AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 123 



Saunders says it "lays its eggs on the currants while they are 

 small." Our observations are that the eggs are inserted under the 

 skin through a small hole made by the sharp ovipositor, and that the 

 currants are quite large before the eggs are laid, and that the larg'est 

 ones at the base of the bunches are usually selected first. He also 

 makes a mistake when he states that the larvae leave "a round, 

 black scar at the point of entry." The young larvae usually travel 

 some distance from where the egg is deposited before establishing' 

 headquarters. The black scar locates the larva, and results from the 

 decomposition of the parts injured and the exuviae of the larvae. 

 The exit hole of the larva is usually located in the black scar. The 

 puncture made to lay the egg is too small to be noticed excepting by 

 close examination. He also says the insect "probably passes the 

 chrysalis state in the ground, a g'uess -which is confirmed by finding 

 the pupae in abundance in the ground under the bushes. 



Prof. Snow correctly doubts that the abdomen of the male is "short 

 and rather broad," but the black of the abdomen in well colored 

 specimens is natural. The abdomen of the female varies from very 

 narrow in unimpregnated specimens or those throug'h depositing' to 

 every broad in those full of eggs. The abdomen of both shrivel and 

 change form in drying, and the colors are duller. The abdomen of 

 the male has but six segments, and from that reason is shorter than 

 that of the female though the segments preceding the sixth are 

 larg'er than those of the female. 



We are at a loss to know how Prof. Snow can arbitrarily "consider 

 six as the number of segments composing the abdomen of the female 

 trypetid and five as composing that of the male," when nature has 

 decided the matter by giving the former seven and the latter six. 

 Certainly it can lead to nothing but confusion as has Loew's discrep- 

 ancy in the correct number. We can't even see any good reason for 

 longer perpetuating the error that the long terminal abdominal seg'- 

 ment is the ovipositor, for it certainly has nothing to do with ovi- 

 positing. It is not inserted at all into the puncture and merely has 

 the ovipositing apparatus attached to it and when not in use tele- 

 scoped within it. The fine plate which we give of the ovipositor 

 from the pen of Mr. Emerton should settle this matter. 



There are also six well defined segments separated by sutures in the 

 male abdomen in front of the external male genitalia as shown in 

 Plate I, Fig. 10. The terminal segment is, however, short. 



Prof. Gillette's observations of the habits of this insect agree with 

 ours very nearly, though he studied its work upon gooseberries in- 

 stead of currants. We are, however, of the opinion that the currants 

 stung remain on the bushes much longer than he records for goose- 

 berries, and that the red spot develops where the larvae is located in- 

 stead of where the egg is deposited. In currants the egg is not laid 

 in the pulp, but at one side of the ptmcture close under the skin, so 

 it can readily be seen through it. 



