﻿PACKARD.] 
  

  

  THE 
  COLORADO 
  POTATO-BEETLE. 
  

  

  721 
  

  

  dant 
  insect 
  iu 
  early 
  summer, 
  living 
  in 
  the 
  center 
  of 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  frost 
  on 
  

  

  the 
  leayes 
  of 
  grass. 
  The 
  larva 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  

  

  found 
  concealed 
  in 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  frost 
  late 
  

  

  in 
  May 
  and 
  early 
  in 
  June 
  ', 
  the 
  adult 
  

  

  is 
  exceedingly 
  abundant 
  late 
  in 
  sum- 
  ^ 
  ' 
  

  

  mer. 
  

  

  Clover 
  is 
  attacked 
  by 
  various 
  insects, 
  

   especially 
  the 
  larva 
  of 
  Drasteria 
  erecli- 
  

   tia, 
  a 
  moth 
  very 
  abundant 
  in 
  May, 
  and 
  

   again 
  in 
  August 
  and 
  September, 
  in 
  

   grass-lands. 
  The 
  seeds 
  are 
  sometimes 
  

   inhabited 
  by 
  minute 
  weevils, 
  while 
  

   clover, 
  when 
  stacked 
  or 
  even 
  housed, 
  ^ig. 
  ii.-Spittle 
  'insect, 
  a, 
  larva, 
  en- 
  

   is 
  sometimes 
  injured 
  by 
  the 
  "clover- 
  larged; 
  h, 
  natural 
  size 
  of 
  larva; 
  c, 
  

   worm," 
  the 
  larva 
  of 
  Asopia 
  costalis, 
  a 
  adult, 
  enlarged. 
  

   dull, 
  whitish 
  worm, 
  changing 
  to 
  a 
  lilac-colored 
  moth 
  ornamented 
  with 
  

   golden 
  lines 
  and 
  fringes. 
  

  

  The 
  Colorado 
  Potato-Beetle, 
  Leptinotarsa 
  decemlineata 
  of 
  Gemminger 
  and 
  Harold, 
  

   Doryphora 
  lO-Uneata 
  Say. 
  — 
  Devouring 
  the 
  leaves, 
  sometimes 
  the 
  tubers, 
  a 
  large, 
  thick- 
  

   bodied, 
  reddish-orange 
  grub, 
  spotted 
  on 
  the 
  sides 
  with 
  black, 
  changing 
  under 
  ground 
  into 
  

   a 
  large 
  hemispherical 
  yellow 
  beetle 
  about 
  half 
  an 
  inch 
  long, 
  with 
  ten 
  wide 
  black 
  stripes 
  

   on 
  the 
  back 
  ; 
  three 
  broods 
  of 
  the 
  worm 
  appearing 
  in 
  one 
  season. 
  

  

  Its 
  original 
  hahHat. 
  — 
  This 
  beetle 
  was 
  originally 
  described 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Say 
  

   in 
  1824, 
  having 
  been 
  found 
  by 
  him 
  the 
  year 
  previous, 
  when 
  he 
  remarked,, 
  

   "This 
  species 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  not 
  uncommon 
  on 
  the 
  Upper 
  Missouri,, 
  

   where 
  it 
  was 
  obtained 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Nuttall 
  and 
  by 
  myself. 
  The 
  variety 
  

   (white 
  with 
  two 
  of 
  the 
  lines 
  united, 
  probably 
  the 
  species 
  juncta) 
  I 
  found 
  on 
  

   the 
  Arkansas." 
  (Journal 
  Academy 
  of 
  Natural 
  Sciences 
  JPhilaclelphia, 
  vol. 
  

   iii, 
  1824.) 
  This 
  would 
  indicate 
  that 
  its 
  native 
  habitat 
  was 
  the 
  plains 
  of 
  

   Dakota, 
  Western 
  i!*I^ebraska 
  and 
  Kansas, 
  Colorado, 
  and 
  perhaps 
  the 
  

   western 
  portion 
  of 
  Indian 
  Territory 
  and 
  Texas. 
  Dr. 
  G. 
  H. 
  Horn, 
  the 
  

   well-known 
  coleopterist, 
  writes 
  me 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  " 
  West 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  

   I 
  have 
  it 
  from 
  Texas. 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  seen 
  it 
  from 
  Mexico 
  nor 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  

   Eocky 
  Mountains. 
  If 
  it 
  goes 
  west, 
  I 
  believe 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  through 
  New 
  

   Mexico 
  and 
  Arizona, 
  and 
  not 
  over 
  the 
  Eocky 
  Mountains." 
  

  

  Lieutenant 
  Carpenter, 
  U. 
  S. 
  A., 
  writes 
  me 
  : 
  " 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  seen 
  the 
  

   Colorado 
  potato-beetle 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  North 
  Platte 
  as 
  far 
  west 
  as 
  Fort 
  

   Laramie, 
  Fort 
  Fetterman, 
  and 
  Big 
  Horn 
  Mountains." 
  Probably 
  co-ex- 
  

   tensive 
  with 
  the 
  original 
  distribution 
  of 
  the 
  Colorado 
  potato-beetle, 
  is 
  

   that 
  of 
  its 
  original 
  food-plant, 
  concerning 
  which 
  Mr. 
  Sereno 
  Watson^ 
  

   the 
  botanist 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  Geological 
  Survey 
  of 
  the 
  one 
  hundredth 
  

   parallel, 
  thus 
  writes 
  me 
  : 
  " 
  The 
  Solanum 
  rostratum 
  ranges 
  from 
  Texaa 
  

   and 
  New 
  Mexico 
  to 
  the 
  Upper 
  Missouri 
  eastward 
  of 
  the 
  mountains. 
  I 
  

   have 
  no 
  evidence 
  of 
  its 
  being 
  found 
  at 
  all 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  Rocky 
  Mountains, 
  

   and, 
  indeed, 
  the 
  order 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  almost 
  wholly 
  wanting 
  throughout, 
  

   the 
  entire 
  Great 
  Basin." 
  

  

  In 
  Colorado, 
  in 
  1875, 
  I 
  first 
  met 
  with 
  this 
  beetle 
  at 
  Lawrence, 
  

   Kans., 
  when 
  Professor 
  Snow 
  told 
  me 
  it 
  was 
  chiefly 
  confined 
  to 
  the 
  

   Solanum 
  rostratum^ 
  a 
  road-side 
  weed, 
  which 
  is 
  now 
  very 
  abundant 
  in 
  

   Kansas 
  and 
  draws 
  off 
  the 
  beetle 
  from 
  the 
  potato, 
  which 
  consequently 
  

   suffers 
  comparatively 
  little 
  from 
  its 
  attacks 
  in 
  that 
  State. 
  

  

  Professor 
  Snow 
  further 
  writes 
  me 
  that 
  for 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  years 
  past, 
  since 
  

   taking 
  up 
  his 
  residence 
  in 
  Kansas, 
  " 
  it 
  has 
  never 
  done 
  any 
  damage 
  worth 
  

   mentioning, 
  always 
  preferring 
  its 
  original 
  food-plant 
  (which 
  abounds 
  

   here 
  as 
  a 
  roadside 
  weed) 
  to 
  the 
  potato. 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  see 
  it 
  in 
  Manitou, 
  

   Colo., 
  this 
  summer 
  (1876). 
  

  

  46 
  a 
  S 
  

  

  