65 



rhubarb were examined many of them would be found to have been 

 injured by this insect.'- Five years later the same writer, in his report 

 as Entomologist (loc. cit., 1870 [1871], p. 71), gives another short 

 account of this insect, with an illustration of the adult. 



After the lapse of another live years Dr. George Dimmock (Standard 

 Natural History, Vol. II, p. 343) refers briefly to the occurrence of 

 the species on the dock jRumex orbiculatus. 



Discarding the two articles of Weed for the reason previously 

 mentioned, we come to the very full account of this insect by Mr. 

 Webster, published in Entomologica Americana in 1889 (Vol. V, pp. 

 12-16). In this article wild sunflower (Helianthus) is mentioned as a 

 food plant in central Illinois. The Qgg^ larva, pupa, and oviposition 

 are fully described, and other notes are given on the life history of the 

 species. It is quite singular that larvae in this case were found only 

 in Helianthus, a genus of plants upon which the insect has not been 

 observed by any other writer to my knowledge. On page 16 of the 

 article referred to Mr. Webster states that in a single case he observed 

 a female ovipositing in Silphium, or rosin weed, and states that the 

 adults feed also upon the foliage. 



In volume VI of Entomologica Americana (p. 169) the writer re- 

 ferred briefly to the occurrence of this species on a common broad- 

 leaved variety of dock (Rumex) and less often on rhubarb. 



In Mr. Webster's article on the food plants of the genus (Proc. Ent. 

 Soc. Wash. , Vol. II, pp. 339-341) nothing new is added of this species 

 other than the correction referred to in the opening lines of this article. 



DIVISIONAL RECORDS. 



May 18, 1883, we received from Mr. J. G. Barlow, Cadet, Mo., a 

 leaf of rhubarb showing punctures of this curculio on the midrib. 



November 25, 1885, Mr. F. M. Webster sent from Lafayette, Ind., 

 stems of Helianthus from which this insect was later reared. 



May 19, 1887, we received from Mr. W. B. Alwood, then at Colum- 

 bus, Ohio, stems of rhubarb in which this species had oviposited. 



June 5, 1895, Mr. F. V. Braymer, Blooming Valley, Pa., sent speci- 

 mens of the beetle discovered on the yellow dock. June 20 Dr. Homer 

 Bowers, New Ross, Ind., sent beetles, with report that they were 

 observed on the foliage of growing rhubarb. 



July 26, 1896, Mrs. R. H. Russell, Stratford, Conn., reported find- 

 ing this species upon a dwarf sunflower in her garden. 



May, 1898, Mr. F. M. Webster reported receiving this insect, with 

 a species of Sphenophorus or "bill bug," with statement that they 

 were injurious to corn. We have also received similar reports, the 

 beetles being included with Sphenophorus. This is merely mentioned 

 to show that there is some slight similarity between the species of 

 17591— No. 23 5 



