THE IMPORTED ELM LEAF-BEETLE. 9 
In this connection we cannot do better than quote what we published 
in L880* in reply to certain statements by Dr. J. L. LeConte, as fol- 
lows: 
Aii'-nt Galeruca zanthomelama, which is becoming more destructive each - 
scar to the .-hade elms in our northern towns, a correspondent mentions the following 
facts : 
1. The trees arc not all attacked at the saint- time, but the insect seems to break 
out from a center, gradually destroying the more remote trees, so that isolated 
remain comparatively free. 
•2. After applying a band (saturated with fish-oil, petroleum, &%.) to some trees 
which were about half denuded, found hundreds of the worms stopped both in ascend- 
ing and descending the trees. 
He also propounded the following query : 
3. Do the beetles hibernate in the ground, so that they can be poisoned, or are they 
perpetuated only by the eggs on the trees ' 
Allow me to add the following subjects for investigation as necessary to the devis- 
ing of proper remedies against this foreign invader : 
4. How soon do the insects appear in the spring: how rapidly do they prop,,, 
and what time is passed in each stage of development .' 
5. Are the larva- and beetles eaten by insectivorous birds ; or are they protected by 
offensive secretions, as is the case with Doryphora 10-lineata, Orgyia leucoaiigma, and 
several other noxious insects .' 
t>. "What proportion of the brood hibernates, and in what stage, pupa or perfect in- 
sect, and when 
If the materials for furnishing answers to these questions are not vet within your 
reach, will you kindly direct the attention of some of your trusty observers to the 
subject, so that persons interested in the preservation of the shade trees which . 
justly esteemed may be properly instructed as to the measures to be adopted during 
the next summer. 
Very truly, yours, 
J. L. LkCONTE, 
Philadelphia, Pa. 
above inquiries \\ ere received from our esteemed correspondent some timesiuce, 
and we employ them as a ready means of giving our experience with the beetle. 
For the benefit of the general reader it may be remarked that the natural history 
of this Elm Leaf-beetle is quite similar to that of the well-known Colorado Potato- 
beetle and of the Grape-vine Flea-beetle. The only deviation in the Elm Leaf-beetle 
is in the mode of pupation, which rarely takes place in the ground, unl. 
very triable, but at the base of the tree or under any shelter that may present itself 
near the trees, such as old Leaves, grass, ^\ c, 
(1.) The phenomenon hen- described i^ doubtless due to the gradual incred 
spring from one or more females. 
and 6.) Like most, if not all. Chrysoinelida, the Elm Leaf-beetle hibernates in the 
perfect state. As places suitable for hibernation abound, any attempt —fully 
fight this pest in winter time, with a view of preventing its ravages the subsequent 
L, will prove fruitless. A large proportion id" the hibernating U .btlesa 
perish, since the insect is comparatively scarce in the earlier part of the season. 
(4 and 5.) The beetles il.\ at spring opens, and we have observed the first 
larva- early in May. in Washington, 1>. ('.. or some time after the elm leaves are fulh 
developed. The ravages of tin' insect begin to be apparent with the Beco 
tion of larvae, which appear in June. 
can Entomologist, December, L88 
