538 AN INTRODUCTION TO ENTOMOLOGY 



The most common member of the family is Rhynchltes bicolor 



(Fig. 659). This is red above except the snout, and black below; 



the body, not including the snout, is about 6 mm. long, 



^^^ the snout is half that length. The adults are often abun- 



.^^^^^ dant on wild roses, and less frequently on cultivated roses. 



' ' The larvae infest the hips of roses. 



Fig- 659. 



The subfamily Attelabin^, or leaf-rollmg weevils, is 



composed of beetles which have neither an elytral fold nor a labrum, 

 and in which the mandibles are flat, pincer-shaped.and toothed on the 

 inner side. The elytra do not entirely cover the abdomen, and each is 

 separately rounded at the tip. Only five species are known from this 

 country; all of these belong to th.egenns,AUelahus. The females pro- 

 vide for their young in a very remarkable way. They make 

 compact thimble-shaped rolls from the leaves of trees 

 (Fig. 660), and lay a single egg in each. The larvae feed 

 on the inner parts of these rolls, and when full-grown enter 

 the groimd to transform. Sometimes these rolls are found 

 hanging by a narrow piece to the leaf from which they 

 were made, and sometimes they are found lying on the Fig. 660. 

 ground separated from the leaf. 



The subfamily Cyladin^ is represented in Florida, Louisiana, and 

 Texas b}^ a single species, the sweet-potato root-borer, Cylas fonnicd- 

 rius. This beetle is somewhat ant-like in form ; this fact suggested 

 the specific name. It is about 6 mm. long; the color of the eltyra, 

 head, and snout is bluish black, that of the prothorax reddish brown. 

 Both larvae and adults bore into the stems and tubers of the sweet 

 potato, and sometimes do very serious damage. This species was 

 formerly included in the Brentidae. 



The subfamily Otiorhynchin^, or scarred snout-beetles, is one 

 of the larger of the subfamilies of the Curculionidae ; it is repre- 

 sented in our fauna by more than two hundred species. The most 

 distinctive characteristic of these insects is the presence in the pupa 

 state, and sometimes also in recently matured adults, of an ap- 

 pendage on each mandible, and in the adult state of a scar indicating 

 the place from which the appendage has fallen. This scar is on the 

 anterior face of the mandible, and frequently at the tip of a slight 

 process. Many species of this family are beautifully 

 ornamented with scales which resemble in a striking 

 manner the scales on the wings of butterflies. Among 

 the more important species are the following. 



The imbricated snout-beetle, Epiccerus imbri- 

 cdtus, is usually a dull, silvery^ white beetle with 

 brown markings; but the species is quite variable 

 in color. It is represented, somewhat enlarged, in 

 Figure 661. It is omnivorous, gnawing holes in va- 

 rious garden vegetables, strawberry plants, and other 

 fruits. The greater part of the insect is clothed with 

 imbricated scales, which suggested the specific name. 



