THE CHEEKY LEAF-BEETLE. 



black. Head red, coarsely punctured, without median depression, frontal tubercles 

 smooth. Thorax nearly twice as wide as long, narrower in front, sides arcuate, or 

 obtusely subangulate, hind angles distinct, base on each side obliquely sinuate, disc 

 feebly convex, a broad depression each side and another along the middle, surface 

 coarsely punctured, more densely in the depressions; scutellum red; elytra broader 

 behind the middle, sides arcuate, margin explanate, humeri distinct, but rounded; 

 sutural angle well marked, but obtuse; disc with coarse and deep punctures not 

 crowded, less deep near the apex, interspaces smooth, shining. Body beneath red, 

 the metasternum often piceous, sparsely finely punctate and finely pubescent. 

 Legs variable in color entirely red to almost entirely piceous. Length .18-. 22 inch; 

 4.5-5.5 mm. 



Male. — Claws finely bifid at apex. Last ventral segment broadly emarginate at 

 apex, with a deep triangular depression limited by a sharply elevated line. 



Female. — Claws more deeply bifid, the parts more divergent. Last ventral segment 

 ■with a very slight emargination, in fi'ont of which 

 is a slight fovea. 



The middle coxae are absolutely contiguous, the 

 mesosternum is not prolonged between them, except 

 as to the color of the legs no variation has been 

 observed in this species. 



LIFE HISTORY. 



In the life-history work data were ob- 

 tained on nearly 600 individuals, almost 

 half of which were carried through their 

 entire development from hatching to 

 emergence of the adult insect. Daily 

 observations were made and recorded, so 

 that all transformations were noted 

 within 24 hours of their occurrence. 



It should be noted that the period — 

 August and the first half of September — 

 covered by these observations was one 

 of unusually low temperature and liigh 

 humidity for the season. In August there 

 was at Erie, 16 miles west of North East, an average daily deficiency 

 in temperature of 2.3° F. and an excess in precipitation over the 

 normal, for the month, of 6.02 inches. In September the tempera- 

 ture was higher, but the precipitation was still abnormally high. The 

 life-history periods shown by this data, therefore, are probably some- 

 what longer than the normal for the species. 



The life-history work was carried on in 1-inch vials, the larvse 

 bemg supplied daily with fresh leaves of pin cherry. For pupation 

 about 1 J inches of earth was supplied. For larger lots jelly tumblers 

 were used. Very few of the individuals failed to mature and emerge 

 as beetles. 



20968°— Bull. 352—16 2 



Fig. 7. — The cherry leaf-beetle: Pupa. 

 Much enlarged. (Original.) 



