92 Second Report on Economic Zoology . 
said to do much harm. It breeds with great rapidity, but is largely 
held in check by numerous parasites, notably two bugs referred to 
below, and also by one of the Thysanura * The male and female scales 
are usually found on separate trees, but close together. The female 
scale is grey in colour and pear-shaped, the female insect is deep 
crimson. At one end of the scale may be seen a trace of the yellow 
larval skin, but this soon fades and becomes grey ; it is placed at 
the narrow end of the scale. The male scales occur in enormous 
numbers, in many cases making the bark look quite grey ; they are 
much smaller than those of the females, and are strongly ridged. 
The perfect males are orange-red in colour, and have long genitalia. 
The eggs laid under the female scales are crimson, and are deposited 
in August. They remain under the scales until the spring, when 
they hatch out into little yellow larvae. The males are recorded by 
Newstead as hatching in June and July. In those kept under 
observation, they nearly all came out in the latter month and a few 
in August. 
Willows growing with ash have been found to be perfectly free 
from this scale, although the ashes were smothered. It looks, 
therefore, as if once settled on a host they do not change, and, 
possibly, it is only when the ash fails that the other trees are 
invaded. There are two forms of males. 
Natural Enemies. 
Great numbers of “ bugs ” have been observed feeding on this 
scale. The most abundant being a small black species identified by 
Mr. Distant as TemnostetJms pusillus , H.-Sch. I have taken as many 
as six on one small tree, all busily engaged in sucking the bodies of 
the scale insects, and I find they puncture through the scales, 
leaving a small hole, much as is formed by the exit of a Chalcid 
parasite. 
A larger species, Phytocoris dimidiatus , Rbm., which is very 
difficult to see owing to its being similarly adorned to the lichens and 
scales, also feeds upon them, but in fewer numbers, and occasionally 
I found Lydocoris campestris , Fabr., devouring them. This latter also 
attacks man. 
A large black springtail, with shiny body, was also seen in 
numbers grazing off these pests. 
* I have been unable to get this identified. 
