﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  STATE 
  ENTOMOLOGIST 
  269 
  

  

  this 
  improved 
  variety, 
  — 
  the 
  grafts 
  beginning 
  to 
  bear 
  when 
  about 
  three 
  

   years 
  old. 
  The 
  trees 
  were 
  kept 
  properly 
  trimmed 
  and 
  the 
  ground 
  clear 
  

   from 
  underbrush. 
  The 
  land 
  now 
  yields 
  more 
  in 
  value 
  than 
  an 
  equal 
  

   area 
  of 
  potatoes 
  and 
  at 
  a 
  much 
  less 
  expense. 
  The 
  improved 
  varieties 
  

   being 
  easily 
  grafted 
  on 
  native 
  stock, 
  makes 
  it 
  easy 
  to 
  transform 
  in 
  a 
  few 
  

   years 
  comparatively 
  worthless 
  trees 
  to 
  valuable 
  fruit 
  producers. 
  The 
  

   most 
  serious 
  drawbacks 
  are 
  the 
  underbrush, 
  injury 
  by 
  insects, 
  and 
  thieves. 
  

  

  Extent 
  Qf 
  Injury 
  by 
  Chestnut 
  "Weevils. 
  

  

  The 
  amount 
  of 
  injury 
  by 
  these 
  insects 
  varies 
  much 
  both 
  with 
  the 
  season 
  

  

  and 
  the 
  locality. 
  Mr. 
  R. 
  C. 
  Hewson, 
  Penn 
  Yan, 
  N. 
  Y., 
  estimates 
  the 
  

  

  annual 
  loss 
  of 
  native 
  nuts 
  in 
  that 
  vicinity 
  at 
  from 
  five 
  to 
  ten 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  

  

  the 
  crop. 
  This 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  rather 
  a 
  conservative 
  estimate, 
  since 
  in 
  

  

  Massachusetts 
  as 
  high 
  as 
  forty 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  chestnuts 
  in 
  certain 
  seasons 
  

  

  are 
  injured 
  by 
  these 
  weevils. 
  Sometimes 
  in 
  New 
  Jersey 
  fifty 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  

  

  the 
  Japanese 
  and 
  Spanish 
  varieties 
  are 
  ruined, 
  and 
  Dr. 
  Smith 
  cites 
  an 
  

  

  instance 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  crop 
  was 
  almost 
  entirely 
  destroyed 
  at 
  the 
  Parry 
  

  

  Brothers 
  nursery. 
  The 
  loss 
  in 
  Maryland 
  ranges 
  from 
  ten 
  to 
  twenty-five 
  

  

  per 
  cent, 
  in 
  Delaware 
  from 
  thirty 
  to 
  forty, 
  and 
  in 
  North 
  Carolina 
  from 
  

  

  ten 
  to 
  fifty 
  — 
  possibly 
  averaging, 
  about 
  twenty 
  per 
  cent. 
  From 
  five 
  to 
  

  

  twenty-five 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  few 
  native 
  nuts 
  in 
  Michigan 
  are 
  injured 
  by 
  

  

  the 
  weevils. 
  

  

  The 
  Genus 
  Balaninus, 
  

  

  This 
  genus 
  is 
  remarkable 
  among 
  the 
  Curculionidoi 
  or 
  snout 
  beetles 
  for 
  

  

  the 
  unusually 
  long 
  proboscis 
  or 
  snout, 
  — 
  it 
  being 
  rarely 
  shorter 
  than 
  the. 
  

  

  body, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  female 
  it 
  is 
  frequently 
  twice 
  the 
  length. 
  The 
  members 
  

  

  of 
  this 
  genus 
  feed 
  in 
  the 
  larval 
  state 
  on 
  chestnuts, 
  walnuts, 
  hickory 
  

  

  nuts 
  and 
  hazelnuts 
  — 
  all 
  having 
  thick 
  husks 
  and 
  hence 
  necessitating 
  

  

  a 
  very 
  long 
  beak 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  perforating 
  to 
  the 
  kernel 
  that 
  the 
  eggs 
  

  

  may 
  be 
  deposited 
  near 
  a 
  suitable 
  food 
  supply. 
  The 
  extremely 
  long 
  beak 
  

  

  may 
  well 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  a 
  special 
  adaption 
  to 
  the 
  requirements 
  of 
  the 
  

  

  existence 
  of 
  this 
  genus. 
  It 
  also 
  differs 
  from 
  the 
  other 
  Curculionidce^ 
  and 
  

  

  in 
  fact 
  from 
  all 
  other 
  known 
  Coleoptera, 
  by 
  having 
  the 
  mandibles 
  vertical 
  

  

  instead 
  of 
  horizontal. 
  The 
  structure 
  of 
  this 
  form 
  is 
  so 
  different 
  from 
  its 
  

  

  allies 
  that 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  raised 
  to 
  sub-family 
  rank 
  (LeConte-Horn 
  : 
  Rhyn- 
  

  

  chophora 
  of 
  Aincrica, 
  1876, 
  p. 
  322). 
  

  

  Two 
  Species 
  Attacking 
  Chestnuts. 
  

   There 
  are 
  at 
  least 
  two 
  species 
  that 
  injure 
  chestnuts 
  in 
  this 
  country. 
  The 
  

   great 
  chestnut 
  weevil, 
  Balaninus 
  proboscideus 
  (Fabr.), 
  formerly 
  known 
  as 
  

   B. 
  caryatrypes 
  Bohm., 
  is 
  the 
  larger. 
  This 
  form 
  may 
  be 
  separated 
  from 
  the 
  

  

  