98 DR. HARRIS’S REPORT. April, 
of the body project at the sides, being there surmounted with minute 
tubercles. ‘The pupa state takes place in the leaf, and continues 
about one week, when the perfect insect bursts from its confinement 
and escapes into the air. 
Hispa rosea devours the tender leaves of the apple tree, and its 
larvee are found also in the leaves of that tree in July. Hispa sutu- 
ralis attacks the leaves of the Robinia pseudacacia, or locust. 
The genus Cassida is distinguished for its shield-shaped body, 
whence it derives:its name. ‘The head is covered by the semicircu- 
lar thorax ; the antenne are about the length of the thorax ;_ the body 
is convex above and flat beneath. ‘The larve live on the leaves of 
plants. ‘They have three pairs of legs ; their body is oval, and flat- 
tened, or but slightly convex above, and armed at the sides with 
spines, and the tail is terminated by two considerably longer than the 
rest, forming a kind of fork. This fork serves to retain the excre- 
ment when voided, and a mass is often thus accumulated which 
equals half the body in magnitude. The tail, with the loaded fork, 
is recurved over the back, and thus protects the insect from the sun, 
and probably also from its enemies. When the pupa state approach- 
es, the larva fixes the hinder part of its body firmly to the leaf, the 
skin over the anterior extremity is longitudinally rent, and is grad- 
ually slipped backwards. ‘The pupa has some spines near the tail 
which secure it to the cast-skin ; its body also is furnished with four 
long teeth-like projections on each side. The pupa state continues 
only a few days. 
Cassida aurichalcea appears to be appropriated to different spe- 
cies of Convoluulus, though it is occasionally found on Solanum 
dulcamara ; it occurs in great abundance on the Convolvulus sepi- 
wm, and on the sweet potato-vine. The leaves of these plants are 
devoured both by the larve and perfect insects. The latter appear 
first during the months of May and June, having probably survived 
the winter in the perfect state, in some place of concealment. The 
first brood of larve arrive at their growth and are metamorphosed 
into pup, and subsequently into perfect insects, early in July, when 
a second brood is produced, from which proceed the insects found 
in spring. In June, 1824, Mr. Lowell sent me specimens of this 
little beetle, which he found to be injurious to the sweet potato-vine, 
