OF WASHINGTON, VOLUME XIV, 1912. 181 



likely, and although it could hardly account for the persis- 

 tence of a human disease carried exclusively by a specific in- 

 sect vector, it renders possible the transfer of diseases by a 

 contaminative carrier during certain short periods alternating 

 with longer periods of inactivity. 



NOTE ON THE AVOCADO WEEVIL (HEILIPUS LAURI 



BOHEMAN). 



BY HERBERT S. BARBER. 

 Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Last month (March 1912) some aguacate seeds (avocado or 

 alligator pear) were planted for germination in one of the green- 

 houses of the Department of Agriculture in Washington, and 

 while inspecting importations against noxious insects, Mr. E. 

 R. Sasscer had his attention drawn to one of these seeds show- 

 ing injury which, when the seed was opened, proved to be the 

 result of a large weevil larva therein contained. Unfortu- 

 nately the seed lay for a time on his desk subject to the at- 

 tack of the ant-pest (Solc-nopsis dcbilis) from which the Bureau 

 of Entomology suffers, before he brought it to me. When 

 examined further the seed was found to contain, in addition 

 to the half-devoured larva, two fine pupa3, each in a thin- 

 walled cell of excrementous material, the three together al- 

 most completely filling the space formerly occupied by the two 

 great cotyledons. 



In the same greenhouse and at about the same time (March 

 19, 1912) an attendant had picked up and handed to Mr. 

 Sasscer a large weevil that was feeding on the leaves and stem 

 of a seedling aguacate and which had undoubtedly issued 

 from another seed of the same lot. A few days later some one 

 in passing through the greenhouse picked up another adult 

 weevil for a friend interested in insects, who, in turn, brought 

 it to me for determination. 



The species was described by Boheman in 1845 (Schonherr, 

 Gen. et sp. Cure. vol. 8, pt. 2, p. 443) under the name Hcilipus 

 luiui, stating that it was found in the fruit of Lauras dry- 

 mifolia.* 



In the Biologia Centrali-Americana Champion mentions 

 two specimens of this weevil from Capulalpam, Mexico, in 



'Having been much confused by the different names assigned to the 

 Aguacate and thinking several species might be involved, it may be well 

 to explain that this name is now considered a synonym of what Small (-nils 

 Perseapersea (L,)Ckll. and equals, asfarasIcanIearn,Zffwr7/j/te?0 Linn.. 

 Persea gratissima Gaertn.,and Persea americana Mill., but is a distinct 

 species from the recently described Persea pit fieri Mez. 



