OAK GALLS AND GALL INSECTS. 267 



it is quite evident that the heroic attempts now being made by the 

 authorities to arrest the decay of the land will be abortive. 



Time did not allow of an inspection of St. Mary's Church, almost the 

 smallest in England ; the chancel, blown down in the great storm of 1703, was 

 restored in 1879. On the way to the station, the Marconi Company's 

 " wireless" telegraphic stations now erected at Frinton was seen with interest. 

 A few members of the party remained down at Walton for the Sunday. 



THE OAK GALLS AND GALL INSECTS 

 (CYNIPID^) OF EPPING FOREST. 



By E. J. LEWIS, FL.S., F.E.S. 

 [Read January 26th, 7901.] 



The Study of Galls and Gall-Insects has never attracted the 

 amount of attention that so interesting a subject deserves, 

 although it affords a wide field for inquiry both to the entomolo- 

 gist and the botanist.^ Galls occur on a great number of plants, 

 and are caused by a variety of creatures, not only insects but 

 also by mites and worms. Among the worms we find such 

 species as Tylenchus tvitici (Bastian) which belongs to the family 

 Anguillulidae, or Eel-worms, forming galls known as " Ear- 

 cockles," or Wheat Eel-worm Galls. The family Eriophyidse 

 (Phytoptidae) contains many species of gall-forming mites, those 

 red formations so often seen in great numbers on the leaves of 

 the maple and sycamore being examples. The swollen buds so 

 prevalent on the black currant bushes are due to the presence of 

 a species of mite, Eviophyes ribis (Nalepa), belonging to this 

 family, thousands of individuals being present in each bud, and 

 now doing such an enormous amount of damage that non- 

 infested bushes are becoming the exception. An allied form, 

 E. avellanae, is commonly met with on the hazel, causing the 

 buds to swell in the same way. Other species ( E. taxi (Murray) 

 and E. rudis {typicus) (Cam.) ) affect the buds of the yew and 

 birch, respectively, in a similar manner. 



Gall-inakers are included in several different orders of the 

 Insecta. For instance, the turnip gall weevil {Ceiitorhynchus 

 sidcicollis), which produces swellings on the turnip and on the 



I Readers will find much information not only with regard to the galls of our county, 

 but also on the general subject, in Mr. E. A. Fitch's paper on "The Galls of Essex," 

 Transactions Essex Field Club, vol. II., pp. 98-156 In this paper wood-cuts are given 

 of many of the oak-galls formed by the Cynipina, as well ab those on other plants made 

 by Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera, &c. Mr. Fitch also gave abundant bibliographical 

 references. Ed. 



