﻿PACKARD.] 
  THE 
  EUROPEAN 
  CURRANT 
  SAW-FLY. 
  789 
  

  

  mandibles 
  (jaws), 
  dull 
  honey 
  -yellow. 
  The 
  antennae 
  are 
  brown-blacky 
  

   often 
  tinged 
  with 
  reddish 
  above, 
  except 
  toward 
  the 
  base, 
  and 
  beneath 
  

   entirely 
  dull 
  reddish, 
  except 
  the 
  two 
  basal 
  joints. 
  They 
  are 
  four- 
  fifths 
  as 
  

   long 
  as 
  the 
  body 
  ; 
  the 
  third 
  joint, 
  when 
  viewed 
  sideways, 
  is 
  four 
  times 
  

   as 
  long 
  as 
  wide 
  ; 
  the 
  third, 
  fourth, 
  and 
  fifth 
  joints 
  are 
  equal 
  in 
  length, 
  the 
  

   remaining 
  joints 
  slowly 
  diminishing 
  in 
  length. 
  On 
  the 
  thorax 
  are 
  four 
  

   conspicuous 
  black 
  spots 
  and 
  other 
  smaller 
  ones. 
  The 
  legs 
  are 
  bright 
  

   honey-yellow; 
  the 
  basal 
  or 
  hip-joints 
  (coxos 
  and 
  trochanters) 
  whitish, 
  

   while 
  the 
  extreme 
  tips 
  of 
  the 
  hind 
  shanks 
  (tibise) 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  

   hind 
  toe-joints 
  (tarsi) 
  are 
  blackish 
  brown. 
  The 
  wings 
  are 
  glossy, 
  with 
  

   dark 
  veins, 
  and 
  expand 
  a 
  little 
  over 
  half 
  an 
  inch. 
  

  

  The 
  male 
  (Fig. 
  59 
  a) 
  is 
  rather 
  smaller 
  (j2-0_ 
  inch 
  in 
  length), 
  and 
  is 
  

   black. 
  The 
  head 
  is 
  dull 
  honey-yellow. 
  The 
  antennae 
  are 
  brown-black, 
  

   often 
  a 
  little 
  reddish 
  beneath, 
  except 
  toward 
  the 
  base; 
  they 
  are 
  as 
  long 
  

   as 
  the 
  body, 
  and 
  while 
  longer 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  female, 
  are 
  also 
  somewhat 
  

   flattened 
  out. 
  The 
  thorax 
  has 
  the 
  wing-scales 
  and 
  the 
  prothorax, 
  or 
  

   collar, 
  honey-yellow. 
  The 
  under 
  side 
  and 
  tip 
  of 
  the 
  abdomen 
  are 
  honey- 
  

   yellow. 
  

  

  The 
  injury 
  done 
  to 
  currant-bushes 
  during 
  the 
  past 
  year 
  was 
  very 
  

   great. 
  In 
  June, 
  we 
  saw 
  them 
  in 
  great 
  numbers 
  in 
  a 
  garden 
  at 
  Law- 
  

   rence, 
  where 
  they 
  had 
  stripped 
  the 
  bushes, 
  eating 
  the 
  leaves 
  down 
  to 
  

   the 
  leaf-stalk, 
  myriads 
  clustering 
  upon 
  the 
  branches. 
  The 
  birds 
  evi- 
  

   dently 
  do 
  not 
  feed 
  upon 
  them, 
  and 
  thus, 
  in 
  dealing 
  with 
  this 
  insect, 
  we 
  

   are 
  deprived 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  powerful 
  agencies 
  in 
  nature 
  for 
  restrain- 
  

   ing 
  a 
  superabundance 
  of 
  insect-life. 
  

  

  As 
  this 
  is 
  an 
  important 
  and 
  practical 
  subject, 
  let 
  us 
  digress 
  for 
  a 
  

   moment 
  to 
  notice 
  some 
  facts 
  brought 
  out 
  by 
  Mr. 
  J. 
  J. 
  Weir, 
  of 
  the 
  London 
  

   Entomological 
  Society 
  on 
  the 
  insects 
  that 
  seem 
  distasteful 
  to 
  birds. 
  

   He 
  finds 
  by 
  caging 
  up 
  birds 
  whose 
  food 
  is 
  of 
  a 
  mixed 
  character 
  (purely 
  

   insect-eating 
  birds 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  kept 
  alive 
  in 
  confinement), 
  that 
  all 
  hairy 
  

   caterpillars 
  were 
  uniformly 
  uneaten. 
  Such 
  caterpillars 
  are 
  the 
  " 
  yellow 
  

   bears" 
  {Arctia 
  and 
  Spilosoma), 
  the 
  salt-marsh 
  caterpillars 
  {Leucarctia 
  

   acnea), 
  and 
  the 
  caterpillar 
  of 
  the 
  Yaporer 
  moth 
  (Orgyia), 
  and 
  the 
  spring 
  

   larvse 
  of 
  butterflies 
  ; 
  with 
  these 
  may 
  perhaps 
  be 
  classed 
  the 
  European 
  

   currant 
  saw-fly. 
  He 
  was 
  disjDosed 
  to 
  consider 
  that 
  the 
  "flavor 
  of 
  all 
  

   these 
  caterpillars 
  is 
  nauseous, 
  and 
  not 
  that 
  the 
  mechanical 
  troublesome, 
  

   ness 
  of 
  the 
  hairs 
  prevents 
  their 
  being 
  eaten. 
  Larvae 
  which 
  spin 
  webs- 
  

   and 
  are 
  gregarious, 
  are 
  eaten 
  by 
  birds, 
  but 
  not 
  with 
  avidity; 
  they 
  ap- 
  

   pear 
  very 
  much 
  to 
  dislike 
  the 
  web 
  sticking 
  to 
  their 
  beaks, 
  and 
  those 
  

   completely 
  concealed 
  in 
  the 
  web 
  are 
  left 
  unmolested. 
  When 
  branches 
  

   covered 
  with 
  the 
  web 
  of 
  Hyponomenta 
  evonymella 
  (a 
  little 
  moth 
  of 
  the 
  

   Tinea 
  family) 
  were 
  introduced 
  into 
  the 
  aviary, 
  those 
  larvae 
  only 
  which 
  

   ventured 
  beyond 
  the 
  protection 
  of 
  the 
  web 
  were 
  eaten." 
  " 
  Smooth- 
  

   skinned, 
  gaily-colored 
  caterpillars 
  (such 
  as 
  the 
  currant 
  J.&raa;as, 
  or 
  span 
  

   worm), 
  which 
  never 
  conceal 
  themselves, 
  but 
  on 
  the 
  contrary 
  appear 
  to 
  

   court 
  observation", 
  were 
  not 
  touched 
  by 
  the 
  birds. 
  He 
  states, 
  on 
  the 
  

   other 
  hand, 
  that 
  " 
  all 
  caterpillars 
  whose 
  habits 
  are 
  nocturnal, 
  and 
  are 
  

   dull-colored, 
  with 
  fleshy 
  bodies 
  and 
  smooth 
  skins, 
  are 
  eaten 
  with 
  the 
  

   greatest 
  avidity. 
  Every 
  species 
  of 
  green 
  caterpillar 
  is 
  also 
  much 
  rel- 
  

   ished. 
  All 
  Geometrce, 
  whose 
  larvae 
  resemble 
  twigs, 
  as 
  they 
  stand 
  out 
  

   from 
  the 
  plant 
  on 
  their 
  anal 
  prolegs, 
  are 
  invariably 
  eaten." 
  Mr. 
  A. 
  G. 
  

   Butler, 
  of 
  London, 
  has 
  also 
  found 
  that 
  frogs 
  and 
  spiders 
  will 
  not 
  eat 
  

   the 
  same 
  larvae 
  rejected 
  by 
  birds, 
  the 
  frogs 
  having 
  an 
  especial 
  aversion 
  

   to 
  the 
  currant 
  span-worms 
  {Abraxas 
  and 
  Hulia). 
  

  

  The 
  natural 
  enemies 
  of 
  the 
  currant 
  saw-fly 
  are 
  three 
  kinds 
  of 
  ichneu- 
  

   mou-flies, 
  of 
  which 
  one 
  is 
  a 
  minute 
  egg-parasite. 
  Mr. 
  Lintner, 
  of 
  New 
  

  

  