NOTES OF THE PAST SEASON. 



By W. Saunders. 



Toe Currant Worm {Nematus ventrico.ius, Klco). 



Thia- troublesome pest has been in most localities as abundant as ever during; the p.ist 

 summer. Whatever checks nature may have provided to prevent its excessive inciease. they 

 seem, as yet, to avail but little, for the larvas continue to swarm in hundreds and tliousands on 

 currant and gooseberry bushes throughout the summer, demanding constant vigilante and 

 liberal supplies of hellebore if the foliage is to be preserved. 



For the beneKt of those who may not possess copies of our previous reports we have in- 

 troduced again figures of this insect with such additional notes on this species in its various 

 stages as we have been able to gather during the sumincr. 



Fia. 7. Ih"!!,. 7 shows the eggs as they are laid on the 



under side of the leaves. These eggs (de.-^cribcd from 

 specimens found on the 2^th Jime; are when first 

 laid about f^-jyths of an inch long, nearly cylindrical, 

 rounded at the ends, white, glossy and semi-trans- 

 parent. Egus found on the same bushes, the same diy, 

 but prolial)ly l:iid some days before, measured A'jjths 

 of an inch in length with a corresponding increase in 

 diameter. From this it is reasuUMble to infer that 

 the eggs increase in size bef re hatching, the elastic 

 membrane which forms their covering expand'iig with 

 the development of the enclosed larvse. The eggs, 

 of which we have examined large numbers, we have 

 never found embedded in the substance of the le;if 

 (as some have stated they are) to any i creeptible 

 extent ; careful examination under a powerful micros- 

 cope has failed to reveal any abrasion of the surface 

 after the egg Ras lieen forcibly removed. 



Fig. « represents the larva) nearly full grown, 

 and Fig, 9 the perfect in^^ects, tiic smaller one being 

 the male, the larger one the female. 



On the 19th of June, on going into the girdrn 

 I about 7 A. 31., we noticed these perfect insi'cts flying 

 ibout in .'icore.s in sunny spots, around and under 

 ,:ooseberry bushes ; in about an hour afterward.s 

 when visiting the same spot for the purpose of 

 I capturing some, oidy one here and there could be 

 found, and these had settled on th<- bushes. A male 

 and female were captured an J enclosed in a gauze 

 bag, which was tied so as to enclose a sm.ill branch 

 of a gooseberry bush, with several leaves on it, all 

 fjuite free from CL'gs. When examined in he evea- 

 ing of the .>iame day, the female was seen liying her 

 eggs; the next moiniiig, on opening the bag, it was 

 found that 4S eggs liad been di-jiosited during the 

 interval, the female being still very active, Uu the 



Fio. 8. 



