124 MISC. PUBLICATION 273, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



appear in a week or 10 days and feed voraciously on the foliage 

 until the close of the season, when they hibernate for the winter, 

 to appear the following spring, completing the cycle of one gener- 

 ation a year. 



The western willow leaf beetle (Galerucella decora Say) is a 

 dull yellow-brown to black native species that feeds on the leaves 

 of willow and poplar throughout the West. 



Figure 56. — The cottonwood leaf beetle (Chrysomela scripta) : A, Female 

 beetle, X 5; 5, male beetle, X 5; C, larva, X5;D, pupa, X 5; E, eggs on 

 cottonwood leaf: F, skeletonized willow leaf. 



The cottonwood leaf beetle ( (Lina) Chrysomela scripta F.) (fig. 

 56) is found throughout the country, feeding on the leaves of 

 willow and poplar, and often heavily defoliates these trees. The 

 adults are yellowish marked with black spots and are about 14 inch 

 long. They appear early in the spring and feed on the tender 

 shoots. The eggs are yellowish or reddish and are deposited in 

 clusters on the under surface of the leaves, and it is here that 

 the black grubs feed as soon as hatched. In hot weather the period 



