Entomological Notes. 305 



of getting their food, a few only for depositing their eggs. As the 

 beetle is supposed to live for a number of months, and as far as 

 known feeds entirely on the fruit, each one makes many incisions 

 for this purpose, and wherever they sting the fruit, the effect is to 

 check all growth. In the part thus stung a hard callous is formed 

 about the hole, and by preventing any development of the fruit, 

 gives it an irregular, distorted form. 



For the depositing of her eggs the female makes these holes 

 somewhat larger than usual. The egg is placed in the bottom of 

 the cavity made, and soon hatches out and makes its way to the 

 core, feeding around it. In about a month it reaches its mature 

 larval state, when it is a soft, clumsy, humpbacked worm, full of 

 crinkles, without feet, and, as it cannot straighten, with little 

 power of locomotion. Thus it is shut up in the apple, and com- 

 pelled to go into its chrysalis state where it hatched out and grew 

 to maturity, as said before, the fruit still clinging to the tree. In 

 about three weeks it transforms to the perfect beetle state and 

 digs its way out, to live on the now mature, ripening fruit, causing 

 it to decay by its poisonous stings. On the advent of cool weather, 

 it seeks shelter under the leaves and rubbish on the ground, or in 

 the fence corners and under the rough bark of the trees, to appear 

 again in the spring and renew its destructive work. 



Remedies. — The fact that they go through the chrysalis state 

 in the fruit, while it hangs on the tree, makes it difficult to 

 destroy them, except by gathering and destroying the stung fruit. 

 This would be attended with much labor and care. The fact that 

 they seem to prefer the native crab and thorn apples, and the fact 

 that among cultured pears and apples there are some varieties to 

 which they take a special liking might be takeo advantage of, 

 and by sacrificing the fruit on these trees the great bulk of the 

 beetles might be destroyed with much less difficulty. The same 

 remedies used against the plum Curculio, are said to be useful in 

 checking this pest also, but owing to diffierences in their character 

 and habits, the remedies cannot all be used with the same degree 

 of success. The apple Curculio is much less inclined to drop 

 from the tree when disturbed by sudden jars ; the length of time 

 during which it is depositing its eggs, and the length of season 



20— HORT. 



