors, I found that 

 thev had had a large consignment of oranges from the vicinity 

 of the City of Mexico, and that the fruit sold to the dealers in 

 Champaign was from that lot. 



From what I have seen of this insect it seems to me that it is 

 extremely probable that it will sooner or later find its way into 

 the orange-growing districts of the United States. The fly is 

 very hardy, and will stand considerable neglect. I kept a male 

 and female for several days in close confinement in a glass- 

 covered dish, and they were seemingly as active as ever when 

 removed. They can withstand a considerable variation in 

 temperature, as shown by Mr. Bruner. On several occasions, 

 during the progress of his experiments, the mercury fell below 

 the freezing point in the room where his breeding-cage stood. 

 With the present facilities for transportation, it would be an easy 

 matter to carry this pest in oranges even from the local markets 

 of Chicago to Florida, Louisiana, or California. 



It appears from the original description * of this insect that Loew 



* Review of N. A. Trypetina, Mon. Dipt. N. A., Part III, Sm. Inst., 1873, 

 p. 223, PI. XI, Fig. 19. 



