PEAR AND QUINCE INSECTS 



237 



Fig. 211. — The quince cur- 

 culio. side view. 



Fig. 212. — The quince eur- 

 culio, dorsal view ( X 3) . 



The quince curculio is a brownish-gray, broad-shouldered 

 snout beetle, about J inch in length (Figs. 211 and 212) ; the 

 wing cases are strongly ribbed lengthwise by sharp ridges, and 

 there are two rows of 

 deep punctures in each 

 interval ; there are no 

 humps as in the case 

 of the plum and apple 

 curculios. The time of 

 the first appearance of 

 the weevils on the trees 

 varies greatly with the 

 season. In 1896 they 

 appeared during the last 

 week in May, while in 

 1897 they did not begin 

 work until about two 

 months later or the last 

 of July. 



In feeding the beetle 

 cuts a small opening in 

 the skin of the fruit 



with the jaws at the tip of the snout and then eats out a 

 cavity in the pulp (Fig. 213). The small opening to the cavity 



Fig. 213. 



- Young quince, showing the manner 

 of feeding of the curculios. 



