GALLS 



tember, lay eggs in early autumn, and the larva 1 pass the winter within 

 the gall, the resulting brood appearing in April or May. 



Of the many thousands of Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths) whose larva 

 feed in or on plants, only about half-a-dozen are known to produce galls, and 

 of these two only need be mentioned here. 



Hedya aceriana is a dull cream-coloured moth with the fore-wings expanding 

 T 7 ^ of an inch, and appears in July or August. The dirty-brown larva eats 

 its way into the young shoots of poplars, and the irritation causes an unsightly 

 swelling. The gall may be found from June to August. 



The Resin-gall Moth (Retima resinella) belongs to a group of the Tortricida 

 which inflict damage on Scots Pine and other Conifers. The egg is laid among 

 the buds at the extremity of a young shoot, and the larva feeds upon, and 

 bores into the stem, causing an exudation of resin not unlike a half walnut 

 in form, and somewhere near the size. The larva pupates in the gall of resin, 

 and the imago emerges in March. The fore-wings measure fy \\ in. and 

 are dark blackish-grey with silvery streaks. The moth is mostly confined to 

 Scotland and the north of England. All shoots showing signs of attack 

 should be removed and burned. 



The Aphides or Plant-lice belong to the Homoptera, in which the fore- 

 wings are uniform in structure from base to apex. They are minute in size, 

 soft-bodied, and generally long-legged ; the mouth is provided with a curious 

 beak or rostrum for sucking the juices of plants, and nearly every plant 

 has its own peculiar Aphis. Many kinds secrete " honey-dew " from two 

 cornicles or honey-tubes at the end of the abdomen, and this, falling on 

 the leaves, prevents respiration. Their rate of increase is marvellous, and 

 reproduction is carried on in two ways. In the spring the wingless females 

 produce living young, which soon mature and produce other wingless females, 

 the process continuing with gi-eat rapidity till the plant may become completely 

 covered. At the end of the season males and females both are produced, 

 and sexual reproduction takes place, the eggs being laid upon the plant, 

 and lying dormant through the winter. In the spring the eggs hatch out, 



and the cycle is again begun. The irritation set up in the plant by the action 



lv 



