THE TEEEAPIN SCALE. 3 



by attacking the mistletoe, upon which it thrives very well. It will 

 undoubtedly spread considerably beyond its present range by ad- 

 vancing farther into the territory of its chief host plants. Those 

 regions in which the peach, the plum, the maple, the sycamore, and 

 the mistletoe are abundant probably offer suitable conditions for its 

 growth. 



ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE. 



The terrapin scale, in its range and importance, ranks easily as 

 second among the scale pests of the peach, and while not so prolific 

 and not so injurious as the San Jose scale, Aspidiotus yerniciosus 



Fig. 1.— Distribution in the United States of the terrapin scale {Eulecanium nigrofasciatum). (Original.) 



Comstock, it is even more of a nuisance, owing to the difficulty met 

 with in its control. 



INJURY. 



This insect causes injury first, by sucking the sap from the trees, 

 and second, by covering the fruit, leaves, and branches with a sweet 

 sticky fluid known as honeydew. 



The mjury to the trees from the loss of sap taken by the scale is 

 considerable in badly infested orchards, but is small in comparison 

 with the damage resulting from the deposit of honeydew. This 

 deposit, while objectionable, would not cause serious injury were it 

 not for a black or sooty fungus which grows abundantly in the 

 honeydew whenever this is present. On trees which are badly 

 infested with the scale the fruit soon becomes covered with a black 

 sticky coat which makes it almost unsalable, as it is nearly aU classed 

 ^'S culls and is sold accordingly. 



