GARDEN PESTS IN NEW ZEALAND 



closed; these hardened wings, or elytra, do not reach quite to the end 

 of the abdomen, the tip of which remains uncovered. Another definite 

 character is found in the antenna?, which terminate in finger-like 

 processes (Fig. 11, Ib). There are several species of cockchafers, to 

 which all these characteristics, except the colour, might be referred, but 

 none is so abundant as the species under review. There is one, however, 

 that is on the wing about the same time as, or a little earlier than, the 

 brown beetle. This species is somewhat larger, about half an inch long ; 

 it is sparsely clothed with hair, and the elytra are marked by broad 

 brown stripes, alternated with very narrow darker ones. 



The brown beetle lays its spherical eggs in the ground, preferably 

 amongst the roots of grass, strawberries, etc. The grubs (Fig. 11, Ic) 

 are well known as grass grubs; they are whitish in colour, the swollen 

 terminal segment of the abdomen being very often darker. These grubs 

 are sometimes called "curl-grubs/' from their habit of lying doubled-up 

 when at rest or feeding in the ground. Towards September each year 

 the grubs of the brown beetle pupate prior to the beetles emerging in 

 November. These grubs w r ill be referred to later under the chapter 

 dealing with subterranean insects. 



In gardens and nurseries, the depredations of the beetles may be 

 lessened by spraying with lead arsenate, or by the use of sulphur smudges. 

 The use of smudges was developed very effectively as follows by Mr. 

 D. J. Buchanan, forest ranger at the Tapanui State Forest nurseries. 

 Sulphur is spread on strips of scrim, which are then rolled up and 

 placed in containers, such as old paint pots. The latter are set about 

 the nursery, and fired at evening, when they will burn throughout the 

 night, the fumes acting as a deterrent to the beetles. When only a few 

 plants are to be protected, such as bush roses, the beetles can be warded 

 off by allowing a hose to play over the plants throughout the night. 



Another common cockchafer which is on the wing most of the 

 summer and autumn is the green manuka beetle (Pyr&nota f estiva).. 

 This insect is capable of causing considerable damage as a defoliator. 

 It is active both day and night. The general colour is bright green, 

 with a dark stripe down the middle of the back, though some specimens 

 are brown or coppery; the legs are orange-yellow, and the length of the 

 insect is a little over a quarter of an inch. 



BRONZE BEETLE (Eucolaspis brunneus). This insect (Fig. 11, 2} 

 is very often confused with the brown beetle, from which, however, it is 

 easily distinguished. It is active during the day, and attacks the foliage 

 and fruit of a great variety of plants, eating holes from leaves, so that 

 the latter appear as if they had been subjected to a charge of shot, or 

 devouring the epidermis from fruits and berries. This beetle is active 

 during November to January; it measures about one-sixteenth of an 

 inch long, is oval in outline, and varies in colour from yellowish, with 

 darker markings, to greenish or bronzy-black ; the antennae are compara- 

 tively long, and do not terminate in any unusual manner, as do those 

 of the cockchafers. A characteristic habit of the bronze beetle is to leap 

 off the plant if disturbed; this habit has been responsible for the group 

 to which this insect belongs being called "flea beetles." The bronze 

 beetle lays its eggs in the ground, where the larvae feed, though they are 

 not injurious in that stage. The beetles are to be controlled by the use 

 of lead arsenate. 



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