Connecticut western news., 1912-07-18
ELM BEETLE IS AT WORK
Trees on Main Street are Alive with Crawling Vermin and
 Advice Is Sought.

The elm leat beetle lS getting ln It's pestiferous work on the Main street elms, and the big tree in front of Dr. Adams residence seems to be a special favorite, the massive trunk being liter ally alive with the crawling war mints."
 MT. Charles c. Smith sent a number of the worms to the State Agricultural Experiment Station at New Haven, with request for information as to the species and the proper means for their destruction. He received the following reply, from Prof. B. H. Walden, assist ant in entomology:
 "Mr. 0. G. Smith, Dear Sir:-Your card of July 10th, together with the insects on elm leaves have been received. The insects are larvae of the elm leaf beetle, Galerucella luteola, Null. These are about full grown and will soon stop feeding and. crawl down the trees to transform in the crevices of the bark and around the base. I should not ad-. wise spraying the trees at this time with poison. This should have been done about the first week in June. It is well, however, to spray the larvae and pupR that are found around the base of the trees, with kerosene emulsion, and to sweep them up and burn them. "Under separate wrapper l am send ing you a copy of bulletin No. 155, on the elm leaf beetle.
 Very truly yours,
 "B. H. WALDEN, Asst in Entomology" " The bulletin referred to contains a considerable amount of information concerning the elm leaf beetle, with illustrations showing it's evolution and devolution. It says:
 "The insect exhibits marked tenden- cy to spread farther along river valleys than over mountains, and is distinctly pest of city and village trees rather than of trees in the open fields and roadsides of the country.
 "The overwhelming beetles come out of their winter quarters during the warm days of early spring, mate, and as soon as the leaves unfold they begin to eat small round or oval-shaped holes through them. Many leaves are thus riddled as though shot had been sent through them, and appear like the illus tration on the cover of this bulletin.
 During the latter part of May and early in June females deposit small clus- ters of yellow eggs on the under sides of the leaves. The period of ovipositing extends oyer about four weeks, and each | female may lay five or six hundred egPsa In about a week the eggs hatch and the young larvae or grubs feed upon the under surface of the leaves, eating of the green tissue between the veins and the upper epidermis, as is shown in fig. 1.
 "In about three weeks the larvae or grubs are fully grown, and crawl down the trunks of the trees or drop from the ends of the branches and transform to the naked pupa stage. The great pro- portion of the pupa are found close around the base of the tree or lodged in the crevices of the rough bark of the trunk and larger branches. Except for being in crevices, they are unprotected. The writer has seen trees in New Haven where it would be possible to gather several quarts of these pupe at the base of single tree.
 ''The pupa stage lasts about 10 days, then the adult beetles appear, and lay eggs for the second generation, which seldom does much harm in Connecticut. Those emerging late probably do not lay eggs for a second brood, but may be seen crawling and flying about for a time, feeding more or less, but early going into. winter quarters, usually in church belfries, attics of houses, barns, sheds or other out.buildings. They also pass the winter in cracks of fences, tele- phone poles, or under the edge of the loose bark of the trees. In some of the cities worst infested the adults some times gather in church belfries in such numbers that they can be swept up by the half bushel. The elm leaf beetle often occurs with the two-spotted lady, beetle in dwellings, simply because they both seek the same kind of place for Information. Correspondents frequently send both specles to the writer and de- sire to know if they are not in some way responsible for the injuries to their car pets. There is, of course, no relation ship or similarity in food habits of the three species. The lady beetle Is preda- tory, and in the larval stage destroys plumbers of plant lice, and therefore should never be destroyed. The elm leaf beetles should. of course, be killed wherever they are tound."