BEET CARRION BEETLE. 
91 
choke the Mites sheltering amongst the crannies of the branches at 
ground level. 
But where the bushes are much galled it is almost impossible to 
restore them to healthy growth, and for the sake of saving spread of 
infestation I believe the most saving course is to root them up and 
burn them , and fill in the holes temporarily with gas-lime or quick¬ 
lime, so as to kill any of the Gall Mites which may very likely be lying 
on the earth. 
Change of bush crop to something that the Gall Mites will not 
attack is obviously the best course to adopt, and up to the present time 
I had no information of the Gall Mite attacking other kinds than the 
Black Currant. This morning, however (January 15th), I am favoured 
by a letter from Dr. Friedrich Thomas, of Olirdruf, Gotha, Germany 
(a most eminent authority on Phyto-pathology), in which he mentions 
that the Bibes rubrum (that is, the Red Currant—E. A. 0.) also is 
injured by Phytoptus bud gall occurring on the stem. Dr. F. Thomas 
forwarded me, accompanying, a specimen of a stem infested by bud- 
galls, just in the same way that we know only too well on our English 
Black Currants, and mentioned that he had observed them for many 
years in his own garden, but up to the present time no notice of the 
attack had been practically taken in Germany; likewise that as yet 
the identity of the species of Gall Mites which cause the respective 
attacks on the Black and Red Currants had not been made out. 
However this may be, it is quite certain that the Mites are very nearly 
related, if not of the same kind, and there is no difference observable 
in swollen bud growths ; therefore the information from Dr. Thomas 
is very valuable as a hint for watching whether the infestation may 
appear on Red and White, as well as on Black Currants ; and also, in 
case of importation of Currant-plants from Germany, care should be 
given to this point. 
MANGOLDS. 
Beet Carrion Beetle. Silpha opaca , Linn. 
The Beet Carrion Beetle is very common, and often to be found 
in small carcases,—as dead birds, rabbits, garbage, &c.,—and until 
rather more than forty years ago it does not appear to have been 
known that its maggot was at times a vegetable feeder. About that 
date it was first observed as feeding on Beet-leaves in France, and 
from this circumstance—namely, from its double method of feeding— 
it takes its common name of the Beet Carrion Beetle. Since then it 
