THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST. 83 



living unprotected upon the leaves of lucern and clover,* and that 

 such was the character of the larvas of most other insects belonging 

 to the great Chrysomela family, I had little confidence that my ref- 

 erence would i rove the correct one. Yet it so proved to be, and I 

 have bred the beetle from larvas infesting strawberry roots that were 

 kindly sent to me by Mr. J. B. Miller, of Anna, Ills. Just as in the 

 European Turnip Flea-beetle (Phyllotreta nemorum), the larva mines 

 the leaves above ground, while in our very closely allied Striped 

 Flea-beetle (Phyllotreta striolata, Illig.), it feeds upon the roots be- 

 low ground ; so there seems to be the same difference of habit in the 

 genus Colaspis. In this last case the difference is not only of habit, 

 but the structure is modified in accordance with the habit, and we 

 have in our Grave-vine Colaspis a Chrysomelid larva bearing a very 

 close resemblance to that of a Lamellicorn. 



It is indeed a most singular larva, and differs from all others with 

 which I am acquainted, in having on the underside of the legless 

 joints a pair of curious fleshy projections reminding one of legs, and 

 terminating in about two stiff hairs (Fig. 38, a). The office of these 

 appendages it is difficult to conjecture, for they seem to impede rather 

 than aid in locomotion on a flat surface, though, 

 when the habits of the larva are more critically 

 studied, these appendages will doubtless be found to 

 subserve some useful purpose. The color of this larva 

 is yellowish or grayish-white with a gamboge-yel- 

 low head. The pupa is formed in the ground and ex- 

 hibits no unusual characters. 



We are now only treating of this insect as a 

 Grape-vine pest; but it is difficult to say whether the 

 Crown-borer (Fig. 14) or this root-eater is the most 

 injurious to the Strawberry. The work of the two is 

 essentially different, the white Crown-borer confining itself to the 

 crown, and its more dingy ally devouring the fibrous roots and work- 

 ing into the more woody parts from the outside. At this work sev- 

 eral of them may frequently be seen with their heads stuck into differ- 

 ent parts of one root, They may be found upon the roots all through 

 the fall, winter and spring months, and do not begin to change to 

 pupre in this latitude till about the month of June, the beetles ap- 

 pearing during that month and continuing to issue from the ground 

 till towards fall. As soon as they issue from the ground they com- 

 mence to feed upon the tender leaves, and in a measure injure the 

 plants by riddling them with holes. After feeding for a while on 

 strawberry leaves, and depositing their eggs, they spread on to other 

 plants and are generally found most numerous in the vineyard dur- 

 ing the latter part of July and during August, where, according to 

 Mr. Miller, they show a partiality for the leaves of the Delaware. 



-Notice sur les Devastations de la Larve du Colasjns barbara, parM, LeonDufour— Annales de 

 la Soc. Ent. de France, 1836, pp. 371—372. 



