﻿FACKAKD.l 
  ENEMIES 
  OF 
  THE 
  COLOKADO 
  POTATO-BEETLE. 
  727 
  

  

  Although 
  no 
  species 
  of 
  this 
  family 
  are 
  known 
  to 
  be 
  poisonous, 
  yet 
  it 
  

   is 
  probably 
  true, 
  from 
  the 
  facts 
  adduced 
  by 
  Riley 
  and 
  others, 
  that 
  the 
  

   fumes 
  arising 
  from 
  the 
  bodies 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  them 
  wheu 
  killed 
  by 
  

   hot 
  water 
  produces 
  sickness. 
  This 
  is 
  due, 
  perhaps, 
  to 
  a 
  volatile 
  poison 
  

   thrown 
  off 
  from 
  their 
  body 
  immediately 
  after 
  death; 
  but 
  since 
  fowl 
  feed 
  

   upon 
  them 
  to 
  a 
  large 
  extent, 
  and 
  as 
  no 
  one 
  has 
  been 
  known 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  

   poisoned, 
  at 
  least 
  severely, 
  in 
  handling 
  them, 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  reason 
  why 
  

   hand-picking 
  should 
  not 
  be 
  resorted 
  to. 
  

  

  Enemies 
  of 
  tlie 
  Colorado 
  potato-beetle.—'Besides, 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  bugs 
  and 
  

   beetles 
  which 
  devour 
  this 
  beetle, 
  a 
  species 
  of 
  Lydella 
  {L. 
  dorypliorce 
  

   Eiley, 
  Fig. 
  12) 
  is 
  very 
  destructive 
  to 
  it. 
  

   Mr. 
  Riley 
  says, 
  " 
  this 
  fly 
  destroyed 
  fully 
  

   10 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  second 
  brood 
  and 
  50 
  

   per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  third 
  brood 
  of 
  potato- 
  

   beetles 
  that 
  were 
  in 
  my 
  garden. 
  It 
  bears 
  

   a 
  very 
  close 
  resemblance, 
  both 
  in 
  color 
  

   and 
  size, 
  to 
  tlie 
  common 
  house-fly, 
  but 
  

   is 
  readily 
  distinguished 
  from 
  the 
  latter 
  

   by 
  its 
  extremely 
  brilliant 
  silver-white 
  

   face." 
  No 
  ichneumon 
  parasite 
  has 
  yet 
  

   been 
  found 
  preying 
  upon 
  it. 
  In 
  the 
  West- 
  

   ern 
  States 
  turkeys, 
  hens, 
  and 
  chickens, 
  

   and 
  other 
  birds 
  destroy 
  numbers 
  of 
  the 
  

   grubs 
  and 
  beetles, 
  and 
  render 
  most 
  effi- 
  Fig. 
  12.— 
  Tachina 
  parasite 
  {Lydella 
  

   cient 
  aid. 
  J. 
  W. 
  Perry, 
  esq., 
  of 
  Salem, 
  rfwi/i^/fo'-a') 
  of 
  the 
  potato-beetle. 
  

   Mass., 
  tells 
  me 
  that 
  he 
  saw 
  a 
  Baltimore 
  oriole 
  and 
  a 
  " 
  small 
  yellow-bird 
  " 
  

   fly 
  down 
  and 
  eat 
  the 
  grubs. 
  

  

  Egg. 
  — 
  The 
  eggs 
  are 
  oval-cylindrical, 
  bright 
  yellow, 
  0.08 
  inch 
  long, 
  and 
  laid 
  in 
  clus- 
  

   ters 
  side 
  by 
  side, 
  to 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  thirty 
  or 
  forty, 
  on 
  the 
  under 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  leaves. 
  

  

  Larva. 
  — 
  The 
  larva 
  molts 
  three 
  times, 
  four 
  distinct 
  stages 
  occurring 
  "with 
  the 
  eggs 
  

   and 
  beetles 
  in 
  July, 
  either 
  in 
  Colorado 
  or 
  Massachusetts. 
  When 
  first 
  hatched 
  it 
  is 
  

   deep 
  blood-red, 
  with 
  the 
  head 
  and 
  prothorax 
  dark 
  brown, 
  and 
  with 
  two 
  rows 
  of 
  black 
  

   spots 
  on 
  the 
  side, 
  the 
  upper 
  row 
  the 
  larger. 
  (In 
  oue 
  case 
  the 
  head 
  and 
  prothorax 
  was 
  

   concolorous 
  with 
  the 
  body, 
  and 
  there 
  was 
  only 
  one 
  row 
  of 
  lateral 
  sj)ots, 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  larva 
  

   of 
  L. 
  juncta). 
  Length, 
  0.10-0.12, 
  After 
  the 
  first 
  molt 
  it 
  measures 
  0.17-0.20 
  inch, 
  and 
  

   has 
  the 
  same 
  appearance. 
  After 
  the 
  third 
  molt 
  it 
  becomes 
  paler 
  yellowish, 
  and 
  meas- 
  

   ures 
  0.25-0.35 
  inch 
  in 
  length. 
  At 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  body 
  more 
  distinctly 
  than 
  before 
  is 
  seen 
  

   to 
  be 
  much 
  thicker 
  behind 
  the 
  feet, 
  nearly 
  as 
  thick 
  as 
  broad, 
  while 
  the 
  abdomen 
  is 
  

   suddenly 
  pointed. 
  The 
  mature 
  larva, 
  when 
  of 
  full 
  size, 
  measures 
  about 
  half 
  an 
  inch 
  

   (0.40-0.50) 
  in 
  length 
  and 
  is 
  yellow, 
  with 
  the 
  head 
  black, 
  the 
  prothorax 
  yellowish 
  but 
  

   dark 
  on 
  the 
  hinder 
  edge 
  ; 
  two 
  rows 
  of 
  black 
  spots 
  on 
  the 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  abdomen, 
  the 
  two 
  

   terminal 
  segments 
  of 
  which 
  are 
  dark 
  above, 
  while 
  just 
  behind 
  the 
  head 
  are 
  four 
  small 
  

   black 
  dots 
  ; 
  the 
  legs 
  are 
  black. 
  It 
  matures 
  in 
  about 
  seventeen 
  days 
  after 
  hatching. 
  On 
  

   comparing 
  about 
  fifty 
  alcoholic 
  specimens 
  in 
  all 
  four 
  stages, 
  from 
  Salem, 
  Mass., 
  taken 
  in 
  

   July, 
  with 
  the 
  same 
  number 
  collected 
  in 
  Golden, 
  Colo., 
  July 
  3, 
  I 
  see 
  no 
  diflt 
  reuce, 
  xmless 
  

   the 
  latter 
  set 
  are 
  a 
  trifle 
  paler 
  in 
  hue 
  ; 
  but 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  Massachusetts 
  examples 
  are 
  as 
  

   pale 
  as 
  those 
  from 
  Colorado. 
  

  

  Beetle. 
  — 
  Hemispherical, 
  thick-bodied, 
  with 
  prothorax 
  a 
  little 
  narrower 
  than 
  the 
  rest 
  

   of 
  the 
  body. 
  Yellow 
  ; 
  head 
  yellow, 
  sometimes 
  black 
  at 
  the 
  base, 
  with 
  a 
  heart-shaped 
  

   black 
  si)ot 
  in 
  the 
  middle; 
  two 
  short 
  diverging 
  black 
  lines 
  in 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  pro- 
  

   thorax, 
  with 
  smaller 
  lateral 
  dots. 
  Wing-covers 
  with 
  four 
  broad 
  blact 
  lines, 
  and 
  the 
  

   edge 
  of 
  the 
  wing 
  cover 
  lined 
  with 
  black, 
  making 
  ten 
  lines 
  in 
  all. 
  Under 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  

   abdomen 
  with 
  four 
  rows 
  of 
  black 
  spots. 
  Legs 
  of 
  a 
  reddish 
  tinge, 
  with 
  the 
  ends 
  of 
  the 
  

   joints 
  dark; 
  tarsal' 
  joints 
  dark. 
  Length 
  about 
  half 
  an 
  inch 
  (0,40-0.50).* 
  

  

  * 
  Though 
  this 
  species 
  was 
  referred 
  to 
  Doryplwra 
  by 
  Say, 
  and 
  has 
  been 
  retained 
  in 
  

   this 
  genus 
  by 
  most 
  subsequent 
  authors, 
  it 
  more 
  properly 
  belongs 
  to 
  Leptinotarsa. 
  The 
  

   three 
  species 
  of 
  Doryplwra 
  in 
  the 
  museum 
  of 
  the 
  Peabody 
  Academy 
  of 
  Science, 
  Salem 
  

   (i. 
  e., 
  Doryplwra 
  sejeauii 
  Ger., 
  from 
  Brazil, 
  D. 
  catenulata 
  Oliv., 
  from 
  Para, 
  and 
  D. 
  suturalis 
  

   Fabr., 
  from 
  Eio 
  de 
  Janeiro), 
  have 
  a 
  much 
  stouter 
  and 
  thicker 
  body, 
  with 
  a 
  large 
  spine 
  

   between 
  the 
  anterior 
  pair 
  of 
  legs. 
  In 
  Lepiinoiarsa 
  the 
  spine 
  is 
  entirely 
  absent, 
  and 
  our 
  

   species 
  (together 
  with 
  i. 
  cros^^fcHa 
  KL, 
  from 
  Chiapas, 
  Mexico) 
  are 
  apparently 
  more 
  

   closely 
  related 
  to 
  the 
  common 
  Luhidomtra 
  irimacxlata 
  than 
  to 
  the 
  species 
  of 
  Z>or^j;7jom, 
  

  

  