15 



oblong, oval, and from three-fourths to an inch in length, about one- 

 half an inch in diameter, and of a dark chestnut-brown color, while 

 the head and thorax are sometimes almost black, and the breast is 

 covered with pale yellow hairs. These beetles remain at rest during 

 the da}' and eat at night, feeding upon the fruit and leaves of different 

 trees, often doing much damage. After living for about three weeks 

 the female lavs her eggs and then dies. 



Fig. 7. 



The eggs, from forty to fifty in number, are deposited among the 

 roots of the grass in a ball of earth. They hatch iu the course of a 

 month, and the young larvae, or grubs, feed upon the rootlets of 

 various plants. They are soft and white, with a horny head of a 

 brownish color, and have six legs. When cold weather approaches, 

 they burrow deeply in the ground and remain till spring. The grubs 

 do not reach their full size till the third year, when they are about 

 the size of a man's little finger. They rest on one side, slightly 

 curved, and near the hinder end the contents of the digestive system 

 are visible. They then construct an oval shaped cocoon, in which 

 they change into pupae. 



In the spring the perfect insects emerge, live about three weeks 

 and then die. In the grub state they are very injurious to lawns, 

 grass lands, and meadows, eating the roots of the grass and causing 

 it to turn brown and die. They are also injurious to strawberries, 

 eating the roots and destroying the plants. 



On account of the underground life of the larvae, or grubs, of these 

 beetles, they are hard to destroy. They have their natural enemies. 



