THE AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



27 



[Fig. 19.] I 



however, it may be readily distiuguished by the 

 remarkable pincliing iu of the sides of its thorax, 

 so as to make quite a lady-Uke waist there, or 

 what naturalists call a "constrictiou." It is also 

 oil the avei'age a somewhat larger insect, and 

 differs iu other less obvious i-espects. As iu the 

 case of the Colorado Potato-bug, the female, 

 after coupling iu the usual manner, lays her yel- 

 low eggs (Fig. 16 d) on the under surface of the 

 leaves of the Potato plant. The larvce hatching 

 from these require about the same time to de- 

 velop, and when full grown descend iu the same 

 manner into the ground, where they transform 

 to pupie (Fig. 16 c) within a small oval chamber, 

 from which in time the perfect beetle comes 

 forth. 



The Thi-ee-lincd Leaf-beetle in certain seasons 

 is a great pest in the Eastern States ; but, so far 

 as we are aware, it has never yet occurred in the 

 Valley of the Mississippi in such numbers as to 

 be materially injurious. 



The Cucdmbeu Flea-beetle (Haltica cu- 

 [Fig. 19.] cumeris,* Harris). — This minute Beetle 

 (Fig. 19) belongs to the Flea-beetles 

 (Haltica family), the same sub-group of 

 Leaf-beetles {Phytophaga) to 

 wliich also appertains the notorious 

 Steel-blue Flea-beetle (Haltica chalybea,I\]iger), 

 that is such a pest to the vineyardist. Like all 

 the rest of the Flea-beetles, it has its hind thighs 

 greatly enlarged, which enables it to jump with 

 much agility. It is not peculiar to the Potato, 

 but infests a great variety of plants, including 

 the Cucumber, from which it derives its name. It 

 operates by eating minute round holes into the 

 substance of the leaf wliich it attacks, but often 

 not so as to penetrate entirely through it. In 

 1868 the Potato leaves at Mi-. Kinney's nursery, 

 near Rock Island, Ills., were almost all of them 

 badly attacked in tliis manner ; but it did not 

 appear to injure the vines so materially as might 

 have been expected. In South Illinois whole 

 fields of Potatoes may often be observed looking 

 seared and yellow, and with their leaves riddled 

 with the round holes made by this insect. The 

 larva feeds internally upon the substance of the 

 leaf, like that of the closely-allied European 

 Flea-beetle of the Turnip (Haltica nemorum, 

 Linn.) ; and, from its near relationship to that 

 insect, we may infer that it goes underground 

 to assume the i^upa state, that it passes thi-ough 



•Erroneously considered by some authors as identical 

 with the Haltica pubescens of Illiger. In this last species, a.s 

 ■n-ehare been informed by Dr. J. L. LeConte, the thorax, 

 instead of being shining, as in oui- insect, is opaque, with 

 large dense punctiu-es; and, if we have ourselves correctly 

 identified it, the elytra are covered with a much longer and 

 denser pubescence than is found in Harris's species . 



all its stages in about a month, and that there 

 are two or tlu-ee broods of them in the course of 

 the same season. 



fro BE CONCLUDED DI OUR NmCT.] 



" GRASSHOPPERS." 



Their Devastations in Western Iowa and the Good 

 that has resulted from them. 



Editors American Entomologist, 



Dear Sirs : I had the pleasure of meeting with the 

 first number of your paper. For the general informa- 

 tion of those Into whose hands it may chance to fall , I 

 will commimicate the result of the visitation by the 

 flying grasshoppers that infested our country last and 

 this season . They fii'st made their appearance about 

 the last of August or first of September, 1867, but too 

 late to do much damage , though they laid their eggs in the 

 western tier of counties along the Missouri river, and 

 extending iuto Nebraska. This spring they made their 

 appearance in millions , destroying in many localities the 

 entu-e wheat crop and the late planted com. They 

 commenced flying about the 12th of June , and traveled 

 North. Many ploughed up their wheat and planted 

 corn or sowed buckwheat. About the 1st of August 

 they made their appearance again, and in two or three 

 days destroyed whole fields of buckwheat of twenty or 

 twenty-flve acres, and seriously threatened the entire 

 destruction of our corn crop ; but after remaining for 

 ten days or two weeks began moving South, and from 

 present appearances we are relieved from them for this 

 season. The whole of Western Iowa has suffered very 

 seriously from their destructive ravages. But in re- 

 turn for damages done they have left behind them a 

 grass hitherto unknown among us, a sample of which 1 

 send you. It is said, by those acquainted with the 

 buftalo grass growing in the mountains, or contiguous 

 to the Rocky Mountains, to be of that variety. The 

 whole surface of the country as far South as the south- 

 ern line of this State, and as far North as I have 

 traveled, is thickly seeded with this valuable gi-ass, 

 more highly prized by stock than any of our native 

 varieties. It is of quick gi'owth, growing iu little 

 tufts or bunches, stooUng thickly, and is heavily seeded. 

 It promises to be a very great acquisition to our coun- 

 try, as our native grasses are fast giving way by close 

 and continuous feeding. It has taken possession of all 

 barren spots, and in many locaUties already covers the 

 ground quite thickly. Let us give the hoppers credit 

 for a new variety of grass that is destined to be worth 

 miUions of dollars to this section of country. Although 

 I am among the heaviest losers in our section of coun- 

 try by this visitation, yet when I became acquainted 

 \vith these facts by actual observation of this new grass, 

 and of its extension to the southern boiuidarv of our 

 State, my heart was filled with gratitude to the all-vrise 

 disposer of our blessings for this great event. 



With best wishes for the success of your valuable 

 paper. M. C. NICKERSON, 



Little Sioux, Harrison co., Iowa. 

 [We are well acquainted with the buffalo 

 gi'ass, having seen it growing on our western 

 plains, and find that the specimen accompany- 

 ing this communication is of a difierent species. 



