^54 



THE AMERICAN ENtOMOLOGtST. 



Answers to Correspondents. ■ 



Blind-eyed Smerinthus. — Mrs. J. B. Harri- 

 son, Franklin Falls, iV. H. — The moth j'ou send, 

 which flew into the house at lamp-light, is Smer- 

 inthus excacatus Smith, the larva of which feeds 

 upon apple. The species is, however, not com- 

 mon enough to do any serious damage. 



White waxy Secretion on Stems of Bitter 

 Sweet.^/. ,/. L., Albany, N. Y. — Tlie white 

 waxy secretion, usually with transverse ribs, 

 upon the stem of the Scelastrus scandens is pro- 

 duced by the Two-spotted Treehopper {En- 

 chophyllum binotatum Say), for a covering to 

 its eggs. This insect is found upon the Grape- 

 vine, the Redbud and a number of other trees 

 and shrubs, but more particularly upon the Hop 

 tree {Ptelca trifoliata). We have in past years 

 hatched it from the eggs. The waxy matter is gen- 

 eral!)' transversely ribbed, and under each mass 

 is a small scar. The eggs are normally placed so 

 as to slope one way and spread out from the 

 mouth of the scar, under and just beneath the 

 bark. The wood is not deadened. Each egg is 

 o.g """■ long, broadest at base, extremely deli- 

 cate, water3'-white in color, with a faint tinge of 

 orange near the tip. We have found the recently 

 hatched larva; on the loth of May, and the)' 

 went through their first molt on the iSth. Some 

 went through their third molt June 5, and 

 changed to the perfect insect June 12. They do 

 not jump until they acquire wings, and the larva 

 does not possess the peculiar beak-like prolonga- 

 tion of the thorax which is so conspicuous in the 

 perfect insect. 



Prickly Ash Larva : Tachinid Eggs. — R. 

 IV. yoncs, Oxford, Miss. — The larva on Prickly 

 Ash is that o\ Papilio cnsphontis Cram. The eggs 

 on Cotton Worm are those of Tachina fly. One 

 of the worms succeeded in transforming to chry- 

 salis and shedding an egg on the cast skin before 

 the Tachina maggot hatched. 



Insects affecting Cotton Plant. — E.Jardin, 

 Rochcfort-sur-)iur, France. — We shall take plea- 

 sure in forwarding the desired information for 

 your work on Cotton as soon as we can find 

 time. 



Worms on Cabbage : Boll Worm Feeding 

 on Leaf. — R. W. Jones, Oxford, Miss. — Your 

 No. 22, feeding on leaf of Cotton, is Heliothis 

 armigcra. It frequently so feeds, especially to- 

 ward the end of the season. The worms on cab- 

 bage, rutabagas and turnips, are Pionea riinosalis. 

 See p. 22, January number. 



Buggy Peas. — Vou will please find inclosed 

 "buggy" peas. The insect is quite a pest in 

 this section, where peas are raised in large quan- 

 tities. Canyon suggest a means of destruction 

 or prevention ? I suppose you are familiar with 

 the habits of the insect. Any information would 



be ver)' thankfully received by yours — Alex. 

 Berger, Milwaukee, Wis., Sept. 24, i88o. 



We refer you for the natural history of the Pea 

 weevil (Bruchus pisi), to our 3rd Mo. Ent. Rep. 

 (pp. 44-50), from which we quote : 



Many eminent seedsmen — Mr. Langdon, for 

 instance, as I have been credibly informed — effec- 

 tually kill the weevils by inclosing the peas in 

 tight vessels along with camphor. The same 

 object is attained by keeping peas two years, 

 and taking care that the beetles do not escape 

 before they die. Peas will grow well wlien kept 

 for two years, or even longer, but they should 

 always be well dried so as not to mold. A good 

 plan is to tie them up in bags and hang them in 

 an airy place from the time they are gathered till 

 about Christmas, and then, in order that the)- may 

 not become too dry, to put them into tighter 

 vessels. 



Another quick and effectual way to kill the 

 weevil, is to inclose the peas in a tight vessel, 

 and pour among them a small quantity of bi- 

 sulphide of carbon. 



Glow Worm. — I inclose in the accompanying 

 box a species of phosphorescent insect — probably 

 a "Glow Worm" — the first I ever saw in this 

 country. I found it at Chatham, Morris County, 

 N.J., on Monday evening last. It was on the 

 ground, and when found was emitting a brilliant 

 light, which it seemed to control at will. I 

 would be obliged if you would favor me with the 

 classification of this little insect. — James J, Dean, 

 New-York, Sept. 22, 1880. 



Your insect is the larva of Photnris pensylva- 

 nica De Geer, and as a fuller reply to your ques- 

 sion, we reproduce from the Country Gcnlleinan 

 for January 5, 1870, what we said of it then : 



Eds. Country Gentleman — The Glow Worm 

 spoken of by " B," of West Hartford, Ct., on 

 page 322 of your last volume, and which you 

 were kind enough to send me for determination, 

 is the larva of the Pennsylvania Fire-beetle {Pho- 

 tnris pensylvanica De Geer). It so happens that 

 I have traced this very species through its trans- 



[Fig. 13.3, 



r^"^^ 



formations, and I con- 

 sequently liad no diffi- 

 culty in recognizing it. 

 There are two beetles 

 in the United States, 

 both commonly called 

 " Fire-flies," which are 

 now known to be lu- 

 minous, in their larval 

 as well as in their per- 

 fect states. The other 

 species (Pholiniis pyr- 

 alis Linn.), was figured 

 lor the first time in its 

 three different stages, 

 =y)'. in the American Ento- 



mologist. Vol. I, p. ig, and I present herewith 

 figures of the species you send — a, showing the 

 larva, with the characteristic brush-like proleg, 

 which is retractile ; /', one of its legs magnified, 

 and f, the beetle. Both the males and females of 

 these two species of "Fire-flies" have wings, 

 and therein they differ from the true Glow Worm 

 of England (Lampyris noctihica), the female of 

 which is wingless, and emits a much more 

 brilliant light than does her winged mate. — C. 

 V. Riley, 



PhOTUKIS PENSVLVANICA. — 



a, larva, dors.il view ; ^, one 

 of its legs enlarged ; c, beetl 

 (after RiT< ■ 



