262 



INJURIOUS AND BENEFICIAL INSECTS OF CALIFORNIA. 



THE TOBACCO FLEA-BEETLE 

 Epitrix parvula Fabricius 



(Figs. 253, 254) 



Description.— Tli e beetles are very small, oval, reddish-brown or 

 light-brown and about 1-20 inch long. The wing covers are usually 



marked with a broad 

 darker transverse band 

 across the middle. The 

 beetles jump very 

 quickly when dis- 

 turbed. The larva- are 

 white with yellowish 

 head and are about £ 

 inch long. 



Life History. — The 

 adults hibernate in 

 sheltered places and 

 emerge to begin feed- 

 ing about the time the 

 young tobacco or to- 

 mato plants are ap- 

 pearing in the hotbeds. 

 By July they are plen- 

 tiful in the fields, 

 working first upon the 

 lower and then upon 

 the upper leaves. The 

 eggs are laid around 

 the bases of the plants 

 and the larvae feed 

 upon the roots and the 

 parts of the stalks 

 underground. It re- 

 quires about a month 

 for the first hatched 

 young to become full- 

 grown, pupate and 

 emerge as adults. 

 There are several 

 broods a year. 



Nature of Work. — The beetles eat small irregular holes in the 

 leaves of the plants and the larva? destroy the fine roots or eat small 

 holes in the larger roots and bases of the stalks. Both stages are 

 usually present when the work is evident. 

 Distribution.— The beetle is distributed throughout the State. 

 Food Plants. — The recorded food plants of this species are: almond, 

 ground cherry, horse-nettle, jimpson weed, orange, poha (Phy salts 

 peruviana), potato, Solatium marginatum, squash, tobacco and tomato. 

 Control. — Control measures as recommended for the potato flea- 

 beetle are also applicable for this species. If it is undesirable to use 



Fig. 253. — The tobacco flea-beetle, Epitrix parvula 

 Fab., and its work on Solanum marginatum. Enlarged 

 four times. (Original) 



