GRAPEVINE FLEA-BEETLES. 
25 
lesser species merely pit the upper surface of thick-leaved varieties 
of grapes, and eat small holes in the foliage of thin-leaved varieties. 
Both stages of its larger ally strip the leaf tissue of varieties like the 
Delaware, while on leaves of varieties like the Concord the larva 
makes large whitish patches on the upper surface, and the adult, 
also feeding on the upper surface of the leaves, eats large holes in 
them. 
Almost no other insect can cause as severe injury to the grape 
crop, in restricted areas, as that of which the grapevine flea-beetle 
is capable when the grape buds are swelhng. The lesser species, 
which emerges later, is less destructive. Both species are sporadic 
in their occurrence from season to season and they are now restricted 
in their distribution largely to vineyards adjacent to wild grape 
arbors. A number of predatory enemies, of which Lebia viridis Say 
is the most important, contribute to its natural control. 
Where vineyards are liable to injury from this pest, vigilance in 
early spring is essential to safety. When the beetles do appear their 
voracity makes prompt action necessary. If, as is usually the case, 
the infestation covers only a small area, hand-picking the beetles will 
probably be the most effective as well as the cheapest means of 
control, while if a large area is infested, spraying with arsenate of 
lead will probably be necessary. A spray application of 3 pounds of 
arsenate of lead paste (IJ pounds powdered) is ordinarily recom- 
mended, but if the infestation is severe and rains can be avoided, a 
dosage of not less than 6 pounds of arsenate of lead paste (or 3 
pounds powdered) to 50 gallons of water may be used. The larvae 
of the lesser species and most of those of the larger species may 
be readily destroyed by the usual spray applications for the grape- 
berry moth and the grapevine rootworm, and these measures, together 
with up-to-date vineyard tillage, make it practically impossible for 
these pests to reproduce in a vineyard and limit them to wild vines. 
Very rarely a spray application before the grapes bloom will be ad- 
visable to destroy the earliest larvae of A. chalyhea. These measures 
have probably been the cause for the change in the economic status 
of the grapevine flea-beetle from apparently a first-rate pest of 20 
years ago to one of second-rate importance at present. 
