LEAF-BEETLES. 133 



the stems and leaves of our milkweeds, since they are of a brilliant 

 red color, marked with a number of black spots upon the elytra 

 and thorax. As larvae they feed in the roots of a number of 

 species of Asclepia. 



FAMILY CHRYSOMELIDAE. 



(Leaf -hectics or Chrysomelids) . 



The name "leaf-beetle" is well chosen, as these beetles feed 

 both as larvae and as adults upon the leaves of plants. The scien- 

 tific name was selected for them from two Greek words, meaning 

 golden apple, since most of these insects display brilliant and 

 beautiful colors, and also because their form is usually round and 

 oval. Such beetles are mostly short-bodied, more or less oval in 

 outline ; the head is very short, much narrower than the pro- 

 thorax ; the feelers are usually of moderate length, somewhat en- 

 larged towards the tips, and set wide apart ; the eyes are round 

 and prominent ; the legs are usually short and stout, and are fur- 

 nished with tarsi of the same type as those of the preceding 

 family, being also broad and cushioned beneath. 



All our species in Minnesota can readily be distinguished 

 from the longicorns, but such is not the case in other regions, 

 where forms occur that are not easily placed in the families to 

 which ihey belong. Most of our species are small, the well 

 known "Colorado potato-beetle" being about the largest represen- ' 

 tative we have. 



The larvae are variously formed, but are mostly thick, broad, 

 with well developed true legs. The}' live exposed upon leaves ; 

 some mine between the upper and lower cuticle of the leaves ; still 

 others cover themselves with their own excrement, while a few 

 bore into the stems and roots of plants. 



The eggs are usually deposited in small masses upon the 

 leaves or stems of the plants upon which the larva feeds, and are 

 frequently elongated and of a yellowish or orange color. 



Leaf-beetles are very numerous, about six hundred species 

 being found in North America alone. They are arranged in a 



