THE FLEA-BEETLES. 
127 
and in chinks of walls. They lay their eggs in the spring, 
upon the leaves of the plants upon which they feed. The 
larvae, or young, of the smaller kinds burrow into the leaves, 
and eat the soft pulpy substance under the skin, forming 
therein little winding passages, in Avhich they finally com¬ 
plete their transformations. Hence the plants suffer as much 
from the depredations of the larvae, as from those of the 
beetles, a fact that has too often been overlooked. The 
larvae of the larger kinds are said to live exposed upon the 
surface of the leaves which they devour, till they have come 
to their growth, and to go into the ground, where they 
are changed to pupae, and soon afterwards to beetles. The 
mining larvae, the only kinds which are known to me from 
personal examination, are little slender grubs, tapering to¬ 
wards each end, and provided with six legs. They arrive 
at maturity, turn to pupae, and then to beetles in a few 
weeks. Hence there is a constant succession of these in¬ 
sects, in their various states, throughout the summer. The 
history of the greater part of our Halticas or flea-beetles is 
still unknown ; I shall, therefore, only add, to the foregoing 
general remarks, descriptions of two or three common spe¬ 
cies, and suggest such remedies as seem to be useful in 
protecting plants from their ravages. 
The most destructive species in this vicinity is that which 
attacks the cucumber plant as soon as the latter appears 
above the ground, eating the seed-leaves, and thereby de¬ 
stroying the plant immediately. Supposing this to be an 
undescribed insect, I formerly named it Haltica 
Cucumeris^ the cucumber flea-beetle (Fig. 56); 
but Mr. Say subsequently informed me that it was 
the puhe^cens of Illiger, so named because it is very 
slightly pubescent or downy. Count Dejean, who 
gave to it the specific name of fvtscula^ considered 
it as distinct from the puhescens; and it differs from the 
descriptions of the latter in the color of its thighs, and in 
never having the tips and shoulders of the wing-covers yel- 
