'5- 



NEW YORK STATE ML'SEUM 



t (J b r f) c li i :? t,rrandis Ulilcr, sucks the cyj^^s. Larvae of lacewin*^'^ iTies, 

 also called aphis lions, are frequently found on leaves with the young of the 

 elm leaf beetle, and are reported by Riley to feed on both eggs and larvae. 

 Mites have been observed l)y the writer near egg clusters that had suffered 

 injury. This insect finds an enemy in the southern portion of its range in 

 tin- ])raying mantis, .S t a g m o m a n t i s Carolina Linn. It is very prob- 

 able that the European praying mantis. Mantis r e 1 i g i o s a Linn., recently 

 established in a number of localities in the state through the efforts of the 

 writer, will also prey on this injurious beetle. 



Remedial measures. The secret of controlling an insect frequently lies 

 in a knowledge of some vulnerable place in its life history. It is practically 

 imi)Ossible to get at the insect while it is hibernating but, if the leaves are 

 thoroughly sprayed with an arsenical poison earl\- in the spring when the 

 beetles begin to feed, many of them will be poisoned. The disinclination 

 of this insect to fly a great distance is encouraging to the man who protects 

 his own trees, since it reduces the liability of their ll\ing from neglected 

 trees near at hand. The local spread of this beetle is slow and the most 

 should be made of it by keeping the pest in clieck wherever it occurs, even 

 though the infestation be a small one ami ihi' injury at the time of little 

 importance. It is a mistake on the part of local authorities to wait till the 

 creature becomes destructive. It should ])e fought at the very beginning, 

 even before it has secured a fair foothold in a locality. 



The grubs feed almost e.xclusively on the under surface of the leaf, 

 rarely occurring on its upper side. The attack usually begins on the upper, 

 more tender leaves, hence the tops of the trees need spraying most, and in 

 order to kill the grubs the poison must be thrown on the underside of the 

 leaves, and, as a rule, this tr(;atment will be found most satisfactory. The 

 full crown larvae crawl down the trunks in great numbers and the golden 

 )ellow pupae may be found in abundance in crevices in the bark and on the 

 "•round about the trees. Large numbers of these insects can be killed at 

 this time by spraying them with a contact insecticitle such as kerosene 

 emulsion, whale oil soap solution or liy pouring boiling water on them. 



