71 



present species the groove appears to vanish at each end, but this is 

 apparent only. The punctuation of the elytra is coarse. The general 

 appearance of the insect is illustrated at figure 17, a. It is of oval, 

 slightly oblong form, and is remarkable on account of its extreme 

 variability of coloration, the color of different individuals ranging 

 from bright metallic golden, coppery, golden brown or purplish, to 

 green and blue. The variation in color is of unusual interest, as it is 

 influenced by climate and determines to a great extent the range of 

 the species, this fact being so striking as to have attracted the writer's 

 attention long ago and to have received special mention by Dr. Horn. 

 The more northern individuals are the more brilliant golden-hued 

 ones. About the District of Columbia the green ones are apparently 

 more abundant, and are the prevailing types southward, deep blue 

 becoming the characteristic color of the specimens taken in the Gulf 

 States. It may be significant that the beetles observed by the writer 

 before the middle of August the past season were mostly green and 

 those observed in the same locality after that date were metallic. The 

 latter, however, are not nearly so brilliant as those occurring farther 

 north. The Northern individuals are, as a rule, larger than the 

 Southern ones. 



DISTRIBUTION. 



The strawberry flea-beetle is a native American species and of such 

 remarkably wide distribution as to have created remark by Mr. Mar- 

 tin Jacoby, a European authority on Chrysomelidae. 



The distribution of this species accorded by Horn, who gave a full 

 technical description on page 221 of the Transactions of the American 

 Entomological Society for 1889 (Vol. XVI, p. 221), is from the Hud- 

 son Bay region to the New England States, south to Texas and Florida. 



The following locality list has been compiled from published and 

 unpublished records, the latter, which includes most localities men- 

 tioned, being founded on material in the National Museum and the 

 writer's own collection. It shows a range extending from ocean to 

 ocean and from north to south of Canada to Mexico. 



Newport, R. I. ; Ithaca (July 5-9), Peekskill, Port Richmond, Staten 

 Island (June 3), Carys Mills, Floral Park, N. Y. ; Orange (at light), 

 Highlands (June 18), and elsewhere throughout New Jerse}^; River 

 View, Goldsboro, Marshall Hall, Md.; Norfolk, Rosslyn, Cherry Dale 

 (June 3-Julyll), Va. ; District of Columbia; St. Louis, Mo.; West 

 Point and Nebraska City, Nebr. ; Columbus, New Albany, Indianapo- 

 lis, Ind. ; White Bear Lake, Minn. (Lugger); Waco, Cypress Mills, and 

 Beeville, Tex. ; Tempe, Ariz. ; Orlando, Oviedo, Lake City, Yalkaria, 

 Waldo, Fla. ; Easton, Wash.; Colorado; Sacramento, Cal. 



To the above list there should be added: Atoyac and Vera Cruz, 

 Mexico (Jacoby); Fort Simpson (LeConte) and Fort Rae (Wickham), 

 Northwest Territory, Canada. 



