xt7tht2g8v1k https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7tht2g8v1k/data/mets.xml   Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station. 1901 journals kaes_bulletins_091 English Lexington, Ky. : The Station, 1885- Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin n.91. text Bulletin n.91. 1901 2014 true xt7tht2g8v1k section xt7tht2g8v1k I KENTucKY   K T
P AGRICULTURAL EXPEHIMENT STATIUN    
K State College 0F Kentucky, K N
BULLETIN N0. 91. K
I. Enemies of Cucumbers and Related Plants.  .__
2. Experiments with Potato Scab.  
_ 3. The Food of the Toad.
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY,
March 8, ago:.
1 F

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l l' K
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I . KENT U CKY
. Agrncultural Experiment Station.
4 BOARD OF CONTROL.
` THOS. TODD, Shelbyville, Ky.
]. B. MARCUM, ]ackson, Ky.
]. B. KENNEDY, Paris, Ky. _
D. F. FRAZEE, Lexington, Ky.
J. K. PATTERSON, President of the College.
, M. A. SCOVELL, Director, Secretary.
  STATION OFFICERS.
I { M. A. SCOVELL, Director. °
. P, A. M. PETER, _
i , Chemists.
L ‘ H. E. CURTIS,
  H. GARMAN, Entoniologist and Botanist.
i . C. \V. MATHEWS, Horticulturist.
I I
; l ]. N. HARPER, Agricnlturist.
V · W H SCHERFFIUS, ,
: 5 A5Slt.Cl1€IlllSTS.
= ,..{f ` ` L. O. BIC \TTY,
V y` R. M. ALLEN, Clerk.
A ]. D. TURNER, Secretary to Dixector.
  H. LUGGER, Ass’t. Entomologist and Botanist.
    ]. O. LA EACH, Ass’t. Chemist.
{ Q Address of the Station-—LEXINGTON, KY.
t I
A NOTICE.
’ The l.nlletins ofthe Station will he mailed free to any citizen of Ken~
tncky who sends his name and address to the Station for that purpose.
I Correspondents will please notify the Director of changes in their post-
otiice address, or of any failure to receive the Bulletins,
ADDRESS:
K1;N'rUc1;y .-\<:1z1cuL’rU1z.u, Ex1·1·;R12»1ENT 5TA*r1oN,
Lizxmorow, KY.
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Bulletin N o. 91.
1. Enemies of Cucumbers and Related Plants. 1 T
BY H. GARMAN, Entomologist and Botanist.
I
The Striped Cucumber Beetle.
(Dz`¢zbr0/im w'//rzlrz.)
The period immediately following the coming up of cucum-
ber, melon and squash plants is one of anxiety to gardeners in
Kentucky because of the liability of such plants to injury and _ ,
even destruction by a small beetle 3-16 to % inch long, with  
black head, yellow thorax, and several alternating black and 5
pale yellow stripes along the back. It comes regularly each  i
Spring, and can be found in most gardens and nelds thereafter  
during the summer. If growers of these plants can escape or  
can ward off its visitations while the plants are young, but i
little further difficulty is experienced, during most seasons and  
in most sections of Kentucky, in carrying them to maturity. "
The beetles constitute our most formidable bar to the success- ·
ful growing of melons and cucumbers.
`Wliile the mischief done by the adult beetle is most dreaded,
it is only a part of that inflicted by the insect. \\’here adults
are allowed free access to plants they place their eggs close K
about them in the soil, and in thelatter part of june the young
which hatch from the eggs begin to gnaw the underground ,
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I I _ 4 Bu!/elin N0_91.
  ’ parts so as occasionally to complete the destruction of such as
i ` have escaped the adults. More commonly this injury simply
g weakens the plant and it becomes of less and less moment as
  the plants increase in siae, because of the great extent of roots
then available to the young; for the worms are not restricted
. ' to the main stem for food, but wander about with considerable
activity in the soil.
LIFE HISTORY.
Common as the insect is, the complete life·history has not
been worked out. Some facts that add to a knowledge of it
2 have recently been obtained in the Vivarium of this Division
  of the Kentucky Station, and are given below, together with
  observations made by me in the State from time to time dur-
`   ing the past ten years.
A   _ . Adults are to be seen about cultivated ground throughout
i} the fall months. September 1, 1900, an adult 29 days old
, i from date of hatching, emerged in the Yivarium. December
I   I 6, 1894, a specimen was collected with a miscellaneous lot of
f `Ig insects hibernating under boards and stones. In the Fall of _
,   1900 a large number of adults were collected and confined in
I   »_ the Vivarium for the winter. A recent examination (january
‘ 2, IQOI) shows some of them still alive in soil.
  These facts imply that the cucumber beetle hibernates as an
_   adult hid away in· the soil. The same inference is to be drawn
"   from the early spring history of the insect. It appears as an
* g adult as soon as cucumber or melon plants appear above
i   ground, The earliest record I have of individuals that have
· wintered over is in a letter dated April 12, 1892, from Mr. G.
` P. Tippenhauer of Newport, Ky., who wrote enclosing speci- .
I mens and complaining that they were then troublesome. Such
I complaints become frequent in May and continue until after
the middle of june, when the adults have placed their eggs
about the plants and disappeared. Some of these adults, how-
ever, are to be seen as late as ]uly 7.
During the first; half of ]nly there seems to be some reduc-
tion in the number of adults abroad, but during the latter half
of themonth adults that hatch from the earliest-laid eggs be-
__    _ _____é;_‘,.,,   .·_ ,2. 4  , .~ ;__ q   *

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Enemies cf Cuouméers and Relaied P/anis. 5 .
gin to emerge, and from this time until Fall the beetle is fre-
quently seen in gardens, although from having everywhere
an abundande of food, is not noticeably mischievous, as it i
would probably prove to be if it were restricted, as in Spring,
to the very young plants.  
It is possible that some of these early-maturing beetles lay ,'
eggs for a second brood that matures before Fall, since eggs
have been obtained by us as late as july 26, a date subsequent 3 T
to that at which some of the beetles mature, But I am satis- 1 `
fied that the suggestion sometimes made that three or more i ,
broods develop during a season is without foundation, and has `
probably resulted from the fact that the adults are engaged in
egg-laying for some time, and that, consequently, eggs, larvae,
pupae, and possibly, at times, recently-matured adults, the
progeny of a single female, may be found about plants at the
same time. \Vhen, added to this, tl1e progeny of different `
individuals is considered, the problem as presented by the
stages of the insect present about plants at any one time is
still more perplexing, for during a couple of months there
exists acomplicated assortment of lappings due to different `
dates of egg—laying of the same and different individuals, as
well as to the very different rates at which individuals hatched j
at one time grow to maturity. · _
The first adult reared in the Vivarium of this Division  
emerged ]uly 23, twenty-four days from the time it hatched
from the egg. Others emerged from August I4 to September  5
1, and varied in age from 26 to 33 days. The average age at _.[;{x‘
which maturity is reached, obtained from ten different lots of  
reared beetles, is 28% days. The last reared beetle emerged t
I September 1, 1900, when 29 days old.  
The beetles feed on a variety of plants, sometimes proving  
injurious to others besides cucumber, melon and squash. They ·
may gnaw badly the leaves of cultivated asters. The "silks"
of corn ears when tender are often eaten by them. Ashmead
says they feed in the pollen of the cotton flower. Years ago
they were reputed as very injurious to the blossoms of pear
and cherry trees in Illinois. Beans are sometimes gnawed by
them. Somewhat recently they have been charged with con- ’
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i   A veying a bacterial disease known as wiZt* from plant to plant, 1
i . ` and since this attacks the plants after they begin to trail, it is
i possible they are responsible for a great deal of loss that has .
  not commonly been attributed to them.
E It is possible that the young also do mischief other than
_ that with which we are acquainted. But the injury they were
' V at one time accused of doing to corn roots in Maryland proved `
to be the work of a related beetle, sometimes called the spotted
cucumber bug (Dz`a&r0lzka 12·p1mcz‘az‘a) now a well known _
corn insect.
When ready to place their eggs, the beetles creep into crev-
ices in tl1e soil alongside the stems of the plants or near them. *
j; `When confined about plants in iiower pots they sometimes put
  the eggs at the outer edges of the pots, the separation of the
.   soil from tl1e pot affording them an opportunity to find a hiding
  place for them. They are not expert burrowers and as a rule
  ` the eggs are to be found near the surface, this depending some-
  what on the looseness of the soil, or upon the character of the
’ _ crevices that may be present. The number of eggs placed
1   about any one plant is not large, which implies that when un- A
1   confined the females scatter them about a number of plants,
j   E thus more effectively providing for the young. From the ap- `
4 Ii pearance of young found about plants it is probable that some
  of the beetles that survive the winter begin to place their eggs
[ ~before the middle of ]une, but the earliest date at which they
·.   have been seen by me is ]une 18, when examples were secured
    from earth about plants growing in tl1e Vivarium. Subse-
~   quently they were obtained from time to time during a consid-
i J erable period, extending by my records from ]une 18 to ]uly
i 26.
- The young begin to l1atcl1 during the latter half of ]une,
and in IQOO larvze of various sizes were collected from the
i` roots of plants on ]une 26. The first young observed to hatch
._ came from the eggs june 27, and others were noticed coming
‘ out ]une 28 and ]uly 13, 26, and intermediate dates. Unlike
the adults they are quite at home in the soil, moving about
*Due according to lh.     §f»§part111ei1t of
Agriculture to an organism l1e has named Bari//ns [l'(Z[/IUI]?/II./1lS.
2;- .
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_, Enemies ef Cueumlzers and Relaied Plants. 7
with considerable freedom in search of food, though probably Q
· never leaving the region occupied by the fibrous roots of the
plants. In the Vivarium they were to be found not only in _
burrows which they cut in the interior of the stems, but often
several inches from the stem and five to six inches from the
surface, where they were probably at work on the fibrous Xg
~ roots. When ready to become pupx, however, they approach ,`
the surface, making small oval cavities finally, by compacting
the earth about them, in which to transform. These little ’.
chambers are generally less than an inch from the surface, and . A I M
never, as far as abserved, more than two inches. The youngest ,
, pupa obtained in the Vivarium was formed on the 15th day `
after hatching from the egg. The larvae persist, however, in
many cases longer than 1 5 days, and may be found even 27
days old. An average duration of larval life based upon my -
own observations will come pretty near IQ days. Before pupat-
ing, the worms become much shorter and thicker and in this `
condition remain inactive for a time, before the skin is
moulted. When in this condition I am inclined to think the
» moulting of the skin is retarded or accelerated by the weather,
since insect transformations show a marked dependence on i
· weather conditions.
The latest date at which larvm have been observed in the ,
Vivarium is August 25. ,
The first pupa observed in 1900 was taken from the earth on A  `
July 2o; the latest observed was taken up August 29. Taking
the average duration of larval life as IQ days, and the average  L
length of time which elapses from date of hatching to the  
emerging of the adults as 27 days (obtained from nine records  
ranging from 24 to 29 days) the period spent in the pupa state R
is only about eight days.  
The following data are taken from reared specimens, col-  
lected specimens, notes and correspondence in my possession : ·
April I2, Adults received from G. P. Tippenhauer, New-
port, Ky.
April 26, Adult collected at Lexington.
May 25, Adult received from Dr. C. M. Smith, Dixon, `
Webster C0.
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E june 1, Adults injuring melon and cucumber, Lexington.
l J V june 2, Adults collected in blue-grass pasture. ,
\ june 1 5, Adults injurious at Bernstadt; received from Fran-
; cois Sabatier.
  june 18, Eggs obtained in Vivarium. _
3 june 21, Adults injurious at Woodbine, j. W. Hart. _
  june 26, Eggs. Larvx of various sizes collected.
june 27, Larvae just hatched. Adult collected.
june 28, Larva: just hatched. .
A july 7, Adults collected. `
july 8, Larvae (9 days old).
july 11, Larvae (13 days old). `
. july 13, Larvae (just hatched, and others 8 days old). ` A
  july 20, Larvae (1, 15, 17 and 2I days old). Pupae (15, 17
i   and 2I days old).
A   july 21, Larvae (2 days old).
  · july 23, Larvae (5, I5 and 25 days old). Pupae (15 and 24
  days old). Adult (24 days old).
1   july 25, Larvae (15 and 16 days old).
I { july 28, Larvae (3 days old).
° __ july 29, Larvae (4 days old).
j A,.   july 30, Larvae (6 days old).
A ll 'iii August 1, Larvm (7 days old).
( August 2, Larvae (22 days old). Pupa (22 days old).
j August 3,, Larva (23 days old). Pupae (22 and 23 days
._   old).
; Y August 6, Larvae (10, I2 and IQ days old).
  l August 7, Larvae (11 and .13 days old). .
` ~— August 14, Larva (27 days old). Pupa (27 days old).
` Adult (just out, 27 days old).
. August 15, Larva (18 days old).
August 17, Pupa (3o days old). Adult (30 days old).
P August 20, Larva (20 days old). Pupae (20 and 26 days
old). Adults (26, 32 and 33 days old). .
` August 25, Adult (31 days old).
August 26, Pupa (26 days old). Adult (26 days old),
August 27, Adult (27 days old).
August 28, Pupa (28 days old). ’
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Erzemzks qf Cucumbers and Re/ami Plants. 9 i
August 29, Pupa (3,2 days old). Adult collected.
Sept. 1, Adult (29 days old). _ ·
Sept. 24, Adult collected on grasses.
Sept. 26, Adult collected. M
Oct. 1, Adult collected.  
_ Dec. 6, Adult collected with other insects under boards J
and stones. .
Dec. go, Adults hibernating in earth in Vivarium. j ,.
March 18, Adults active in Vivarium. . .
REMEDIAL TREATMENT. -
The beetles are likely to prove most troublesome on places
where accumulations of leaves, weeds, heaps of boards, and
stones furnish convenient hiding places for the winter. \Vhen
these are removed in the- Fall they must go elsewhere for shel-
ter, and are not so likely to be present in large numbers the ‘
following Spring. They fiy readily and can thus travel long
distances in search of food, hence plants are not entirely safe.
anywhere. Yet even where they are most abundant, by tak-
T ing the matter in hand in season, most of the injury to the l
young plants can be prevented. Time is lost sometimes by
making use of so-called remedies that long ago proved value-
less. Here is a list of materials that have been recommended A
with "conlidence" by one person or another during the past "`Pi
forty years as remedies for this i11sect : Plaster, lime, ashes,
soot, powdered charcoal, sulphur, snuff, Glauber salts, tobacco  _
dust, tobacco decoction, elder leaf decoction, walnut leaf de-  
coction, aloes, tobacco water, soft soap and li111e, pyrethrum,  
Paris green, white hellebore.
Plaster was one of the first of the list to be used, but proved  
not effective in the hands of growers of cucumbers and was 'i”·¥
abandoned. The same thing is to be said of lime, which has .
at times been strongly recommended as preventing injury
when dusted on the leaves. Somewhat recently these mate-
rials have been recommended for use in sowing broadcast in
fields, thus driving the beetles out. The insects are timid and
take flight readily enough, yet it is questionable if the treat-
ment is as complete a remedy for the injury as has been
claimed.  
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i *_ , 10 Bulletin N0. 91.
  ¤ Soot and powdered charcoal were long ago shown by Dr.
E ‘ Fitch of New York to be of no value whatever.
, The mixture of tobacco water and soft soap to be sprinkled
  on the leaves which are afterward dusted with lime has been I
A recommended by very competent men, and has the appearance
,_   ~ of a good combination for the purpose.
In my own experience, as I have stated in other publica-
tions, the insect powder of drug stores, either pure or mixed
with flour, ashes, or other material, has proved quite sufficient
to protect the young plants from severe injury. But they
must be dusted frequently until well started. For a garden
this treatment is all that is necessary, since the cost for the
  required powder is not very great. Where an acre or more is
  is planted other treatment is to be preferred.
`   Bordeaux mixture answers very well for keeping this insect
lg _ from gnawing plants, and since it protects them at the same
  time from mildew it is under some circumstances the best ma-
V 4 terial we know for use in spraying cucumbers and melons. Its
, 3 insecticide properties were demonstrated by me in 1889 in ex-
i li, perimenting with the potato flea beetle and the margined
i   blister beetle. At the outset the mixture was supposed to be
‘ · **— E simply a deterrent, rendering sprayed leaves nnpalatable to
  insects, but experiments on insects kept in confinement (re- ,
’, ported on page 125 of Agricultural Science, Vol. 6, 1892)
  showed that when they are compelled to eat the mixture it
    acts as a slow poison. Tobacco worms, grasshoppers, and
E ‘, Colorado potato beetles were killed with it.
i `_ \Vhere the beetles alone are troublesome one of the most
· satisfactory means of keeping them from the young, plants is
by the use of covers made of four pieces of board nailed to- _
I gether at the ends to form a square, with tobacco muslin tacked ‘
I over the top. These are set over the plants as long as the
beetles are troublesome, `when they can be stored in a dry
place until another season. Similar covers are sometimes
made from two willow twigs, bent so as that one crosses the
other over the plants and with the ends thrust into the soil_ ,
A square of tobacco muslin is then thrown over these and the
edges covered with earth.

 ‘I
i Erzemies qf Czzcuméers and Relafed Plants. 11 j
A couple of sections of a keg hoop can be crossed over the
plants and covered with muslin in similar manner.
The frames should be ready for use before the plants are `
up. If Bordeaux mixture is to be used the materials and
pump should be secured before they are needed, since the mix-  
ture is very largely preventive in its action and must be applied  
early if the best results are to be obtained. ¤
DESCRIPTION.   V.
Egg.—The egg is of a pale but evident yellow color when ` g
fresh, and measures just about 1-50 inch in length, with a · —
diameter a little more than half the length. The shape is as
nearly that of a hen’s egg as it well could be. Four specimens
measured under the microscope give an average length of 0.54
mm. and an average diameter of 0.36 mm. The surface is reti-
culate in 5 and 6-sided areas like the eggs of the two corn root '
worms {Dz`abr0iz`m Zongicarvzzk and D. 12-puuclala), which they
greatly resemble in other respects. The eggs of the southern
corn root worm are a little longer than those of either of the
other species. As I remember the egg of the northern corn ‘
root worm from an examination made a good many years ago
it is so much like that of the striped cucumber bug that it p
could only be distinguished by careful microscopic examina-
tion. "`*i
Lama or II/07'7/l.*XVIllt€, with small oval dark brown head» h
partly covered by a wide smooth yellowish brown plate pro-  t
jecting forward from the next body division. Skin wrinkled,  
with series of rounded prominences along the sides; with nu- if
merous short forwardly-directed hairs. Body terminating j
f in a blackish plate that bears at its hind edge near the middle ·  
line two erect teeth. Beneath the front portion of the plate i`
is a downwardly-projecting fleshy false leg, which effectively '
I aids the three pairs of jointed legs located just behind tl1e
i head. Length when fully grown about one-half inch.
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  _ 12 Bu/[erin N0. 91.
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i i Fig. l. A, last body segment of young striped cucumber beetle just
hatched ; B, last body segment of nearly grown larva of cucumber beetle,
showing spines at tip, and four paddle-shaped appendages, about B. ,
(Enlarged. Original.)
\ Immediately after hatching the larva measures a little more
_ than I-25 inch in length (1.30 to 1.72 mm.) and has a diam-
i eter of about one-fifth the length (0.26 to 0.28 mm.) It is
.   white, with the head and neck plate brownish, while the tail
·_   plate is already blackish. The head is now relatively larger
`   than it is later, and the tail plate is quite different in shape. .
  I Seen from above this latter is qnadrate in shape. Looked at
if from the side it is seen to project beyond all the other struc-
,   tures, to be strongly arched above, and to be without a trace
5 ·l of the two teeth that later become a striking character of the
. , plate. The false foot projects downward and generally a
l .~·€§   trifle forward in preserved specimens. It is a conspicuous
i structure in the newly hatched larva.
_ Fig. 2. Side view of-last body segment of larval cucumber beetle.  ’
A, caudal plate, with spines at B, paddle—shaped appendages at C, and
{ fleshy foot at D. E, the last segment of a larvajust hatched. (Enlarged.
Original.)
As the larva grows older the head becomes smaller rela-
tively, the body more slender, while the tail plate becomes
more rounded behind and two erect teeth gradually appear at
its hind edge. Larvae four days old measure 3, mm. in
length. \Vhen five days old the tubercles are visible at the

 i Encmzks q' Cucumbers and Relaled Planls. 13 `
Thind edge of the caudal plate, but are very small, while the
;plate itself is quite different in shape from that of the recent- .
· 2ly hatched larva, though it has not yet assumed the shape it
is yet to take. Larvae eight days old measure 5 mm. in length
and the tubercles at the edge of the caudal plate are notice-  
able in all examples. When twelve days old the larva has as- ~
-sumed all the characters that distinguish it from the larva of A _
related beetles, and the changes which take place subsequent- i‘ V
`ly are but slight, consisting chiefly in increase in size. The . i i
length is now about 7 mm. The tubercles at the edge of the L
-caudal plate are conspicuous. The head and caudal plate are
decidedly blackish, while the neck plate is also dark in color.
\7Vhen 2O days days old the larva is about io mm. long, and
subsequently may become shorter, when ready to become a
. pupa. The general color is still white. The head is quite _
` small. The caudal plate is strongly arched above, with the two.
-sharp spines at its tip turned up and a triiie forward. From
the time the larva hatches this plate bears four very singular %
little spatulate scales or plates on the dorsal surface, as repre- ,
sented in the outline figures. \Vhat their function is is a mat-
ter of conjecture. They are present also on the plates of the
two corn root worms (D. [0}l_g'l.£07'7lZ·5 and 1). 12·_/Jzuzrfzzla), as I ·
discovered a good many years ago, and may prove to be char-   ;
acteristic of larvae belonging to this genus. ii
Papa.-\Vhite, 4% to 5 mm. long and 2 mm. in diameter. ,
Head folded close against breast, so that it is invisible fro111  »
above. Antennae extending outward and backward around  
the extremities of the two forward pairs of femora, then at zi
the tip turning toward the body again. Hind femora directed
 ' obliquely backward and folded against the sides of tl1e abdo—  
men. Front wing pads reaching the l1i11d femora. Hind _ N
wing pads extending I-50 inch beyond hind femora. Seg— `
ments of body with series of erect hairs. Tip of abdomen
blunt, with two slender, divergent, acute spines, the distal
halves of which are black.
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E Q A
Fig. 3. A, extremity of abdomen of the pupa of the spotted cucumber
beetle (Diabralica I2-p1H1£f(ZitZ). B, same of the pupa of the striped cu-
cumber beetle (D. villain); (Enlarged. Original.)
Smaller than the pupa of our corn root worm (D. I2-p7¢7ZC-
{ala), and noticeably different in the greater slenderness of the
t terminal abdominal spine, half of which is black, while in the
  pupa of D. I2-pZ¢7ZL`[(Z{d only the extreme tips of these spines
( g are black. .
i   Imaga ar Aduli.-—Pale yellow with head, antennae, feet, ab- ’
  ` domen, and three stripes along the back black. Head small,
  bent downward. Thorax small, with two large and rather
A   deep depressions on dorsal side. Body widening behind.
g .!, Length of male, 5 to 5% mm. Length of female 6 to 6% mm.
_   The beetles are so well known as scarcely to call for de-
·   i scription, but the following additional characters will serve to
i distinguish them from other striped beetles of the same family in
  any doubtful case. T-he antennae are black excepting the
i thnee basal segments, which arc yellow, the two first with
    some black at the tips. The front femora are yellow except-
Q   ing the tips, while the tibiau and tarsi are wholly black. The
{ i tips of the middle and hind femora, and also of the middle
f` and hind tibiw are black, while the tarsi of both these pairs
are entirely black. All the ventral side of the body except- 4
‘ ing that of the small thorax (prothorax) is black. The black ·
,5 i on the back is in three longitudinal stripes when the wings are
closed, but when the front pair is separated the middle stripe
is seen to be partly on one and partly on the other. The
stripes do not quite reach the hind margin. The whole sur-
face of each wing cover is minutely longitudinally ribbed, the
lines between ribs being rather coarsely punctnred.
i `-`V  `  "*'er·‘   r` 2,  ;_>_,£ '

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i Enemies of Cucumber.: and Relaied Plants. 15 ·
. ‘ EARLY LITERATURE.
~ Most of the facts concerning the life history of the cucum- . .
ber bug seem to have first been made out by Dr. Henry
Shimer, of Illinois, and Dr. Asa Fitch, State Entomologist of
New York. Dr. Shimer’s account of the insect appeared in  
i the Prairie Farmer in 1865. Subsequently, 1871, in volume ·
5, of the American Naturalist, he added facts concerning the
_ early stages and described and figured a ily parasite which he ·
n named lilelanasphora a’z`ab¢·0fz`crz· (now Celaz'0rz`a diabrvfzkz). Dr. . V J
Fitch’s article was published in his 1oth report as State Ento- V
mologist, in 1867. This is one of the best of the early ac- _
counts of the insect, being based, as was usual with this au-
thor, on his own observations. But the figures were rather
poor, and that of the pupa has the abdomen represented much
too long. In his second Missouri report (1870) C. V. Riley ,
gives a good account of the insect, with figures of larva,
pupa and adult, and adds some data to what had previously
been published. Briefer articles giving observations on food
habits of the beetles appeared also in the Practical Entomolo- _
A gist, the American Entomologist, and in the agricultural
journals from 1866 to 1875, but contributed little to what was
known concerning the transformations, or of remedies for the ·
injuries. A   i
The recent literature of value is to be found chiefly in bul-  
letins and circulars of the Department of Agriculture at ,
\Vashington, and in Station Bulletins.  .
.9%
The Spotted Cucumber Beetle.  
. (Dz'abr0z’z`m 12-jmzzclaia.)  
This is a near relative of the striped cucumber beetle, but ii
is somewhat larger, and has the wings spotted instead of -
striped with black. It is sometimes seen about young cucum-
ber plants, which it gnaws in much the same way as its rela-
tive. \Vhen it is disposed to be mischievous the plants may be
covered with cloth, or sprayed with Bordeaux mixture. A
It is common in Kentucky, but does 111ost of its mis-
chief as a larva feeding on the roots of corn. I
. 1 A

 ii - `
S 1
(A
i i‘• i
i t h 16 Bulleizbz N0. 91.
i I, A full account of the insect was published in our annual re-
° , port for 1890, under the title, The Corn Ro0t—w0rm of Ken-
i n tucky.
E .
t The Northern Squash Beetle.
._ - 1 (Epilachmz barealis.)
  . ,
'   , gif e   " A  , S"   . -‘i W O
    ,          d
        {lt      
.7   .;·•   \"T_/   \ _  
  ’   $\ ; c E
.; . a J
  Fig. 4. The northern squashjbeetle (Elblildf/17Id 601*611/is). 0, larva;
, ” {P, pupa ; c, adult ; zz', egg ; e, surface of egg magnified. (All figures en-
,   larged After Chittenden, U. S. Div. Ent.)
i ,· In the mountains of eastern Kentucky and in the Bluegrass
, _/.   region adjacent is found ·a spotted lady beetle about 0.36 inch
I   ¤ long that at times in both adult and grub state gnaws the
`* leaves of gourds, squashes and related plants so as to do so1ne
  mischief.
._   Its depredatious are local and periodical, however, so that
Z   it is not as well known to gardeners as are several other in-
    sects attacking the same plants. Stray individuals of the
` A ~ adult are to be observed in gardens during late summer, and
{ are now and then found about buildings, where they wander ,
. when ready to hide for the coming winter. It was first ob-
served and collected at Lexington, September 6, ISQO. It was
I- found at Pineville, Bell County, ]une 15, 1892. Under date  ·
]une 21. 1892, Mr. ]. W. Hart, wrote from '\Voodbine, \Vhit-
ley County, complaining of its injuries to watermelon vines.
August 22d of the same year, it was found to be common in
the vicinity of Clay’s Ferry in Fayette County. Since 1892 it
has been less COll1lllO1l,iibl1l a few 1nay always be found by
  . 1
__ —e__ n . . ......,2,,;,,    ¤·r·a.~.   .  » z. ¤   ;..·_;g ’

 · I ll
 
I gfvzeynzks qf Cucuméers and Relalcd Planls. 17 `
I careful collecting, and individuals are likely to be encountered
at any time from june to November. The latest capture now .
in the Station collection was taken on a window ledge of the
Station building November 22, 1900. _
I The injury done by this lady beetle consists in gnawing the  
leaves and rendering them ragged. It is an exceptional food *
habit for a lady beetle, all our other species feeding upon bark _
» lice, plant lice and other small insects; but is not the only veg- ‘ V
i etable feeding lady beetle, species of similar habit having _ I
been observed in European countries. The injurious work l
begins as soon as the beetles come forth in Spring, and be-
sides the injury to the leaves, the rind of melons is sometimes
badly gnawed. Egg-laying begins during the latter half of
june, when the eggs are placed in clusters on the under sides _
of the leaves. They hatch in about ten days the larvae feeding _
exclusively on the under surface of the leaves, whereas the
adults attack them at any point and leave nothing but the
veins. Larvae are ready to become pupae in ]uly, and pupate
about the plants, emerging as beetles in a week or ten days. .
The whole development of the insect, from the time it hatches
until it becomes adult, occupies about a month.
REM EDIAL TREATMENT. 4
The insect is not a difhcult one to deal with owing to its  
large size and general stupidity. It creeps very slowly, does _ 5
not take wing readily, and can be removed by hand with but  _
little trouble. In case it attacks extensive plantings of  
squashes or melons at any time, Paris green and lime can in  
all probability be made to check it. k
 V DESCRIPTION. I  
Adz¢lz‘.—Tl1e beetles measure 0.32 to 0.36 inch in length, by '
I _ 0.22 to 0.28 inch in diameter. The back is strongly arched,
the head and thorax (prothorax) small, the legs and antennae
rather short. Color whitish yellow to ochre-yellow, with
sharply defined roundish black spots, as follows : Four on the-
thorax, of which the largest is median, somewhat triangular,
and located at the hind margin; twelve on the wing covers, |
. 1

 i i- i i A i Q 
2 { ‘ s.
E  
l  
1 l. · ~
i  
i   ·
i 1 - 18 Bulletiyz JV0. gz. ° '
D · ten of which form two transverse rows, the remaining two
i near the tips being largest except the median spot of the
  hindmost row. Body beneath yellow, marked with black.
  . Legs yellow. .
, The only native lady beetle very likely to be confounded V
if with this pest is the nine-spotted beetle. It is very often seen ‘
about squashes and melons feeding on the melon aphis. It 1
averages much smaller, however, the largest examples being ,
only about 0.28 inc