54 



BIRDS IX THEIR RELATIONS TO MAN. 



€UCK-Bi:r.Ti.i: and i.arva. 



{Aftt-1- Jirinin:) 



family is tlie Colorado potato-beetle, but there are many 

 others, such as the corn-root worm, the various flea-beetles, 

 the striped cucumber-beetle, and the asparagus-beetle, which 

 are almost equally injurious. The larvae of this group vary 



mucli in appearance and life-history : 

 some live exposed on leaves, others 

 are leaf-miners, and others live on 

 roots and under ground. Most of the 

 larv;e are protected in some way from 

 the attacks of birds, which apparently 

 devour many more of the adult bee- 

 I les than of the larviie. 



The common May-beetle, or "June- 

 bug," belongs to a family — Scarahceidce 

 — which contains many other well- 

 known depredators. This insect is 

 developed from the white grub, or 

 "grub-worm," so often found in pasture and meadow land. 

 The rose-beetle, or "rose-bug," is one of the others: the 

 adult is a hard, lirown insect that feeds upon the foliage, 

 flowers, or fruit of a great variety of plants. Its eggs are 

 deposited in light sandy soil and the larvae feed upon roots. 

 When fully grown they change to pupa? and later emerge 

 as adult beetles. Grubs like these are eagerly devoured by 

 robins, blackbirds, crows, and others ; these natural enemies 

 aid greatly in checking the ravages of such pests. 



A large number of injurious insects are found among the 

 snout-beetles of the family ( 'i(rcii/io)i}(J(c and certain related 

 families groujx'd togetliei' in a suborder <'alled l{liyncoi)hora. 

 The plum and apple curculios, the bean and pea weevils, the 

 various grain weevils, the corn "bill-bug," the white-pine 

 borer, and many other pests belong here. The larvae of these 

 insects are usually footless grulis and feed upon a variety of 

 materials. The adult beetles have a habit when disturbed of 

 droj)ping lo the ground, drawing tlie legs against the body, 



