On Certain Seed-Infesting Chalcis-Flies. 369 



Eurytoma rhois Crosby seeds of Sumac (Rhus hirla). 



Bruchophagus funebris How., seeds of clover and alfalfa. Webster, Circular 

 Bur. Ent., 69. 1906. 



THE APPLE-SEED CHALCIS 



{Syntomaspis druparum Boheman) 

 The insects injurious to the apple have received, in this country at 

 least, more study than the enemies of any other plant; we were, there- 

 fore, greatly surprised in the summer of 1906 to find that the seeds of 

 certain varieties of apples at Ithaca, N. Y., were commonly infested 

 by an insect of which no mention could be found in our American lit- 

 erature. In order to find out what it was, to learn its habits and to 

 determine whether or not it was to be feared as a serious orchard pest, 

 observations were made during the last two seasons. 



Historical 



The first account of the work of the Apple-seed Chalcis was published 

 by Gu^rin-Meneville in 1865.' 



A few years before, some children in Paris had collected a box of 

 apple-seeds to be used in making a hair-gloss. The box was mislaid 

 and when opened a year or so later contained several small Chalcis- 

 fiies. Several of the seeds showed the small round hole through which 

 the insect had emerged. The specimens were never determined but 

 were doubtless the present species. The next record was published in 

 1886 by Horvath,* and an abstract of his paper appeared in the Hungar- 

 ian Report on Injurious Insects for 1884-1889.* 



At Budapest, about 40 pounds of apple-seed had been planted and 

 had failed to produce a good stand. An examination of the seed showed 

 that the kernel had been devoured and the adult insect was reared 

 from some of the unplanted seed. 



In igo6 Mokshetsky (Mokrzecki, as it is sometimes written)' reported 

 it abundant in Crimea, Southern Russia, and gave the first compre- 

 hensive account of its habits and life-history. 



Its name. — The scientific name of the insect, Torymus druparum, 

 was given it in 1833 by C. H. Boheman, a Swedish naturalist.' The 

 specific name, druparum, meaning "of fruits", was used because the 



' Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr., pp. 83-85. 1865. 

 * Rovartani Lapok., III., pp. 126 and XVTII. 

 ' Jelentes az 1884-1889, Budapest, 1892. 

 •Zeitsch. wiss. Insektbiol., II., pp. 390-392, 1906. 

 'Vetensk. Acad. Hand!., 1833, p. 361. 



s 



