170 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



1 a t u s Say, which begins its operations by depositing eggs in 

 large slits in the bark. The grubs tunnel the inner tissues of the 

 bark and in the course of a short time enter the sapwood and by 

 winter probably pierce the trunk to a considerable depth, materi- 

 ally injuring the lumber for other purposes than firewood. Mr 

 Young's investigations in both July and August disclosed no 

 signs of injury by this species. Two specimens of Rhyncolus 

 brunneus Mann, were taken by him July 9 at Lake Clear 

 Junction from a pine injured by fire the previous year. 



Spruce. This tree was first attacked by the spruce bark beetle, 

 Polygraphus rufipennis Kirby, and the lined ambro- 

 sia beetle, Xyloterus lineatus Kirby. The former is a 

 very common insect in the Adirondacks and undoubtedly causes 

 a large amount of injury by killing trees, while the latter, working 

 as it does in the sapwood and producing conspicuous black holes, 

 seriously affects the merchantable value of considerable lumber. 

 July 3 almost every spruce in the area burned Ap. 30 at Big Moose 

 was attacked by these two insects, the first working near the top of 

 the tree, while the latter operated in the lower portions of the 

 trunk. Another ambrosia beetle, Gnathotricus materi- 

 a r i u s Fitch, was also observed in small numbers in the base of 

 one or two trees. On another section, where the fire occurred 

 May 14, it was found that the spruce bark beetle, Poly- 

 graphus rufipennis Kirby, and the lined ambrosia beetle, 

 Xyloterus lineatus Kirby, had just begun work, and a 

 species of Chrysobothris was also met with on spruce. Burned 

 areas in the neighborhood of Lake Placid were also visited, and it 

 was found that on the section where a very severe fire occurred 

 April 30, the insects began operations later than on the area 

 burned over about the same time at Big Moose, where the fire 

 was not so injurious to the trees. The fire at Lake Placid, occur- 

 ring June 3, was less injurious than the one at Big Moose on the 

 same date, and on July 9 the scolytids were just beginning to 

 attack the spruce, indicating that trees which were merely 

 scorched, but not so much as to kill them at once, are sooner 

 attacked by insects. 



