THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



29 



It will l)t' at least iiionths before any of these new enemies can be 

 released in the field. A ^reat deal of i)ainstaking labor is necessarj^ to 

 work ont in minutest detail their complete life history. This work is 

 carried on in insect-proof rooms at the State Insectary and every pre- 

 caution taken that no insect escapes nntil its habits are thoroughly 

 known. After it has been demonstrated that an insect is a desirable 

 one to release, it is necessary to breed large numbers of them for 

 colonizing. It is our i)lan first to establish the insects in what we 

 consider to lie the most favorable locality in the State for its existence. 

 After that is thoroughly done we will begin its distribution. 



All this work rcfjuires time and we respectfully urge that we be not 

 asked for colonies of these new parasites until such time as the public 

 is notified that they are ready for distri])ution. AVe hope for some 

 measure of success, but the problems of parasite introduction are so 

 complex that no man can foresee just what the final outcome will be. 

 Compere's energetic collecting in the Orient and the observations of 

 Woglum and Silvestri in the ^fediterranean region showed that the 

 field in promising, and so long as the means are placed at our com- 

 nunid, we propose to persist until the natural enemies of the mealy bug 

 are either established in California or the fact is demonstrated that 

 thev can not exist here. 



THE WHITE GRUBS. 



By A. J. Cook, State Commissioner of Horticulture, Sacramento, California. 



Grubs are the larvas of beetles and almost always have six legs, though 

 the larvjv of weevils, or snout beetles, are, like dipterous larvas — mag- 

 gots, without legs. AVhite grubs are dirty white, live in the earth. 



Fig. 1. — Lachnostcrna fusca (Frohl.) .show- 

 ing the various stages in the development of the 

 white grubs. 1, pupa; 2, larva; 3 and 4, adult. 



usually curled up, possess a brown head and strong jaws — mandibles, 

 feed on roots of various grasses and other plants, and as adults, or 

 imagoes, are beetles. They belong to the family Scarahceidct. The 

 beetles of this family are robust, with five-jointed tarsi, and lamellate 



