INSECTS WHICH PEEY UPOX AGEICULTURAL PLANTS. 105 



densely covered with short, brightish brown hah^s, more grey 

 and silky beneath. There are ten fine strife on each side, two 

 black or brown spots on the exposed part of the abdomen, and it 

 is about one-fourth of an inch long. It is a native of warmer 

 climates, but has become acclimatised. 



Bruchus granarius (the Bean Weevil). — This is an insect 

 very similar to the preceding, and is, in fact, the native variety. 

 It is black and punctured with two whitish spots on the disc of 

 the thorax. The wing cases are sprinkled with whitish spots of 

 hairs, and the anterior pair of legs are ferruginous. It is 

 abundant on furze when in bloom, and both peas and beans are 

 subject to its attack, late-sown plants suffering most. Im- 

 mersion of the affected strains in hot water for one minute will 

 kill the contained insect, and not injure the seed. Kiln-drying 

 at IBS'" Fahr. will destroy them, but also kills the germ, though 

 the feeding properties are not injured. 



Doryphora decemlineata (the Colorado Potato Beetle). — 

 Although this is not one of our native insects, yet, as it has been 

 so prominent of late years, it may be as well to devote a few 

 words to it. It is a native of the Eocky Mountains, and was 

 first noticed in 1824. At that time it lived on wild potatoes, 

 and it is only of recent years that it has taken to the cultivated 

 variety and begun to creep eastwards, appearing on the Atlantic 

 seaboard in 1870. The beetles hybernate at a depth of two or 

 three feet in the soil, and emerge when the potatoes are sprout- 

 ing. The insect goes through its transformations in one month. 

 The larvae are about one half inch long, thick and fat, and of a 

 reddish colour. The only way to deal with them is to water the 

 plants with water containing " Paris green " (arsenite of copper), 

 or to dust over the plants a mixture of one of the same to nine- 

 teen of damaged flour. The chemical kills the grubs it comes 

 into contact witli, while it does not injure the plants. It has 

 got no footing in this country as yet, though it is an open 

 question whether it could exist here or not, seeing that it can 

 stand a great amount of cold and moisture. The beetles them- 

 selves are about three-eighths of an inch long, with five yellow 

 stripes down each elytron, from whicli they get the name of 

 "ten-lined," and generally resemble large turnip "flies," to which 

 they are allied. 



Calandra (jranciria (the Granary Weevil). — This insect infests 

 the grain stored in granaries; the female buries herself in the 

 corn hea]), and boring a hole ol^liquely into the seed with her 

 beak, or " rostrum," deposits one ii<^\:^ and seals it up with a 

 kind of gluten the colour of the grain. When the egg is 

 hatclu^d the maggot ])roceeds to eat out the entire contents and 

 changes to a pupa in the liollow shell, whence it emerges in 

 eight or ten days a perfect insect, eating its way out of the 



