destructive to Barley and Turnips, 177 



shining colour, with the wings slightly stained with brown ; 

 and with the base and tips of the thighs, the entire tibiae, and 

 the tarsi (except the tips) reddish brown ; the basal segment 

 of the abdomen is clothed with white hairs. It is about one 

 eighth of an inch long. 



According to Mr. Farmer's account, the diseases termed 

 the anbury, and fingers and toes, appear to be synonymous ; 

 but, from the observations of Messrs. Kirby and Spence, such 

 does not appear to be the case. These authors, after giving 

 a formidable list of the insects which attack the leaves of the 

 turnip, mention that the small knob or tubercle, often observ- 

 able upon the roots, is inhabited by a grub, which they con- 

 sider nearly allied to Curculio contractus. They state, how- 

 ever, that it is not known to them whether the disease to 

 which turnips are subject, in some parts of the kingdom, 

 called fingers and toes, be occasioned by insects or not; 

 although, in a subsequent page, they state that they have 

 reared the Curculio pleurostigma of Marsham from the knob- 

 like grubs on turnips called, in some places, the anbury. On 

 this subject, the editor, in a note to me, observes, that 

 " fingers and toes, in turnips, are monstrous furcations of the 

 base of the turnips into forms resembling fingers and toes. 

 When the matter of the turnip has become applied to the 

 formation of these, it does not form a tuber of any consider- 

 able* dimension; usually, I believe, none at all." 



From the observations of Mr. Farmer, it is evident that, at 

 least, two very distinct species of insects are the cause of the 

 gall-like excrescences on turnips ; but, as yet, we are unac- 

 quainted with the details of their respective proceedings; which, 

 from the totally distinct structure, must be very different. If, 

 even among the obnoxious insects of our own country, so 

 much remains unknown, how great must be our ignorance of 

 those myriads of species which injure us not; what extensive 

 and untrodden fields of pure delight remain, in which the 

 observer of nature may wander from day to day! 



Descriptions of the Insects above noticed. 

 Ch^non {Holiday \ Curtis) nigricans JVeslw. — Niger, niti- 

 dus ; thorace postice rugoso ; abdomine elongato gracili ; 

 segmento basali longitudinaliter striato; pedibus nigris, fe- 

 moribus tibiisque pedum anticorum geniculisque posticis 

 piceo»rufescentibus ; antennarum articulorum basalium 

 apice rufescenti ; alis fusco-tinctis. 



Longitudo corporis, linese 2. Expansio alarum, lin. 3f 

 Habitat (parasitice ?) in caule superiori f/ordei distichi. 

 Vol. VIII. — No. 47. n . 



