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brown, and the outer edges of the wing covers white, so that the 
insect looks as if its back were narrowly edged with that color. 
The seutellum is extraordinarily large, covering nearly the whole 
back with a smooth, convex, shining black plate, grooved at the 
edges so that the wing covers shut partly beneath it. The general. 
form of the body is semi-oval, regularly roundetl behind; the head 
and thorax triangular. The size is about 0.12 inch in length by 
three-fourths that in width. 
Young.—The young are like the adults in general appearance and 
color, but are smaller, and their abdomens have a relatively un- 
finished appearance. The large, glossy black patch which extends 
backward from the middle of the thorax, and represents the 
scutellum of the full-grown bug, is here divided into transverse bars 
corresponding to the segments of the body, and beside these, the 
upper abdominal surface is uncovered (the wings not having been 
developed), of a grayish-brown color, finely punctate with black. 
Other species.—At least two other species of this genus occur in 
Illinois, both larger than the above, but much less numerous. The 
largest (J. wnicolor) is about twice as long as JT. pulicarius, and is 
at once distinguished by the absence of the white edge to the wing- 
eovers. The other species (J’. lateralis) is about 0.18 inch in 
length, and is distinguishable from pulicarius only by its greater size. 
Probably these species have similar habits to 7’. pulicarius, but they 
have been, so far, too few in number to be conspicuously injurious. 
LIFE HISTORY. 
The adults emerge from their winter quarters under leaves and 
rubbish, in early spring, the first recorded date of their appearance 
on the blossoms of: the strawberry being April 23. On the rasp- 
berry they have been noticed June 10; and later in the month, on 
Coreopsis, Ceanothus, ete. It was not uncommon on _ strawberries 
in Southern Illinois during the month of May, 1888, but all the 
specimens then seen were adults, and J find no mention of the 
appearance of young before June. 
Prof. Riley remarks that in the month of June, under Ceanothus 
and Veronica, the species “may be found in countless numbers cf 
all sizes and ages, from the small light brown wingless newly hatched 
individuals, to the full-fledged jet black ones. In fact they breed 
on these weeds.” A number of specimens sent me from Montgomery 
county, on the 29th of the month, were all young, ranging from 
the pupa down. On the other hand, all the specimens appearing in 
our collections from strawberry fields in June and July were adult, 
and I doubt if the species breeds on the strawberry, or makes more 
than an early attack on it in spring, when the young leaves of the 
early growing plant afford it attractive food. A large number of 
this species obtained by sweeping the stubble of wheat early in July, 
were adults, almost without exception, probably one in twenty being 
in the preceding or pupa stage. ‘they-were very abundant, especially 
in the edges of the field, feeding on a wild Coreopsis not yet in 
bloom. In fact, it is only during the midsummer season that the 
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