AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION'. 



143 



When the trees are full the apples that are punctured and drop 

 would not injure the crop, but with light bearers and in seasons 

 when the bloom is scarce the damage would be considerable. This 

 insect is known to infest the plum, peach, nectarine, apricot, cherrj', 

 apple and pear. The plum curculio is a native of this country, and 

 originally fed upon wild plums, and still infests them. The 

 males and females both puncture the fruit to feed on it, but only 

 the latter make the crescent shaped cuts. 



FIG. 29. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Perfect Insect — A beetle belonging to the family of insects known 

 as weavils or snout beetles. It is blackish or grayish, rough, with 

 a black, shining hump on each wing case near the middle, behind 

 which is a dull ochre-j^ellow band marked with whitish about the 

 middle ; each thigh has two small teeth on the under side ; snout 

 short. Length of insect about one-fifth of an inch. Shown in 

 Fig 29 c. enlarged. 



Egg — Oblong-oval, pearly white, visible to the naked eye, and 

 can be found readily by examining the crescent-shaped cut made 

 bj' the female. 



Larva — When young, tiny, soft, footless ; head distinct, horny. 

 When full grown it is usually' of a glossy yellowish- white, but varies 

 in color with the food ; head light brown or yellowish, along each 

 side is a light line, below which is a row of black bristles and above 

 it a less distinct one, and toward the hind extremity a few pale 

 hairs ; length about two-fifths jDf an inch. Shown enlarged in Fig. 

 29 a. The larva is so transparent the internal organs are plainly 

 seen through the skin, imparting a reddish color to the central parts 

 of the bod}'. 



The chrysalis is shown enlarged in Fig. 29 b. 



