THE CURKANT BUD-MITE, OR CURRANT GALL-MITE. 289 
are much more twisted and contorted, and, moreover, the tissues are 
much swollen, and the apex, as a rule, is not closed. 
Any one making an examination of the interior of a Currant bud, 
whether healthy or diseased, cannot fail to notice the numerous golden- 
coloured fragrant oil glands, which, together with the white woolly hairs, 
almost cover the inner embryo leaves, more especially those at the apex 
of the bud. It has been stated by the Board of Agriculture,* and I have 
elsewhere called attention to the matter,t that these glands are made by 
the mites. This is a great mistake, as may easily be proved by making 
an examination of a healthy bud. As to whether the mites feed upon 
these is quite another question — possibly they do. It is very certain, 
however, that they do not make them. 
Cause of the Diseased Buds. — This is entirely due to the presence of 
hordes of invisible mites, which set up a constant irritation, and cause a 
diversion of the leaf tissues or cell structures, probably aided by the 
secretion of an acid which may facilitate the abnormal growths. Buds 
so attacked and distorted rarely, if ever, produce either fruit or wood ; 
hence the loss on fruit is a very great and serious one. 
Description of the Mite (figs. 160 and 161.) — It is semi-opaque glassy 
white, narrowly elongate and cylindrical, slightly and gradually narrowed 
towards the posterior extremity, and more suddenly so at the anterior 
extremity, which latter is provided with two pairs of legs, and on the 
dorsal surface above them is a long stout spine. The tarsus, or foot, is 
provided with a double claw, the uppermost being blunt and much the 
longer; the lower claw being furnished with apparently four pairs of 
bristles, four springing at right angles from either side of the claw 
(fig. 160a). The articulations of the legs are apparently well marked, but 
owing to several constrictions it is difficult to fix the exact position of tarsal 
and tibio- tarsal joints with any amount of certainty. The body is curiously 
made up of a number of transverse rings, numbering about sixty or seventy, 
which are closely and regularly set with minute tubercular processes or 
granular projections, both above and below. Five pairs of bristle-like hairs 
extend from the body — the smallest, being exceedingly fine, are placed just 
below the insertion of the posterior legs ; the second, midway between them 
and the third pair, which latter are the second longest ; fourth pair, 
towards the anal- extremity, are about the same length as the second ; 
fifth pair, at the anal extremity, much the longest. The extremity of the 
body immediately below the anal setae is composed of a thin and some- 
what reniform appendage (fig. 161), which acts as an anal clasper or 
sucker by which the mite attaches itself to the surface of its food-plant, 
and aided by the long anal setae can move the rest of its body freely in 
any direction away from the sides of its habitat. I have seen an indi- 
vidual while in such a position support eleven of its companions, all of 
which had anchored themselves to its body by their anal claspers, but 
their presence did not appear in any way to impede its movements ; nor 
did I see any of them relinquish their hold, which evidently shows they 
* Pamphlet A , February, 1893. 
f Newstead, Recent Investigations of the Currant Bud- Mite, p. 4 
