seedlings, but they prefer the roots of grasses. They would appear 
to be potentially harmful in nurseries and plantations. P. ham- 
mendi LeC. occurs in the western part of the Central States and 
has the interesting habit of depositing its eggs in rotten wood. 
The genus Serica MacL. contains a number of species, the adults 
of which closely resemble those of the genus Phyllophaga except 
for their much smaller size and their regularly spaced, elytral 
striae. They are usually less than one-fourth as large as May 
beetles. The adults are sometimes abundant enough to cause 
noticeable defoliation in hardwood stands. The larvae have also 
been known to cause damage in heavily infested nurseries, but 
they are usually not very destructive. Adults emerge from mid- 
May to mid-August but are usually most abundant in June. The 
life cycle requires 2 to 3 years. Common species include S. sericae 
(1ll.), which is often abundant; S. tristis LeC., which has been 
known to defoliate spruce in plantations in southern Canada; and 
S. vespertina (Gyll.) and S. wntermixta Blotch. 
The genus Dichelonyx Harris is represented in eastern America 
by many species. The beetles are small, about 6 to 12 mm. long, 
and are often brightly colored. A distinguishing characteristic is 
the presence of two spurs on each middle and hind tibia. The 
larvae are grubs, which never exceed 18 or 20 mm. in length. 
Adults are most common in June and July, and the life cycle re- 
quires 2 to 8 years. Saylor (633) revised the genus. 
Dichelonyx albicollis (Burm.) is a well-known species. It has 
been recorded from New Jersey, Michigan, and Ontario and feeds 
both during the day and night on the needles of pine, preferably 
jack pine. The adult is greenish, shiny, and about 12 mm. long. 
D. elongata (F.) occurs from New England and New Jersey to 
Oklahoma and Kansas. The adults feed at night on the leaves of 
various hardwoods, especially black birch and alder. The adult is 
smaller and somewhat darker than the adult of D. albicollis. A 
third species, D. subvittata LeC. has been recorded feeding on 
oak, hazel, and pine from New England to the Lake States and in 
southern Canada. 
The genus Diplotaxis Kirby contains a number of species that 
feed mostly on conifers, preferably pines. The beetles are usually 
brown or reddish-brown and, except for having five visible ventral 
abdominal sternites, resemble members of the genus Phyllophaga. 
The exoskeleton is also quite hard and rigid. D. sordida (Say) 
occurs commonly on red and jack pines in the Lake States, and 
the larvae have caused serious damage in nurseries and planta- 
tions in New York. The adult is slate-colored with yellowish hairs 
on the pronotum, and it is about 10 to 12 mm. long. D. liberata 
(Germ.) also occurs commonly on pines in the Lake States. The 
adult is blackish, hairless, and about 12 mm. long. 
The Asiatic garden beetle, Maladera castanea (Arrow), an in- 
troduced species first recorded in North America in New Jersey 
in 1921, is now widely distributed in the Eastern States south to 
South Carolina. Adults are usually cinnamon-brown and about 
6 to 12 mm. long. They fly at night and feed on more than 
100 species of plants, including forest and shade trees such as 
maple, horse chestnut, willow, boxelder, and Ailanthus. Young 
pines, hemlocks, and yews in nurseries are defoliated occa- 
sionally and seriously injured. The roots of rhododendron and 
149 
