62 LARDER BEETLE. 



varying from three or four days to a week, or even more, depending 

 principally on the warmth of the locality. 



I extract the following passage verbatim from the U.S.A. Bulletin 

 (referred to at page 61), as it contains very useful information, and, 

 joined to the observations previously given, seems to me to furnish all 

 that we need to know for practical purposes as to the life-history and 

 habits of this destructive pest : — 



" From this statement " [that of Dr. Horn, quoted above, E. A. 0.] 

 " we see that an entire generation may be developed in six weeks. 

 Therefore the increase of the insect may be very rapid, and there may 

 be four or five generations annually. The larva, when feeding upon 

 dried and smoked meat, according to Dr. Horn, is usually seen creep- 

 ing on the surface of the meat. For food it prefers such as contains 

 fat and connective tissue, seldom attacking the muscular portions. It 

 does not bury itself in its food until about the time of assuming the 

 pupa state. 



"In general the beetles make their way into houses in May and 

 June, and at once deposit their eggs on their favourite food if they can 

 obtain access to it. Where this is impossible, they will lay their eggs, 

 as well as other beetles of the'same family, near small cracks, so that 

 the young larvie when hatched can crawl through. Dr. Eiley, in his 

 ' Sixth Missouri Keport,' states that fresh hams are not so liable to 

 attack by this insect as those which are tainted or injured." — (L. 0. H. 

 and C. L. M. in Bulletin referred to.) 



One important point which may be gathered from the above obser- 

 vations is that the customary time of appearance of the beetles which 

 start the summer attack is noted as taking May for its centre, being 

 April and May in the German observations ; in May and June in those 

 of the United States ; and in one of the observations sent to myself 

 last year (1898) from an old manor house in Leicestershire, the date 

 of appearance coincides with what may be called " average date." My 

 correspondent wrote on May 11th, forwarding specimens which had 

 "lately made their appearance." 



One point of the structure of the beetle does not seem to me to be 

 sufficiently attended to in considerations of preventive measures, and 

 that is its possession of stromjlij -veined ivitKjs. If it is in the habit of 

 using these for flight, its sudden appearance and distribution is not to 

 be wondered at. 



Prevention and Eemedy. — One method is enclosing substances 

 likely to be attacked in stout muslin or paper sacks or wrappings, 

 taking care that this is done in ijood time, before the beetles have had 

 a chance to deposit their eggs, and also taking care that there are no 

 cracks or tears in the wrappings through which the beetles may make 



