82 ENTOMOLOGCAL NEWS. [April, 



lodging in the axils of the leaves for all the world like the excre- 

 ment of some caterpillar; indeed, so close is this resemblance 

 that, when not wishing to spare time to examine the things closely 

 nor to wait for them to move, I have often practiced the plan of 

 slightly pinching the suspicious object between my thumb and 

 forefinger. If it then crushes it is not an Exema, otherwise it 

 may be one — and goes into the collecting bottle. Griburius 

 larvatus feeds on mesqirite in July, but I did not find it common. 

 In the genus Cryptocephalus I got trizonatus Suffr. on Cassia, 

 also numerous examples of fulgurahis, defectus and mutabilis on 

 vine -covered bushes, while a few pumilus were obtained on shrubs 

 on the open prairie. Diachus chlorizans, a remarkable pretty 

 little insect with yellow body and metallic-green wing covers was 

 found among the vines. Typophorus viridicyanea was taken 

 abundantly at Laredo under a morning-glory, while at Browns- 

 ville it seemed quite rare. Several- specimens of Chrysomela dis- 

 rupta came from a plant which I take to be an Ambrosia. Pla- 

 giodera thymaloides Stal was tolerably plentiful on quite a variety 

 of plants throughout the whole length of my stay. It differs 

 widely in facies from our other members of the genus being about 

 the size and form of Thymalus fulgidus, testaceous, pronotum 

 with a dark median stripe, elytra piceous, slightly metallic, with 

 yellowish outer margin. The thoracic punctuation is fine and 

 sparse, deeper and coarser at the sides, and there is a well-marked 

 lateral fovea about equidistant from the side and hind margins. 

 The elytra are distinctly subseriately punctured; legs testaceous, 

 tarsi blackish toward the tip. Diabrotica balteata swarmed on 

 flowers almost everywhere, in the fields and along the roadsides. 

 Among the Halticini, Homophozta interjedionis was rather com- 

 mon ; GZdionychis tcxana occurred once. Disonycha $-vittata 

 fed in numbers on willows; D. crenicollis on Aster spinosus. 

 Disonycha varicornis makes a departure from the usual food 

 habits of this genus in feeding on a cactus — Opnntia leptocaulis — 

 often swarming on these plants. Haltica burgessi was abundant 

 at one spot out in the thorny chaparral, but I never met with it 

 elsewhere. Of Odontota gracilis I took one specimen without 

 any blue on the sides of the elytra. The Cassidini are well rep- 

 resented, six species having been thus far identified from the 

 Brownsville material while others, unknown, still remain. Cas- 

 sida pallidula was seen feeding on Solatium; C. nigripes was 



