The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-03
Ally FoR ORANGE TREES.
Australian LadybuR Int ,oduced to
Destroy CALIFORNIA; TrVe Pests.

From the san Francisco Call.
The Australian ladybug has found a
new ally in her warfare upon the scale in
! sects that prey upon the orange trees of
! California. The newcomer reioices in
the classic name of OrcUs chalybeus She
is better known among English-speaking
| people as the steel-colOred ladybug.
! Her predatory assaults are confined to
the destruction of the red scale. The or
1 ange-growers have been fortunate in the
importation of insects that attack the
white scale and the black scale, but until
the advent of the Orcus chalybeus they
/ have found no foe to cope with the red
scale.
The orchardists of Los Angeles and Or
| ange counties are exceedingly jubilant
! over the discovery made within the last
| few days that this steel-covered insect is
| sapping the vitality of that destructive
! pest known as the red scale. For the last
! year a feeling of uncertainty has pre-
vailed as to whether this new bug would
accomplish anything useful. Experts
had denounced it as worthless in this
| climate, however valuable it had been in
Australia. 1t was shipped to this port on
ice, and for thirty days it was on cold
| storage. This period was passed on ship
| board. 1t was not believed that the Or
Gus chalybeus could survive the voyage
| across the Pacific iourneying in such
fashion and, therefore, it was predicted
! that her career of usefulness in attack
| ing the red scale would be confined to
| Australia.
For several days past Secretary Le-
| Long of the state board of Horticulture
/ has been in the receipt of letters from
! Los Angeles orange growers requesting
him to take steps to protect the new
| parasite. The discovery of its value as
beneficial predaceOus insect had tempted
I = T.
| scale to swoop down upon the only colony
| of the Orcus chalybeus in Los Angeles
county. This colony was located in the
| Kercheval orchard, and was exposed to
| the danger of being stripped of its last
steel-colored lady-bug. Pending the
action of the state board of horticulture
the board of supervisors of Los Angeles
has appointed an officer to repel the
| raiders, and thus allow the parasite to
propagate and multiply its species with
| out interruption.
| The Orcus chalybeus was brought to
| California from Australia last September
| by Albert Koebele, the discoverer of the
| Vedalia cardinals, who was sent to Aus
| tralia to collect and import into this state
! parasites and predaceous insects. The
| legislature in 1891 made an appropriation
of $1,000 to defray his expenses, his salary
being paid by the department of agricul-
| ture, Prof. Roebele succeeded in collect
ing about forty different species of bugs,
which he brought to this country in the
| hope that some of them would prove to be
! enemies of the various scales attacking
the orange and lemon trees of this state.
In Australia these insects are preyed
upon by minute parasite, and for that
reason they do not increase there so as to
be of much effect on the red scale Prof.
| KOebele reared all the larva he found in
a room, and from every 1000 of larva he
would get only very small proportion of
beetles, as the larva was destroyed by
| the parasite before changing to the beetle
state. For this reason no larva was sent,
as there was danger of introducing the
| parasite to prey on all the ladybugs now
there, including the native species.
The Orcus chalybeus has but two gen.
erations, although beetles can be found
during every day in the year. The eggs
are deposited by hibernated insects in
early spring. Spider-webs seem to be pre-
| ferred on which to fasten the eggs. Of
ten on single long threads rows of eggs can
be seen. This is done, it is surmised to
protect them from their many enemies.