Two Grape Pests. 139 



An examination of these abnormal buds showed that they were 

 inhabited by many minute maggots; sometimes as many as 18 were 

 found in a single grape blossom-bud, as sho^^Tl in the enlarged pic- 

 tures of opened buds in Fig. 29. It seems almost incredible that so 

 many maggots could find sustenance in such a small home. Infested 

 and normal blossom-buds are sho'UTi enlarged in Fig. 29. The 

 maggots seemed to feed mostly on the pistil of the developing blos- 

 som, causing an unusual development or gall-like growth of the rest 

 of the blossom-bvid. 



The nature of this new grape enemy. — We have never seen, and have 

 little hope of soon breeding, the adult insect which laid the eggs from 

 which these blossom-bud maggots hatched. The little maggot shown 

 in the lower part of Fig. 29, measures from 2.2 to 2.4 mm., or about 

 1-16 of an inch in length, and is of a whitish color while in the buds, 

 but changes to a light lemon-yellow when it is ready to transform. 

 This is the only stage of the insect we have seen, but the fact that 

 these maggots possess a minute, forked organ, called by entomologists 

 a "breast-bone" (visible near one end of the maggot in Fig. 29), 

 indicates that the adult is one of the little two-winged flies known as 

 "gall-gnats." Among its nearest insect relatives are the clover-seed 

 midge, the Hessian fly, and the wheat midge, all serious pests of field 

 crops. When the minute grape-blossom-bud gnat is found, as it is 

 doubtless a new species, we would suggest it be given the specific 

 name of johnsoni in honor of the junior author who first observed its 

 work. The flies should be sought for during the latter part of May on 

 the clusters of blossom-buds in vineyards. 



We have searched the literature, both American and.European, and 

 find no record or description of such an insect working in grape 

 blossom-buds; and there is nothing about it in the records of the 

 Bureau of Entomology at Washington, reports Dr. Howard. Several 

 of these gall-gnats live in galls in grape leaves in America and Europe, 

 and one has been found in the grape-berries in Europe. We seem 

 to have discovered, not only a new grape enemy, but a species of 

 insect hitherto unknown. 



7/.S distribution and destructiveness . — This new grape enemy was 

 found last June in nearly every vineyard in the to^Mis of Ripley, 

 Westfield, Portland and Brocton in Chautauqua county. It was 

 always more abundant in neglected vineyards and those near wood- 

 lots or hedge-rows. We suspect that the insect is not uncommon in 

 many of the other grape-growing regions of the country. 



Many of the clusters in infested vineyards contained a dozen or 

 more of the abnormal blossom-buds, and in one vineyard nearly a 



