160 Insects most injurious to Cultivators. 



folded upon the breast, as well as the legs, each being enclosed 

 in a distinct sheath ; the hind legs lying undex- the wing-covers, 

 with the tips of the thighs and of the tarsi alone exposed ; the 

 head is depressed in the middle, with two short hairs ; the basal 

 joints of the antennae (e °) are laid along the sides of the rostrum, 

 with the terminal points forming an acute angle ; the tips of the 

 thighs of all the legs are furnished with a strong bristle ; the 

 abdomen is gradually narrowed to the extremity, which is trun- 

 cated with two lateral points ; each of the dorsal segments of 

 the abdomen (f x ) is furnished at its posterior margin with a 

 row of short strong spines, which are of great service to the pupa, 

 bv affording so many points of resistance to the insect in its 

 movements, which are, however, but few ; the sides of the 

 abdomen are furnished with a row of lateral fleshy tuber-cles. 

 Bouche states that this pupa descends 3 in. or 4 in. below the 

 surface of the ground to undergo its transformation ; but I do 

 not think that mine went more than 1 in. deep. The same author 

 states that the period occupied in the pupa state is fourteen days. 

 On June 19., my pupa appeared to have undergone no change, 

 being still quite white. In three days, however (i. e. on June 22.), 

 the insect had assumed its perfect form, appearing as vn fig. 67. g 

 (magnified, h being the natural length of the weevil). At this 

 period, the insect was of a rather pale pitchy colour, owing to 

 its recent disclosure; but its natural colours are thus described 

 by Mr. Stephens : — 



" Black ; head finely punctured, pubescent, with an impres- 

 sion between the eyes ; rostrum rugose-punctate, with a deep 

 broad channel ; thorax with an obsolete dorsal groove, slightly 

 glossy, with numerous thickly planted tubercles throughout, and 

 some scattered pale ashy hairs ; scutellum black ; elytra some- 

 what deeply sulcate, with the interstices and sulci very ruggedly 

 tuberculate, and irregularly spotted with depressed pale ferru- 

 ginous hairs; legs rather long, with the femora obtusely dentate ; 

 antennae piceous." The perfect insect varies in length from ^ in. 

 to ^ in. 



This description, with the accompanying figure, will enable any 

 person having collections of succulent plants to detect the beetle, 

 in the month of June, lurking about the pots or plants of this 

 kind ; and, indeed, it does not appear to me impracticable to train 

 children to look over the plants, and destroy the insects as soon 

 as caught : of course, care must be taken to destroy the insect as 

 soon after it has attained its beetle form as possible, otherwise 

 the great end of its existence, that of impregnation and deposi- 

 tion of the eggs, will probably have taken place ; as it is to be 

 observed that it is only in the grub state that the injury to the 

 plants is committed, the perfect insect being quite innocent. 

 That this is a generally dispersed insect must be evident from 



