110 ORDER COLEOPTEHA. 



Gems ITHYCERUS ( Schcenhkrb). 



Ithtcerus mu l.BOR.Mi'Nsis (Schcenherr) . ( Plate xxxiii, fig. t.) 



I'i RCULIO NOVEBORACENSIS ( 1'orster) ; 

 Rfl I M BITES i tJRCULIONIDES (Herbst) : 

 PaCHYRHYNCHUS SCHCENHERR] (Kirliy). 



According to Kirby, thi- species 1 clongs t« _ » the Family PAriiTBHYvcHiiuE : its charac- 

 ters, ;is given by this distinguished entomologist, arc : 



'Labrum subemarginate ; mandibles armed with two teeth at the apex; labium nearly 

 square; palpi conical; antennse short, inserted into a roundish lateral cavity near 

 the apex of the rostrum ; joints eleven, scape short, etc. Body oblong pear-shaped. 

 Rostrum nearly as wide as the head, subcylindrical, a little wider at the tip, ridged 

 between tlie eves and antenna- : eyes round, prominent; prothorax subcylindrical, 

 rather narrowest anteriorly : antepectus uol emarginate, nor lobed. Coleoptera oblong, 

 depressed at the apex : thighs clubbed, unarmed ; tibia unarmed ; penultimate joint 

 of the tarsi bipartite. Its antenna are straight, or onlj curved, not i Ibowed. 

 'Color gray, covered with a whitish pile; ground black : knob of the antennse brown. 

 Rostrum rather thick, widened anteriorly, having three ridges between the eyes and 

 termination : two divergent, from an impressed angular line between the eyes; and 

 the other proceeding directlj from that line upon its middle, and which terminates 

 anteriorly in a short fork, or near the emargination of the labrum, though it is sepa- 

 rated from this fork bj a slight interception, which is j n- 1 beyond two hyphen-like 

 lines by its sides. Anterior part of the rostrum naked, and impressed with coalescent 

 dots. Eyes brown. Thorax subcylindrical, marked with three rather obscure whitish 

 longitudinal bands : punctures coarse and coalescent. Elytra have nine rows of 

 punctures, and at the base a part of a tenth row. The alternate spaces between the 

 dotted lines have small black quadrate spots : on the sufural space, or ridge, they 

 are smaller and more obscure than upon the others. These quadrate black spots are 

 placed upon the lour whitish longitudinal stripes, which are quite obscure. Beneath 

 gray : legs gray. Length of the female, five-eighths of an inch ; of the male, half 

 an inch.' 

 This Cobcdlio has the habit of many of the species of this family. It devours the tender 

 leaves and blossoms of fruit trees, and has been known to do great injury to the apple 

 and pear. It sometimes attacks the base of a young shoot, and eats it to the pith : at other 

 times, it feeds upon the leaves of the cherry and plum. Its strong notched mandible fits it 

 admirably for work of this kind. 



The only way to rid a tree infested with this insect, is to shake it suddenly in the 

 morning or evening while the insects are stiff and cold, and collect them uj on sheets spn ad 

 beneath : the insects, and the fruit that fall, should be put into boiling watt r. 



