67 



6 inches down in the soil. Although the land Avas lumpy, the,}^ had 

 o-one into the solid soil and did not shelter under the clods or stones. 

 Certainly all those I kept passed the winter in the adult condition. 



In my laboratory they came out of their Avinter quarters in March, 

 l)ut in the open not until April IT, and the last on May 4. Some 

 early potatoes had been planted with them and they commenced egg 

 laying on May 20. All these check specimens were then killed. 

 One could tell at a glance from their dingy color that they were hiber- 

 nating, and as none had appeared to my knowledge by that date at 

 Tilbury it was hoped the measures taken by the board had been suffi- 

 cient. On the contrary, the beetles had surviA^ed the rough usage, 

 and fresh specimens Avere reported at the end of May on the same 

 land. I Avent there on June 2 for the board and found the beetles 

 emerging from the ground in small numbers, and Avks at once struck 

 by the difference in appearance betAA^een them and those I had so 

 ]-ecently killed at home. One could easily see that they Avere only 

 just hatched, the elytra being soft and almost cream colored betAveen 

 the dark lines. One of the inspectors noticed them emerging from 

 the ground that had been treated in the previous autumn Avith gas 

 lime and paraffin. 



There is not the least doubt that these specimens had just hatched 

 from pupa\ As is Avell knoAA^n, the pupa^, especially in light, friable 

 soil like that at Tilbury, are found at a great depth, so that in this 

 case neither the gas lime, paraffin, nor ploAving had affected them. 

 The land Avas only ploAved to a depth of 10 inches and many larvae 

 may Avell have previously burroAved deeper than that and so have 

 escaped harm. 



We thus had the insect living in tAvo Avays Avith us during the Avin- 

 ter, namely, as adults and as pupae. The latter is, I believe, excep- 

 tional in America, although my friend. Doctor HoAvard, tells me it 

 has been observed by Professor Smith. 



Very fcAv specimens Avere found in 11)02 and these Avere dealt Avith 

 hj constant hand picking. During the last tAvo years none have been 

 seen at Tilbury, so that Ave may safely say that the energies of the 

 officials in charge have been rcAvarded Avith success. 



Another scare occurred in 1904, live specimens being taken to the 

 Hereford Museum, but these had been brought over by a lady from 

 the United States as curios, little knowing the penalty attaching to 

 the introduction of the liA^e insects into this country. 



I think Ave may safely say that Leptinotarsa decemlineata does not 

 noAv exist in this country, but that it can flourish to a remarkable 

 degree has become a Avell-established fact. 



One ])oint of interest I may mention in conclusion — namely, that it 

 soon found an enemy in Britain in the form of the larval seven- 

 spotted ladybird {Coccinella 7-fiinctata Linn.). These larvae are 



