12 



89, is frequently found in Illinois, boring into apples, and according to 

 Prof. Riley, is fond of eating into the flowers and fruits of a variety of 

 plants. 



THE PEACH-TWIG MOTH Anarsia lineatella (Zeller). 



In June last, some examples were sent to me for determination, which 

 proved to be the above insect. They were accompanied by the follow- 

 ing note : " The enclosed insects are very injurious to the terminal 

 branches of the peach-tree. They deposit their eggs, either very early 

 in the spring, just as the buds are swelling, or the fall previous. The 

 terminal buds of all the higher and outer branches are so stung, and 

 although these buds develop into seemingly fine branches, in a 

 few weeks they wither and drop off. The centers of the twigs are first 

 destroyed by these insects while in the larva state. I placed several of 

 the twigs in a large bottle, and secured the inclosed specimens from 

 them. One of the pupae seems to be destroyed by some parasite, as it 

 looks as if it was filled with eggs." 



From the "above statement of the habits of .the insect, and the effect 

 of its operations upon the twigs, the specimens of the moth received, 

 although in too poor condition, if sent alone, for identification, were 

 readily referable to the insect popularly known as the peach-twig moth. 

 From its small size and structural characters, it is numbered among the 

 Microlepidoptera of the family of the Tineidae. 



In 1860, Dr. Clemens bred this insect from larvae which he found, on 

 the 16th of June, infesting plum trees, and described it under the spe- 

 ciftc name of prwme//a, doubtfully referring it to the genus Anarsia (Pro- 

 ceedings Academy Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 1860, page 169). 

 Subsequently he identified it with the European species, Anarsia linea- 

 tella of Europe, thereby adding it to the long list of insect pests which 

 Europe has given us. Prof. Riley obtained specimens of the same 

 moth from peach twigs, and on submitting examples to Prof. Zeller, 

 they were pronounced identical with the European insect. 



The first published notice of the operations of this insect in this coun- 

 try which we have met with, appears in the report of the Entomologist 

 (Mr. Glover) of the Department of Agriculture at Washington, published 

 in the Annual Report of the Department for 1872. Mr. Glover says 

 of it : 



" In examining peach orchards in the neighborhood of the Maryland 

 Agricultural College, about the first week in May, almost all the young 

 twigs of the trees were observed to be killed at the extreme end for a 

 distance of from one to two and a half inches, and the terminal buds 

 entirely destroyed. On cutting open these dying twigs, the injury was 

 found to be caused by a very minute caterpillar, which, entering the 

 twig near a bud, had entirely eaten the pith and the interior, leaving 

 only its ' frass ' and the exuding gum to mark the spot where it had 

 entered. When confined in a glass case, after about a couple of weeks, 

 several of the larvae left the injured twigs and formed very loose cocoons 

 on the sides of the box or among the rubbish arid old leaves lying scat- 

 tered on the earth, and in about six to ten days, the perfect moth 

 appeared [last of May]. * * * * * * * The tail of the pupa 

 is attached to a little button of silk, in an exceedingly slight cocoon. 

 There was scarcely a single young tree in the peach orchard examined 

 that was not more or less injured by this little pest, and at least as many 

 as from twenty to fifty injured twigs were found on some very young 



