88 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO VEGETATION. 



The head of the Lamias is vertical or perpendicular ; the an- 

 tennae of the males are much longer than the body, and taper to 

 the end ; the thorax is cylindrical before and behind, and is armed 

 on the middle of each side with a very large pointed wart or 

 tubercle ; the tips of the wing-covers are rounded ; and the fore- 

 legs are longer than the rest, with broad hairy soles in the males. 



The titillator is of a brownish color, variegated or mottled 

 with spots of gray, and the wing-covers, which are coarsely 

 punctured, have also several small tufted black spots upon them ; 

 the middle legs are armed with a small tooth on the upper edge ; 

 the antennae of the male are twice as long as the body, and those 

 of the other sex equal the body in length, which measures from 

 one inch and one eighth to one inch and one quarter. What kind 

 of tree the grub of this insect inhabits is unknown to me. 



Trees of the poplar tribe, both in Europe and America, are 

 subject to the attacks of certain kinds of borers, differing essen- 

 tially from all the foregoing when arrived at maturity. They be- 

 long to the genus Saperda. In the beetle state the head is ver- 

 tical, the antennae are about the length of the body in both sexes, 

 the thorax is cylindrical, smooth, and unarmed at the sides, and 

 the fore-legs are shorter than the others. Our largest kind is the 

 Saperda calcarata of Say, or the spurred Saperda, so named be- 

 cause the tips of the wing-covers end with a little sharp point or 

 spur. It is covered all over with a short and close nap, which 

 gives it a fine blue-gray color, it is finely punctured with brown, 

 there are four ochre-yellow lines on the head, and three on the 

 top of the thorax, the scutel is also ochre-yellow, and there are 

 several irregular lines and spots of the same color on the wing- 

 covers. It is from one inch to an inch and a quarter in length. 

 This beetle closely resembles the European Saperda carcharias^ 

 which inhabits the poplar ; and the grubs of our native species, 

 with those of the broad-necked Prionus, have almost entirely de- 

 stroyed the Lombardy poplar in this vicinity. They live also in 

 the trunks of our American poplars. They are of a yellowish 

 white color, except the upper part of the first segment, which is 

 dark buff. When fully grown they measure nearly two inches in 

 length. The body is very thick, rather larger before than beliind, 

 and consists of twelve segments separated from each other by 



