THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 127 



a lai-iio tuft at the tip of the abdomen as shown in the illustration. As 

 the adults are exceedingly small they are seldom if ever observed by 

 the orchardist. The females are very deliberate in their actions and 

 slowly feel the mealy bugs with their antenna?. When a .suitable host is 

 found she inserts her ovipositor and injects an egg into the body. If 

 disturbed she jumps quickly and may fly away. When at rest the legs 

 and antennae are spread out and the latter protruding forward greatly 

 resemble two extra front legs. The larva develops entirely within the 

 body of the mealy bug and when the interior is entirely eaten out trans- 

 forms to the adult and later emerges through a hole in the back of the 

 host. Tliis insect is evidently quite widely distributed throughout 

 southern California and has been bred by the writer from the citrus 

 mealy bug in Ventura and San Diego counties and Baker's mealy bug 

 at Upland, Cal. I^ndoubtedly it also works upon other mealy bugs. 



Lcticopis hclht Lcew. 



This insect is a small bluish two-winged fly, scarcely exceeding one 

 sixteenth of an inch in length and very active. The exact nature of its 

 attack upon tlie mealy bug is not known, but it is thought to be parasitic 

 upon the fcnudes. It has been reared out of masses of citrus mealy bugs 

 and also from the yerba santa mealy luig ])y the writer. In both cases 

 large numbers were obtained. 



Predacious Enemies. 



Of the predaceous enemies the ladybird beetles are the most impor- 

 tant, and tlicir value in subduing the mealy bugs is generally under- 

 estimated. These beetles are evidently entirely responsible for the 

 complete subjugation of most of the natural ft)nns, and it is exceedingly 

 difficult to find mealy bugs without finding some of these predaceous 

 enemies feeding upon them. Though the ladybird beetles are most 

 important, there are a number of other insects which are no less effective 

 in their Avork. 



THE MEALY BUG DESTROYER. 



Cryptoltemus mo^itronzicri Muls. 



(Figs. 40-41.) 



This beetle is by far the mo.st important natural enemy of the mealy 

 bugs. It was introduced into California many years ago from Australia 

 and other places by Albert Koebele and has since been distributed in 

 varioiis sections of the State by the State Insectary. The first efficient 

 work done by this insect was at San Diego County, and from there 

 Mr. P. E. Smith introduced it into Ventura County, where in 1909-1910 

 it did really remarkalile work, as has also been claimed for it by 

 Mr. J. A. Prizer in San Diego County. 



Its eggs are exceedingly small, light yellow in color, and laid singly 

 in the egg masses or among the colonies of the mealy bugs. These eggs 

 hatch into small yellowish larva? which secrete a white cottony material 

 not unlike that of the mealy bugs, except that the cotton is arranged in 

 filaments all over the back, as shoAvn in Fig 40. This covering seems to 

 be a protective arrangement enabling the predaceous larva? to have the 

 same natural protection as the mealy bugs upon which they feed. The 

 very young larvae of the ladybird beetle feed upon the eggs and smaller 



