affecting the Potato-crops. 



83 



growth, are sometimes seen in multitudes adhering to the foliage 

 or Iving on the ground beneath. 



The perfect potato frog-fly is often abundant from the middle 

 of August to the end of September, when not unfrequently a 

 dozen may be seen on one leaf. In dull weather they have a 

 curious mode of evading notice by sidling round to the opposite 

 side of the stem or beneath a leaf, but in bright warm days they 

 leap and fly short distances. 



The other species/ which is equally abundant, has been named 

 by Fabricius 



16. E. picta : fig. 32; m, the natural dimensions. It is very 

 similar in form to E. Solani, but it is larger and beautifully 

 spotted : it is of a clear yellow colour, with 2 oval black spots on 

 the crown of the head, and one on each side of the face, 2 larger 

 ones on the trunk with 2 dots before, and 2 black spots at the 

 base of the scutel : the abdomen is black, the margins of the seg- 

 ments yellow, the superior wings are clouded with brown, leaving 

 the base, the tip, 2 large spots on the costa, and 2 on the suture, 

 yellow, with smaller pale spots on the disc ; inferior wings irides- 

 cent and transparent, the nervures brown : legs entirely of a 

 sulphur colour. Length 1J line, expanse 3 lines. 



The pupa of this species is of an uniform buff colour : the eyes 

 and tips of the feet alone being dark. 



On the 19th of June, 1847, I first observed this species upon 

 my potatoes, and in August, they had increased greatly in num- 

 bers, the foliage being still green and healthy : they flew about a 

 foot when disturbed, but did not leave the plants, alighting directly 

 upon the leaves and sidling under them when alarmed. The pupae 

 were equally numerous under the leaves, with the exuviae by them. 

 This frog- fly also inhabits nettles, the burdock, and mint, and I 

 have found it as late as November in gardens. 



Altica. 



In company with the foregoing insects was one of the Altica?, 

 or leaping Chrysomelce. They first appeared about the middle of 

 June, and they continued feeding until the leaves withered. Dur- 

 ing the whole of August, 1846, they were in multitudes on the 

 Bitter-sweet (Solanum Dulcamara *), a plant belonging to the 

 same genus as the potato ; the leaves of which they completely 

 riddled. They are also abundant on grass till late in the 

 autumn, but nothing is known of the larvae or where the eggs are 

 deposited. 



This beetle is comprised in the same group as the turnip-flies 

 (Altica Nemorum f ), bun: owing to the different form of the horns 



* Curtis's Brit. Ent, pi. 102. 



f Journal of Royal Agric. Soc., vol. ii. pp. 195 and 211. 



G 2 



