CPINCH-BUG FAMILY. 75 
damaging the grape-vine, strawberry, young apple grafts, po- 
tatoes, turnips, radishes, beets, cabbages, lettuce and other plants. 
Strawberry plants are especially apt to be injured. Generally 
speaking, however, this bug seems to prefer cruciferous plants 
and to avoid grasses and cereals. Potato-leaves infested by these 
insects show little rusty and circular specks or holes wherever 
the beak has been inserted. No doubt this insect, like the chinch- 
bug, injects a small quantity of poison while inserting the suck- 
ing organs, and this poison is powerful enough to darken the 
surrounding area. If the bugs are at all numerous they soon 
Fic. 67.—Diseased Chinch-bugs. Original. Greatly enlarged, and natural size on 
stems of wheat. 
cause the invaded plants to wilt and die. The adult insect is 
shown in Fig. 68, c; it is an active being, taking alarm very 
readily, and arises in swarms when disturbed. The young 
wingless bugs are much paler than the mature insects, and are 
marked with more or less distinct longitudinal dark lines on the 
head and thorax. The so-called pupa, Fig. 68, b, has the front 
part of the body marked with more distinct red and brown lines, 
with the abdomen paler, and with longitudinal mottlings of a 
pinkish color. 
