CHAPTEE V. 

 THE DISEASES OF MISCELLANEOUS CEOPS. 



(1) The Parasites of Asparagus {Asparagus officinalis). 



The Asparagus Beetle {Crioceris asparagi) is about 

 a quarter of an inch in length, with a body of a blue- 

 black colour. The yellowish elytra are adorned with a 

 central black cross and black spots. The dark-coloured, 

 oval eggs are deposited by the female beetle on the 

 flower-buds of asparagus plants. The larvae are " short, 

 fleshy, and dingy grubs ; with six short legs and a double 

 series of fleshy tubercles along the lower surface of the 

 abdominal segments, which also serve as legs." These 

 grubs, having previously eaten the leaves and soft shoots 

 of the host-plants, retreat to the earth, where they spin a 

 cocoon in which they change to the pupal stage. In about 

 sixteen days the pupae are transformed into perfect insects. 

 There are several broods of this insect during the season 

 (June to September). 



M. Lucas {Annates de la Sociiti JEntomologique de 

 France, 1888) recently discovered two natural enemies 

 of Crioceris asparagi. One is the Calocoris chenopodii 

 (belonging to the Heteroptera), which sucks the juices 

 from the larvae of the asparagus beetle ; while the other 

 is an internal parasite {Mydbia pumila). The pupae of 

 this Tachinid fly is transformed into the perfect insect 

 within the skins of the Crioceris larvae. 



