THE AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



241 



It is possible that the rot in apples may be 

 caust'd ill this same way. Certainly, the small 

 black specks, (mostly near the stem) that de- 

 form so many of our apples, are the result of 

 Curi-ulio bites. A. M. Bkowx. 



Villa Ridge, 111., July.!2, 1869. 



THE SCARCITY OF THE CUKCILIO. 



/L'litorf A/n^ncau Ent07iiologi$t : 



I have read your article in the July number 

 of the Entomologist, headed " Is the Ourculio 

 scarcer than it was last year?" I do not wish 

 to have this matter lost sight of, but at this time 

 desire only to stale that at the end of the fruit 

 season, say in the October number of the Ento- 

 mologist, with your permission, 1 will reply to 

 your strictures. "We are always ready to go 

 back on our statements when found to be incor- 

 rect, or stand by them if true. E. S. Hull. 



Vltos, III , JiUy 11, 1869. 



I'OMrARATIVE SCARCITY OF THE CURCILIO AGAIN 



Our remarks on the comparative scarcity of 

 the Curculio, which appeared in the last num- 

 ber, have not, thus far, elicited any conflicting 

 experience, except that Mr. H. H. McAfee, 

 of Xorth Illinois, writes us word, July 17th, 

 that the little Turk is plentier there this 

 year than ever before, making almost a clean 

 sweep of plums, both wild and tame. On 

 the contrary, Mr. F. K. Elliott of Cleveland, 

 Ohio, writes as follows: '"Adding to your 

 records of the scarcity of the Curculio this 

 season, you may set down the whole of north- 

 ern Ohio. At least my own observation and 

 correspondence confirm its comparative ab- 

 sence as well as the fact that many egg deposits 

 failed to mature to the injury of the fruit. Cher- 

 ries have been quite free. Peaches are nearly 

 so, while plum trees that for years have given 

 no fruit, are this season loaded down, and with 

 only an occasional case of Curculio." We also 

 find the following resolution touching on tliis 

 matter in the report of the July meeting of the 

 Meramec (Mo.) Horticnltural Society: 



Resolved, That the Meramec Horticultural 

 Society finds that the Curculio is this year de- 

 cidedly less abundant and destructive than last 

 year in their neighborhood. 



Alter a very full expression of opinion, the 

 resolution was unanimously adopted. 



The personal experience of the Senior Editor 

 is, that a solitary plum-tree in his garden, which 

 had never previously retained a single plum be- 

 > ond the month of June, was loaded down with 

 plums up to the middle of July ; but very few 



plums ha\'ing been up to that time stung by the 

 Curculio. Since the middle of July, however, 

 the new brood of Curculio have made their ap- 

 pearance in great force, and plums arc being 

 stung by them every day up to July 28th, so 

 that it is very doubtful if any fruit will be 

 allowed by them to ripen. Possibly it might 

 be to the operations of this new brood that Mr. 

 McAfee, writing on July 17th, either especially 

 or exclusively referred. This new brood seems 

 to have also been remarkably abundant near 

 Alton, in South Illinois. For Dr. Hull has sent 

 us no less than 158 Curculios, all captured by 

 him July 21st from 19 late plum-trees; whereas 

 in 1868 he estimated the number of Curculios to 

 be met with ou jarring fruit-trees in the month 

 of July, at about one specimen only to every ten 

 trees.* If they had been in this same propor- 

 tion in 1869, he would only have met with about 

 •2 Curculios instead of 1.58, on his 19 plum-trees. 

 Lest any one should suppose that the Alton 

 Curculios haunt plum-trees towards the end of 

 July just for fun, and not for mischief, Dr. Hull 

 has been obliging enough to send us in addition 

 four plums, in each of which he actually saw 

 the Curculio deposit an egg on July 21st. 



•See AsiEIt. EXTOMOLOGIST, I., ji. 11. 



A POSSIBLE CAUSE OK THE BEE DISEASE. 



Mr. Editor:— I am :i i(;i<h 1 m| III,. /„. ./,,(„««?. ami 

 iilso a beekeeper and very mu li in;, i , -t.-d in bee-i-ul- 

 tiu-.:. I see bv the Join;',:r i!i:m :i ai-r;i.,j yr somethiiij,' 

 • ■I-' I- .Ir-ii., Mil-- till' li.M-- ill many parts of tlie couu- 

 I! ml '■ ■! .,"111 111- I'riiriiary number that in many 

 ■" ii!'-i:i' ' ■. ii-tmiMii Irt- 1 II very great. I made 



vhicU 1 

 •lUyect. V 

 tell; but this is eer- 



>iil)ject. Whether 



tain, iliat 1 liaM- not rra^l an M hi nu' Written on the sub- 

 ji,; a>>..L tliat tiiriii-li.~ aii.\ >aii.stactory explanation. 

 11 \uu M'e proper to pnljli>li what I have to say vouare 

 welcome to do so. and let it go lor what it is worth. 



I have not suffered matoriallv trom the mysterious 

 malady hitherto, but last summer and fall I noticed a 

 .icood many dead bees around my hives, especially in 

 the morning. I went to examining some of them, and, 

 to my surprise, in the abdomen of almost evei-y bee 

 that I examined, I found a UHng worm or maggot, 

 nearly or quite an eighth ot an inch long. The head 

 portion or that part which I took to be the head, was 

 much lai^er than the rest of the worm. From the 

 head it gradually tapered back to a point. On the 

 largest end, or head, of this maggot there were two 

 very minute black dots, resembling eyes. This maggot 

 is found in the upper part of the bee's abdomen, and 

 by taking the bee in my lingers, and drawing it apart, 

 the worm can be readily detected. AVheu taken out 

 and laid on the hand, it could be seen to expand and 

 contract in a very lively manner. 



A bee-keeping (Mend of mine put some of the dead 

 bees in a glass bottle, and in a short time this masr^'ot 

 hatched, producing a flv nearlv as large as what is called 

 the Hessian tly— a perfect insect. 



Now, does this worm destroy the bee, and if it does, 

 will it not destroy a whole colony, as well as a few 

 bees? In some localities I could not find anv of fl.em 

 ' the fell, after it became cool enoueli ro nnvonl 



the bees from tlv 



ng. 



kill a few bees, it might destroy a whole s^M-m just i 

 " • incline to believe that the waste of a swan 



