106 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO VEGETATION. 



1835, in the " Boston Journal of Natural History," * where a 

 detailed account of them, with descriptions of three native 

 species, and figures of the larvae and pupse, may be found. 

 The upper side of the beetles is generally rough, as the generi- 

 cal name implies. The larvaj burrow under the skin of the 

 leaves of plants, and eat the pulpy substance within, so that 

 the skin, over and under the place of their operations, turns 

 brown and dries, and has somewhat of a blistered appearance, 

 and within these blistered spots the larvee or grubs, the pupse, 

 or the beetles may often be found. The eggs of these insects 

 are little rough blackish grains, and are glued to the surface of 

 the leaves, sometimes singly, and sometimes in clusters of four 

 or five together. The grubs of our common species are about 

 one fifth of an inch in length, when fully grown. The body 

 is oblong, flattened, rather broader before than behind, soft, 

 and of a whitish color, except the head and the top of the first 

 ring, which are brown, or blackish, and of a horny consistence. 

 It has a pair of legs to each of the first three rings; the other 

 rings are provided with small fleshy warts at the sides, and 

 transverse rows of little rasp-like points above and beneath. 

 The pupa state lasts only about one week, soon after which 

 the beetles come out of their burrows. 



The leaves of the apple-tree are inhabited by some of these 

 little mining insects, which, in the beetle state, are probably 

 the Hispa rosea] of Weber, or the rosy Hispa. They are of a 

 deep) tawny or reddish yeUow color above, marked with little 

 deep red lines and spots. The head is small ; the antennae are 

 short, thickened towards the end, and of a black color ; the 

 thorax is narrow before and wide behind, rough above, striped 

 with deep red on each side; the wing-covers taken together 

 form an oblong square; there are three smooth longitudinal 

 lines or ribs on each of them, spotted with blood red, and the 

 spaces between these lines are deeply punctured in double 

 rows; the under side of the body is black, and the legs are 

 short and reddish. They measure about one fifth of an inch 



• Vol. I. page 141. 



t Hispa quadrata, Fabricius ; II. marginata, Say. 



