160 
robust than male, but very similar in color 
and pubescence. 
Foop PLants AND Hapsits.—Breeds on 
dogwoods (Cornus stolonifera, C. paniculata 
and C. alternifolia) and cultivated pear 
(Pyrus communis); also reared from win- 
terberry (Jlex verticillata). The nymphs 
hatch when the leaves unfold and they feed 
a 
AY IN 
me 
Wier bi AN { 
Fig. 165.— Neolygus communis, 9. 
on this tender foliage. On pears, the nymphs 
attack the young fruit as soon as it forms 
and continue to feed on it in’ preference 
to the leaves. All pears thus punctured be- 
come knotty and scarred to such an extent 
that the fruit is unsalable. The nymphs are 
green, closely matching the color of the 
young fruit; this makes it difficult to see 
them. The nymphs mature in about 24 days, 
or, usually, by the middle of June in central 
Illinois. ‘The adults, likewise, prefer to 
feed on the pears and contribute further to 
the destruction of the fruit. In New York, 
the author observed that the adult bugs were 
active agents in distributing pear blight 
among the trees, the blight developing about 
feeding punctures made by the bugs. Ovi- 
position occurs during the last week of June 
and up to the middle of July in New York, 
a few individuals probably laying after that 
date. The eggs are inserted under the bark 
of the new cambium layer (Knight 1915) ; 
Ittino1s NATURAL History SURVEY BULLETIN 
Vol. 22; Arig 
in one place six eggs were found deposited 
in a mass. Most of the males die by the 
middle of July, but many females live until — 
the end of that month. There is only one 
brood annually; the winter is passed in the 
egg stage and the nymphs appear again in 
the spring at the time the leaves unfold. In 
Nova Scotia a smaller, more slender form, 
variety mnovascotiensis Knight (1916a, p. 
349), is an important pest on apple fruit. 
Known DistripuTion.—Colorado and 
Idaho northward to Alberta and Minnesota, 
eastward to Ontario and Maine and south- 
ward to North Carolina. 
Illinois Records.—ANTIocH: Aug. 1, 
1924, T. H. Frison, 19 ; July 52/7) 1932 ae 
H. Frison, on Ilex verticillata, 4 ¢@, 209. 
FRANKFORT: June 8, 1933, Mohr & Town- 
send, 39. Quincy: June 11-30, 1883, low- 
lands, 1¢. St. JosepH: June 17, 1932) 
"HY FE risona soe 
Neolygus univittatus Knight 
Lygus (Neolygus) univittatus Knight (19174, 
poo23). 
Known only from New York, but inten- 
sive collecting on its host plant, hawthorn 
(Crataegus sp.), should extend its recorded 
range. 
Neolygus quercalbae Knight 
Lygus (Neolygus) quercalbae Knight (19172, 
p. 624). 
Mace.—Length 5.70, width 2.40. Re- 
sembles omnivagus Knight, but is deeper 
reddish brown, more robust, and has a pale 
stripe on either side of venter; similar to 
semivittatus Knight in coloration of venter, 
but does not have distinct, fuscous spots be- 
hind calli and is more red in color; genital 
claspers, fig. 164, distinctive. 
FEeMALE.—Length 5.60, width 2.60; more 
robust than male, but very similar in colora- 
tion; larger and more reddish than oni- 
vagus and semivittatus; distinguished from 
them by the distinctly reddish hind femora 
and sides of body. : 
Foop PLrant.—White oak (Quercus 
alba) on which it is often very abundant. 
This species has been collected on peach 
trees and hickory (Carya ovata) along with 
N. caryae Knight, but breeds only on white 
oak so far as the writer has been able to de- 
termine. The nymphs hatch with the burst- 
ing of the buds and feed thereafter on the 
