LONG HORNED BEETLES. 119 



wavy lines looks like a "W". The legs are dark-red as are the 

 feelers; in the "locust-borer" the yellow color is darker, and the 

 wavy lines are usually a little broader. 



The larvse of both bore under the bark of their respective 

 food-plants, and later into the solid wood, where they attain 

 their growth in less than a year. The locust-borer is a serious 

 .pest, making the growing of the sweet-scented locust almost im- 

 possible in many localities, and in not a few places such trees 

 have been completely destroyed. As soon as a tree attains a 

 moderate size it is riddled with the large holes made by the larvae, 

 and for a few years leads but a sickly life, eventually dying 

 down to the ground. 



Prof. Packard in his fine work: "Insects Injurious to Forest 

 and Shade Trees" gives the following remedies against such bor- 

 ers as the robiniae ;" An excellent way to save a valuable shade tree 

 from the attacks of this borer is to thoroughly soap the trunk 

 late in August, so as to prevent the beeftle from laying the eggs 

 early in September. All insects breathe through little holes; 

 now, if a film of soap, or grease, or oil of any kind closes the 

 openings of these breathing pores, the air cannot enter the res- 

 piratory tubes which ramify throughout the interior of the body, 

 and the insect dies by asphixiation, i. e. drowns." Harrison 

 states 'that whitewashing and covering the trunks of trees with 

 grafting composition may prevent the female from depositing 

 her eggs on isolated trees. A coating of oil, whether it really 

 kills the worms in the manner suggested or not, is an excellent 

 remedy, as it is offensive to the female beetles. It is an im- 

 provement, however, to add a little Paris-green or London- 

 purple which fill the cracks with a fine film of these poisons ; 

 if eggs are deposited the larva; hatching from them will be pois- 

 oned in eating their way into the wood. To whitewash a 'tree 

 looks bad, and moreover is apt to attract the beetles, as insects 

 of this kind are attracted to white objects. 



An allied, but larger species, varying from velvety brownish- 

 black and unspotted to an intense black beetle with bright yellow 

 spots, sometimes united into wavy bands, is getting rather com- 



