208 SCOLYTUS MINOR, MS. 

At higher elevations, round 8,000 feet at the upper limit of deo- 
dar growth, it apparently first appears about the middle to the 
third week of the latter month. The beetle is to be found beneath 
the bark in all parts of the deodar trees, bole, top and side 
branches and in trees of allages from the largest in the forest to 
small six-foot saplings. The insect invariably accompanies 
Scolytus major, MS., and it is only in the smallest saplings or 
the smaller branches of trees that itis found alone. 
The beetle’s method of attack from the outside and its opera- 
tions within the tree are constant and are easily recognizable. 
As is usual with bark-borers, it bores a small ‘shot hole’ 
through the bark in order to reach the bast, and in saplings and 
poles this is always made on the main stem just beneath a 
branch at its point of junction with the stem. The main 
branches of a deodar are more or less horizontal, and the beetle 
takes advantage of the shelter thus afforded it to carry on its 
operations protected from the view of its foes, and more especially 
from the predaceous C/erus beetle to be described later. In cases 
of bad attacks when every nook beneath the branches is already 
occupied two holes instead of one will be occasionally seen in this 
position, but this is exceptional. Failing a branch, the beetle 
seeks out any inequality on the stem such as a small projecting 
flake of bark or small ridge to make its entrance tunnel beneath. 
In large trees it always bores in beneath a flake of thick bark, 
and the entrance tunnel is usually at an angle. Only very excep- 
tionally in the case of this smaller Scolytus have I found its 
entrance hole without some kind of sheiter over it. On reach- 
ng the cambium layer the beetle, which apparently pairs with 
the ¢ before entering the tree as [ have never found more than one 
insect in any one tunnel, commences to bore its egg gallery in an 
upward direction, circling round the branch in doing so, in order 
to get immediately above it and then going vertically up the main 
stem in small curved zig-zags (see Pl. X fig. 3, d (1)). If the 
gallery is made in side branches, it will be in the direction of 
the longitudinal axis of the branch. On either side of this egg 
gallery the beetle gnaws out little indentations in the wood 
and places an egg ineach. These notches do not begin until 
the egg gallery has been bored for a short distance, the 
