208 



IITJUEIOUS INSECTS 



pest almost ruined the plants in my garden, but of late 

 it has not been very abundant, although it has not 

 entirely disappeared. This Strawberry Worm is the 

 larva of a small black fly, which has of late years 

 become abundant throughout the Northern States and 

 appears to be more destructive at the West than at the 

 East. The worms are of a yellowish-green color, a little 

 over half an inch long, and when feeding are usually curl- 

 ed up as in fig. 127. The parent fly (fig. 128), is black, 

 with two rows of whitish spots on the abdomen, and ap- 

 pears in the JSTorthern States in May. The full-grown 



Fig. 127.— strawbesry-worm Fig. 128.— fly of strawberry- 



{Mnphytusmaculatus, Norton). worm. 



larvae descend and enter the ground, remaining in the 

 pupa state until the following spring. Dusting the leaves 

 with lime, when they are wet with dew, or Just after a 

 rain, is the best method of destroying the pest yet found. 



STRAWBERRY LEAF-BEETLE. 



{Paria aterrima, Oliv.) 



Within a few years, in widely separated localities, 

 from Massachusetts to Missouri, a small brownish beetle 

 has been found attacking the leaves of the Strawberry 

 plants, doing much damage. The larva of this beetle is 

 white, with a yellowish head, and is about a fourth of an 

 inch long; it lives in the soil, feeding upon the roots of 

 the Strawberry. The beetle is only an eighth of an inch 



