THE NEGRO BUGS. 69 



of scutellum, giving the appearance of a groove between them; humeri 

 prominent, rounded, almost smooth. Scutellum finely, shallowly punctate 

 throughout; sparsely so on disk, more densely so on sides, the impres- 

 sions at basal angles with coarser punctures. Elytra with inner black 

 portion sparsely punctate. Abdomen densely and finely punctate on 

 sides, the middle nearly smooth; osteolar area, as in our other species, 

 opaque and finely transversely rugose. Prothoracic pleura finely and 

 closely punctate. Length, 2.7 — 3.2 mm.; width, 2 — 2.2 mm. (Fig. 13). 



Common throughout Indiana, Feb. 11 — Nov. 17. Dunedin, 

 Fla., Nov. 29— Jan. 11 (W. S. B.). Agricultural College, Miss. 

 (Weed) . In Indiana it occurs in spring and summer on flowers 

 of various kinds, especially those of the wild plum and Jersey 

 tea ; hibernates beneath logs, mullein and other cover, and early 

 in April often common beneath dead leaves along fence rows 

 and borders of woods. Ranges from Quebec and New Eng- 

 land west to British Columbia and Colorado, and south to 

 Mississippi, Florida and Texas. Apparently common every- 

 where throughout most of its range and at times quite in- 

 jurious to vegetation. Forbes (1905, 115) says that: 



"In Illinois it is often abundant during the greater part of the sum- 

 mer on a great variety of weeds and cultivated plants, the juices of 

 which it sucks through its tubular beak to the occasional serious injury 

 of the crop. The favorite food plants of the species seem to be Jersey 

 tea, Ceanothus americana L., Spanish needles, and a small door-yard 

 weed, Veronica peregrina L. It is probable that the insect breeds prin- 

 cipally on these plants. Wheat, blue-grass, strawberry and celery have 

 been injured by them, and they often occur on cultivated berries to which 

 they give a disagreeable taste. The species is single-brooded, the adults 

 hibernating and appearing in early spring and laying eggs in May and 

 June. The young which hatch from these eggs rarely fail to reach 

 maturity by the early part of July, after which the adult insect is com- 

 mon until fall." 



Stoner (1920, 28) states that near Ames, Iowa: 



"It was found plentiful in June and July on potatoes, and that an 

 experiment with 20 of the bugs kept on potato plants in an insectary 

 showed that 'the feeding punctures made by the insects cause the leaves 

 to wilt and droop. The bugs seem to feed more upon the tender stems 

 than upon the leaves of the plants. Near Iowa City, on May 22, great 

 numbers of this species were swept from smart-weed and other low 

 weeds growing in an unplowed strip running through the middle of a 

 field that had been plowed a short time before. Hundreds of specimens 

 could have been taken with a sweep-net in a few minutes. At Osage the 

 species was swept from tansy on Aug. 12. In almost every locality 



