TITE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 285 



INSECT NOTES. 



Alfalfa weevil (Phytonoinns ijosticus) — The annual inspection of alfalfa fields 

 along tlie line of the Salt Ltike and Santa Fe railroads from Otis to Vlctorville, San 

 Bernardino County, lias recently been completed and we are again pleased to announce 

 tliat tliis dangerous pest has apparently failed to become established in tliis State, 

 according to our best knowledge and most careful inspection of fields where it is most 

 liable to first make its appearance. 



The Salt Lake railroad, coming as it does through sections of Utah badly infested 

 with tlie weevil, is a constant source of danger, as the insect is frequently carried 

 long distances by trains. 



Seven hundred and forty-one (741) acres in all is the estimate made of the area 

 included in fields inspected. — Geo. P. Weldon. 



Tlie green apple aphis. Aphis pomi, lias been reported by County Horticultur.al Com- 

 riissioner O. E. Bremner of Sonoma County as being quite bad on young apple ti'ees 

 this spring. — E. J. Branigan. 



Polycaon confertus, the olive twig boror, is again causing considerable trouble in 

 tht^ young orchards in \'ai'ious parts of nortliern California. — H.A.RRY S. Smith. 



Avocado trees near Fillmore, in Ventura County, have been severely attacked by 

 the olive twig borer, Polycaon confertus. — A. A. Brock. 



Specimens of the first generation of the ladybird Hippodamia convergens were found 

 to be abundant in Sacramento County April 22(1. Tliey were in tlie larval and 

 pupal stages. — E. J. Branigan. 



The grape leaf hopper. Ti/plocyba comes Say, is damaging grape vines tliroughout 

 Ventura County. — A. A. Brock. 



Several thousand specimens of the new Encyrtid parasites of tlie citrus mealy l)ug 

 from Sicily, heretofore known as Leptomastix, have been distributed during the past 

 month. Dr. Howard writes tliat it represents both a new genus and new species, and 

 will be described by Mr. Girault. — Harry S. Smith. 



A very small Coccinellid in all stages was found to be destroying the rose scale, 

 Aulacaspis rosw in Sacramento. — E. J. Branigan. 



A douglas spruce in Sacramento County, which came from Santa Cruz County two 

 years ago, is very heavily infested with Chcruies cooleyi Gillette. — E. J. Branigan. 



Mr. D. F. Norton of Grass Valley reports a species of Arcliips as abundant on 

 roses in Nevada County. — Harrt S. Smith. 



County Horticultural Commissioner F. Seulberger of Alameda County reports the 

 pea aphis, Macrosiphum destructor (Johnson) as doing considerable damage to the 

 pea crop of Alameda County. — E. J. Branigan. 



The lesser shot-hole borer, Xyleboriis xiilofjranhus Say, was recently observed near 

 Ontario and Yucaipa, San Bernardino County, and at Banning, Riverside County. 

 Botli adults and larvse were taken in dead wood of apple and apricot trees, while 

 adults only were found burrowing into live twigs in small crotches near the tips or 

 just beneath the buds. — Geo. P. Weldon. 



Xyleborus xylographus Say is doing considerable damage to apricot trees which 

 were previously injured by spraying with the distillate oil mechanical mixture for 

 black scale. — A. A. Brock. 



The beetle Scythropus ferrugineus Casey was collected in considerable numbers 

 from the pine trees in Plumas County. Tliis beetle works on the pine needles, biting 

 through the edges of the needle and giving it the appearance of a fine tooth saw.- — ■ 

 E. J. Branigan. 



NEW SPECIES OF APHIDIIN/E, A SUBFAMILY OF PLANT LICE PARASITES. 



By Henry L. Viereck. 



The two following species with unknown host reJationships belong to the Aphidiinas, 

 a subfamily of parasites, tlie members of wliicli are known to be parasitic on species 

 of plant lice or Aphididfe. Nine other species of this subfamily are on record from 

 California. 



Ephedras aestivalis n. sp. 



Type — University of California, Berkeley, Cal. 



Type locality — Berkeley, Cal., June 25, 1907. 



Type, female — length, 2.5 mm. ; apparently related to E. nigricornis Gahan ; black ; 

 antennae broken, probably 11-jointed, flagel witli tlie first joint apparently six times 

 as long as thick, longer than the second joint and not as tliick as the seventh, man- 

 dibles brownish, fore and mid legs, excepting their coxae and tarsi, brownish stramine- 

 ous, the former black, the latter fuscous, hind legs with their coxae blackish, their 

 trochanters and the basal three-fourths of their tibiae, dark stramineous, elsewhere 

 fuscous, wings with a brownisli tinge, stigma and veins brownish, the median and 

 submedian veins and the first abscissa of the cubitus pale, second transverse cubitus 

 as distinct as the radius ; areola and petiolarea confluent, not much longer than the 

 greatest width and almost parallel sided below the middle ; first abdominal segment 

 elevated, rugulose and brownish stramineous ; abdomen blackish, except for the first, 

 second and third sutures, which are stramineous, abdomen nearly twice as long as the 

 combined length of the head and thorax, sheaths of the ovipositor attenuated. 



