25 



of tlie sap anil the dmppiiig of the sawdust from the holes. The bark around the part 

 attacked begins to swell, an<l in a few years the trunks and limbs will become disfigured 

 and weakened by large porous tumours, caused by the efforts of the trees to repair the 

 injuries they have suffered." 



The history of this insect is rather a curious one. For a little over a hundred years 

 it has been known to inhabit the State of New York, its appearance and habits being 

 recorded by some English Entomologists of the last century. .Vbout thirty years ago it 

 was found as far west as Chicago, whence it spread throughout the State of Illinois, but it 

 was not till 18^3 that it reached Rock Island, about two hundred miles further west, 

 where — Mr. Walsh relates — it suddeidy appeared in great swarms and utterly destroyed 

 all the Locust trees. 'I'he first record we have found of its appearance in Canada is liy 

 Mr. Couper, who states {Can. Journal, 1855, p. 377) that he observed some Locust trees 

 attacked by this insect in Montreal in Septemlier, 1855. In 1862 it began to be very 

 destructive to the Locusts in Toronto, and for several years was excessively abundant 

 there. In 1867 we found it at Credit, about twenty miles west of Toronto ; it almost en- 

 tirely destroyed all the Locust trees iu the neighbourhood. In 1873 Mr. Reed relates its 

 appearance in enormous numbers at London, Out. ; now it appears to be generally dis- 

 tributed throughout this province, and occasionally becomes very injurious to these orna- 

 mental trees. The perfect insect, in the localities it frequents, may usually he found in 

 September on the flowers of the Golden-rod {Solidago), of which it eats the pollen, as well 

 as upon the trunks of the trees it infests. 



It is not easy to apply a remi'dy for an insect of this kind, still much may be done 

 to save favourite trees iu one's garden, provided they are not very large. The most s.atis- 

 factory plan seems to be to rub over the trunk and large limbs of the tree with strong 

 soap about the end of August ; this will prevent the mother-beetle from laying her eggs 

 upon the bark in September. Of course the applic;ition will have to be renewed after 

 heavy showers. Dr. Harris suggests that whitewashing, or covering the trees with graft- 

 ing-wax, would be effective in repelling the female. It would be of benefit also to gather 

 and destroy the beetles wherever they may be found ; children might be employed for 

 this purpose to search the flowers of the Golden-rod as well as to carefully examine the 

 trunks of the trees; should they be too high up to reach, a sharp blow with a stick on 

 the trunk of the tree will cause them to fall to the ground. X little familiarity will soon 

 overcome the natural repugnance ti> handling so wasp-like a creatun-. 



V. Chrysobothrfs femiirat.\, Kab. — The Bupresti.s, ur FLAT-nE.\DEn 



AiTi,E-TREE Borer. 



This insect belongs to the family Buprestidie, while all the others on our plate be- 

 long to the CerambycidiB ; the difference in shape and structure, ami especially in the 

 length of the antennae, is very nnticcable iu tiie figures. The' accompanying wood cut 

 (Fig. 2), when compared with that of the pine-borer given above i Fig. 1), will show our 

 rea<lers how this insect differs in this larval state, also from tlie long-horned beetles The 

 larva is shown at a, the chrysalis at h, the head and first segments of the larva at c and 

 the perfect beetle slightly enlargeil a.td. 



The natural history of the insect may be briefly related, as 

 follows : The egg is deposited by the female beetle in the chinks 

 and crevices of the bark some time during the earl)' part of sum- 

 mer ; from this the y<iung grub soon hatches, ami works its 

 way into the soft sap-wood immediately beneath. Here it eats 

 away, while the cavity inside becomes larger and larger, and it 

 increases in size itself, grailually working upwards until it be- 

 comes pretty well grown, when it bores into the solid heart of the 

 wood, and forms a flattish burrow, corresponding to its own flat 

 forui. When several attack the same tree, as is generally the 

 case, their burrows, of c<iurse ap])roach very near each other, 

 and cause its death ; in any case, they very mucli injure its 

 vitality and bring on decay. In the spring of the year the grub 

 Fig. ?. assumes its pupa state, and comes out as a perfect beetle in the 



