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V. INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE BLACK- 

 BERRY AND RASPBERRY. 



A BLACKBERRY CANE-BORER. 



Oberea bimaculata. 



Order Coi,OPTERA ; family Cerambycidae. 



A footless grub, resembling in form the Round-headed Apple-tree Borer, 

 boring in the canes of blackberry and raspberry, and transforming into 

 a narrow-bodied, long-horned black beetle, with a yellow prothorax. 



In the latter part of July, two years ago, Professor Caldwell 

 drew my attention to an extensive destruction of blackberry canes, 

 at his summer residence, near Kidders, on the shore of Cayuga 

 Lake. At that time the leaves on many of the bearing canes 

 were observed to be dying, and the fruit, which was not yet ma- 

 ture, to cease its growth. An examination of the diseased canes 

 revealed the presence in each of a boring grub, the cause of the 

 injury. 



At the time of this observation five per cent, of the canes were 

 found to be destroyed by this borer. And as the infested canes 

 were only just beginning to die, some of them were not detected 

 at that time ; thus the injury was even greater than five per cent, 

 of the crop. Although the infested canes produce fruit, it does 

 not ripen, as the canes die before it matures. 



The boring larvae were found only in the bearing canes. They 

 are cylindrical, footless, 3-ellowish grubs, measuring about three- 

 fifths of an inch in length. When first observed in the latter part of 

 July they had made in each case a burrow less than two inches 

 in length ; but after that date the burrows were rapidly extended 

 downward so that they became in many cases two feet or more in 

 length and reached the base of the canes. The burrows are 

 about one-eighth of an inch in diameter ; they wind from side to side 

 of the pith, and at frequent intervals penetrate the woody part of the 

 cane. In some of the cases where the woody part of the cane is 

 penetrated an opening is made through the bark. These open- 

 ings occur at intervals of a few inches throughout the length of 

 the tunnelled portion of the cane ; they are small, being about 



