New York AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT Station. 409 
Treatment.— The only available time for effective treatment is- 
just before the buds begin to swell, the object being to cover the 
buds with poison so that the young caterpillars will be poisoned 
as they gnaw into the bud. To make the work thorough, two ap- 
plications will usually be required. Paris green or some other 
good arsenical should be used. If it is desired to treat the trees: 
for apple scab, Bordeaux mixture may be combined with the Paris 
green for either of the above treatments. See page 417. 
CASE BEARERS. 
PISTOL-CASE-BEARER.* CIGAR-CASE-BEARER. 
(Coleophora malivorella Riley.) (Coleophora fletcherella Fern.) 
During the past three or four years these two insects have be- 
come very troublesome in this State. Their principal food plant 
is the apple, but they also feed upon the pear and quince and 
probably other fruit trees. The life histories of the two species 
are very similar. That of the pistol-case-bearer is as follows: 
Descriptions and life history.—The young caterpillars live over 
winter in little pistol-shaped cases of silk which are attached on 
end to the twigs usually near and sometimes upon the buds. 
These cases measure about one-eighth of an inch in length and 
resemble the bark in color. The winter cases of the cigar-case- 
bearer are more flattened laterally and are somewhat crescent 
shaped. They are also lighter in color and are more frequently 
found in sheltered places in the angles of the twigs. 
Early in the spring, a short time before the leaf buds burst, 
the hibernating case-bearers become active. They attack the 
growing buds gnawing through the outer covering to feed on the 
tender tissues beneath. Later in the season they feed on the 
young leaves making small round holes through the cuticle and 
feeding, in much the same manner as a true leaf miner, on the 
softer tissues beneath. In doing this the caterpillars do not usu- 
ally leave their cases but reach out as far as necessary. As they 
4 This species is discussed in detail by Lowe, in Bulletin 122 of this Station. 
