A season s experience with figs and fig insects in California

502

Dr.

Howard

called for a

few

remarks from Dr. Fox,

who,

^as mentioned in thepaperjust read,

made

the interestingdiscovery thatthe decapitated heads of these ants

were

infested

by

Dipte rouslarvae. Dr.

Fox,

ⁱⁿresponding,congratulated

Mr. Pergande

for having

worked

out thelife

history ofthis parasite.

Mr. Ash- mead

said he considered

Mr.

_Coquillett fully justified in erecting a

new

_genus for this _fly,

whose

_peculiar structure

was un

doubtedly ^correlated with its

mode

of _life, so different from that of other

members

of the family Phoridae.

Specimens

^ofthis fly

were

then passed around ^for the inspection of the

members.

The

_paper

by Mr. Schwarz,

then presented,

was

entitled^:

A SEASON'S EXPERIENCE WITH FIGS AND FIG-INSECTS IN CALIFORNIA.

By

^E.

^{A. SCHWARZ.}

The

successful introduction of the Fig-insect

^Blastophaga frossorum}

intoCalifornia

by

^{Dr. L. O.}

Howard and Mr. W.

T.

wingle, of the U. S.

Department

of Agriculture, ⁱⁿ the spring of 1899,

was

followedin theyear 1900

by

^{a season of} practical experience

and

_experiment ^atFresno, Cal.,

which

resultedinthe production ^{of thefirst} large crop ^{of real}

Smyrna

figs ^(i. e., figs

with fertileseeds) ever

produced

ⁱⁿ

America,

^thefigs being^{of a} quality equal, or even _superior to the _figs imported

from

Asia Minor. It

was

then demonstrated

beyond

anypossible doubtthat theintervention of theBlastophaga^isabsolutely necessary^toapro duction of a large crop ^of

Smyrna

figs (a

few

hundreds or even thousands of _figscan be successfully

matured by

^{the laborious} process of pollinating the figs

by means

^{of a} blow-pipe).

That

there

was

a chance of demonstrating^{this fact} on a large ^{scale in}

America

is solely due to the courage

and

foresight of

Mr.

Geo.

C. Roeding, ^of Fresno, Cal.,

who,

^{alone of all the} Californian orchardists, kept up, ^atgreat expense, ^for

more

than _{ten years,} anextensive orchard _(about62 _acres)of

Smyrna

figtrees without deriving the slightest profit

from

it.

THE SMYRNA FIG TREES.

The

annual cycle of the ^life history of the Blastophaga proves to bea verysimple ^one, but appears^tobe_greatly complicated ^to any one

who

hasno

knowlege

of the natural history of the

Smyrna

fig tree.

The

latter subject deserves to be

more

_thoroughly studiedthan has hitherto been done,

and

^{offers to a}

competent

studenta

wide

fieldfor important

and

novel observations.

Itis

now

_generallyconceded thatthefemale _figtreebears only

two

_cropsof _figs each _year.

Regarding

^{the maletree} (Caprifig tree),even the mostrecent botanists maintain thatthere are three crops, although ^itis usually stated that there is no sharp ^distinc tion

between

the _figsof the second

and

thirdcrops. In the three varietiesof Asiatic _caprifig trees represented ⁱⁿ

Mr.

_Roeding's orchard^* it

was

found to be impossible ^to distinguish

more

than

two

_{crops both} as to

mode

of

growth

^{as well as} construction of the _figs aspring crop (profichi figs),

and

a fall crop

(mammoni

figs)^; the so-called third crop

(mamme

figs), consisting merely oflate individuals of the second crop

which

remain

on

the trees during ^thewinter_solelybecause they are inhabited by^the Bias- top

haga.

THE CROPS OF THE CAPRIFIG TREE.

The

spring cropof the Caprifig,

which

develops on^theprevious year'sgrowth, ^isextremely vigorous both ^{in thesize}

and number

of_figs; ^it is characteristicof a

male

tree, /'. e., the _figs contain, besides _gall flowers _(in

which

the Blastophaga undergoes ^its transformations), ^alarge

number

of

male

_flowers,

which

_produce an

abundance

of_pollen.

Abnormal

_{figs appear} to be very^rare in this crop. Occasionally one is found in

which

the male flowers are _entirely missing (inRoeding'sCapri

No.

₂₎ ;

and

one variety of Capri ^trees (Capri

No.

i)

produced

^{a small}

number

of _figs

which most

_probablycontain a large

number

of female flowers.f

The

^fall _crop of the Caprifig develops

on

the

new _growth

; it is extremely

weak and

inconspicuous ⁱⁿ comparison with the spring crop.

The

_figs are small

and

_appear, with

few

_excep

tions,several

weeks

laterthanthecorresponding crop^{of the}female tree_; they develop gradually ^{so that at} no time are there

many

figs on each tree _; butbuds continue to develop^to figs as long^as

warm

^\veather lasts (tomiddleof

November

^oreven_later). Gall flowers arenormallypresentbut in

much

smaller

number

_(mainly

on

accountof the smallersizeof the_figs),than inthe spring crop^;

male and

female flowers are

commonly ^met

^{with, but theirfre}

quency and

combination with _gall flowers varies greatly accord-

*Thesewere imported by Mr. Reeding directlyfrom the Aidin _figdis trictabove Smyrna ^{in AsiaMinor. Their native} names are unknown, and Mr. Reedinghas designated themas "

CapriNo. i," "

Capri No. _2,"

and ^"Capri No. 3."

fThe

na'ure of these interestingfigs was unfortunately misinterpreted by^{the writeratthe}time theywere found ^inMay).

They

are referred to in hisreports^to Dr. L. O. Howardas profichi figsaffectedby^"theostio- lumdisease."

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY

ing ^tothe individuality of the ^trees

and

_according tothe varieties of Caprifig ^trees.*

The

_presenceoffemaleflowersin the Capri-

figs interferes

more

orless with, or eventually entirely prevents the

development

^{of the} Blastophaga.

Caprifig ^trees from

which

a large

number

of cuttings have been_{taken, or}

from which

the^ktinside

growth

^{" has been}

trimmed

out,are generally avoided

by

^the Blastophaga.

The same

holds true ofover-pruned ^orover-trimmed femaletrees.

THE CROPS OF THE FEMALE FIG TREE.

In the female _tree, it is the fall crop (i. <?., that developing

on

the

new _growth)

which, ⁱⁿ_vigorcorresponds withthe spring crop ^{of the}

male

tree_; the crop ^is characteristic of a femaletree in producing only genuine femaleflowers,

which when

_pollinated

by

^the interventionof the Blastophaga, secrete a large

amount

of saccharine matter

and

_produce fertile seeds.

Without

_pollina

tion by ^{the insect the}figs drop ^ofFbefore they ^attainthesize of a large cherry.

The

_{spring crop} of the female _tree, /. e., that developing

on

the previous year'sgrowth, corresponds with ^{the fall} crop ^{of the}

male

tree; the flowers of the _{figs are,} according ^to the botanical authorities,

malformed

female flowers, incapable of being^fertil izedeven ifpollen

were

obtainable atthis season._f

*Reading's Capri No. ² produced, with few exceptions, only normal

figs, ^i. e.,figscontainingexclusivelygall flowers. CapriNo._{3 produced,} besides normal_{figs a large} numberof_figs containing male _flowers,but the latterarenevernumerous, appear^tobesomewhatdeformed,and pro duce only^{a small} amountof_pollen. Figs ^{are also} frequentlymet with which^besides_gall flowersand male flowers contain a smalleror_larger number of female flowers. Strictlybi-sexed _figs,/. e.,containing only male and femaleflowers,are very^rare. Roeding's CapriNo. iisremark ablein producing, besides normal_{figs,a large}numberof_figscontaining asmaller numberof femaleflowers. Male flowers are here exceedingly rare,but_figs containing exclusively female flowers are notuncommon.

tThis_{cropis,of course,}without_practicalimportance,andthe writer has neglected ^to study the flowersof this crop ⁱⁿ the Asiatic varieties of Smyrnafigtreesasrepresented ⁱⁿ Mr. Roeding's orchard ^{It suffices} to tellherethat at leastone_{varie.ty(Reading's}^"Commercial Smyrna")pro ducedin June an abundanceof large, edible,and sweet _{figs(of course} without fertile seeds) comparable ⁱⁿ quality^to the best Adriatic _figs.

These _figscould not possiblymatureifthe flowerswere genuine ^female flowers.

On

at leastonetreeof thesame_varietythewriterfoundinApril budsofmaleflowers.

THE BLASTOPHAGA AT _FRESNO,

_CAL., IN 1900.

The _winged

female Blastophagas*

commenced

^to

emerge from

the winter _figs

on March

_28,

and

continued to

do

so until the end_{of April.}

The

femalesat once enter the

young

figsof the spring crop of the Caprifig^trees.

Under normal

conditions the

ct

outdoor"

life of each individual female Blastophaga does ^not

last longer than 5 or 6 minutes_; it takesfrom₃to4days, orfrom 5 ^to 8 days, according ^tothe season, ^for the Blastophaga females inhabitingan individual_figtoissue

from

the

same

; it takesabout 5

weeks

^for one entire generation of Blastophaga ^{to issue} from the _figs in

which

_they have developed^{; the life} duration of an individual Blastophaga averages(excepting of courseⁱⁿthe hiber nating generation) 64days.

The

first, or spring generation ofBlastophaga^issued from the spring crop (Profichi) of

male

_figs

between June

¹¹ and July 5.

Itis well

known

that thefemale Blastophagas^ofthis generation,

when

_issuing^from the profichi figsare covered with _pollen, and that theycan be used for caprification, ^{i. <?.,} for pollinating the blossomsof the female_figs

by

transferring the

male

_figsonto the branchesof the female_tree.j

The

Blastophagas ^thus used are ofcourse lost for the

propaga

tionof the _species, but thoseleft on the

male

treesenter and ovi positin the succeedinggeneration of

male

_figs

which

constitute the firstset of the second crop (fall crop) of the Caprifig ^tree.

This setof_{figs is,} however, very slow ^to

make

its appearance ^so that there is only ^here

and

there a

young

figto be seen

on

the Caprifig^{trees at} the time

when

the bulk of the Blastophaga females

emerge

^from the springfigs. This break ⁱⁿ the succes sion of the crops of the Caprifig hasbeen noted

by

^{all writers}

on

the _subject, butno explanation of^this singular

phenomenon

^has

ever been offered. In his reports ^to Dr.

L O. Howard

the writer has attempted^to give an explanation which, ⁱⁿ due _time, will be published

by

^the

Department

of Agriculture.

As

a con sequence ^{ofthis break,} an

enormous

reduction in the

number

of specimens ^{of the insect} takes place normally ^{in' the}second gen eration.

At

Fresno, ⁱⁿ _{1900, the}

number

ofBlastophaga females

which

issued

from

_{the spring figs}

was

_roughly estimated to be

more

than three millions of specimens^(the inhabitants ofabout 20,000 figs) ^; whereas, in spite of the utmost care in transferring

*Thereadershould bear in mind that theBlastophaga ^{never lives in} the female _figs, and that it solely develops within the so-called "gall flowers" of themaletree.

t

An

accountofthisoperation^aspracticed ^forthefirsttimeinAmerica

ispublishedby ^{Dr. L. O.} Howard, ^{in the}Yearbook of the U.S. Depart mentof Agriculture, ^fortheyear 1900.

506

figs, this

number was

reduced in the second _generation to the inhabitants of not

more

than 150 ^or200 _figs, each of these small figs harboring, ⁱⁿ the average, not

more

thanabout ₇₅specimens ofBlastophaga.

The

_imagoes^ofthis

weak

_generationissued

between August

¹²

and September

13, and since at thattime a tolerablylarge

num

ber of

young

figs are available for oviposition, the succeeding^or thirdgeneration ofBlastophaga

becomes

_againquite

numerous

in specimens.

Once more

the Blastophagas

were

^seen on the wing,

and

the larger portionof the

imagoes

^{of thethird}generation issued from October_{5 to}

November

10,

when

the observations

were

discon tinued, the females ovipositing ⁱⁿ

and

_forming a fourthgenera tioninthelatestCaprifigs of the season.

At

thistime,however, ^the Caprifig ^treesdevelop only ^avery ^limited

number

of

young

^figs,

and many

^{thousands of} Blastophagas ^{fail to find} figs foroviposi tion.

The

^{cold weather}of the approaching winter^arrestsan)'further

development

^ofboth Caprifigs

and

insects, and theBlastophaga, partly belonging^{to the third} generation and _partly to the fourth generation, hibernatesⁱⁿ

any

^{of its}stages.

THE BLASTOPHAGA AT NILES, CAL.

Nothing

^{can illustrate}

more

_{forcibly the great diversity}of cli

matic conditions prevailing ⁱⁿ California, than the experience obtained with the Blastophaga during ^the year 1900. Earlyⁱⁿ April ^{of this}year,

some

winter _figs containing ^the Blastophaga

were

sent from Fresno tothewell-know^rn horticulturist,Mr.

John Rock, who

has

a'number

ofItalian Caprifig trees in his magnifi centarboretum of _figtrees at Niles, Cal., only 170 miles north of Fresno. This attempt ^of establishing a second colony ^of Blastophaga ^{in California}

was

_eminently successful, but instead of the four generationsannually observed^atFresno,^theinsect

un

derwent_only

two

generations^atNiles.

The _imagoes

^{of the first}

generation did not ^issuebefore the end of July, the ^latestdate of issue being

September

^2.*

The

ensuing second generation,

ob

served onlyon a single tree,| did not mature to imagoes ^{in the}

fall and will no doubt successfully overwinter.

A

_couple of Caprifigs containing^insects of thefirstgeneration,

were

re-imported from ^{Niles into the hot}

summer

^{climate of}

*This datehasbeenkindly furnishedby Mr. G.^P.Rixford, of the Cali forniaAcademyof Sciences.

tThis magnificent ^tree originally purchased by Mr. John Rock ^from Dalmatiaasan Adriatic _{fig tree,} has been _baptised by Mr. Rock, ^{Dr. G.}

Eisen,andthewriterasthe"Endrich _Capritree."

Fresno

on

_{July 17,}

and

the

winged

Blastophagas ^issued from these

two

_figs

between

_July 21

and

_{July 27.} Their progeny

formed

a second generation ^of

which

the

winged

females issued from the _figs

between September

17

and September

^28.

The

third resulting generation did not complete ^its transformations the

same

_season, but had increased to the inhabitants of atleast

two

thousand _figs

and

thus counteracted, ⁱⁿnosmall measure,^the loss caused by the issuing of the fourth generation ^{of the} Fresno Blastophagas.

Mr. Swingle

^{stated that one reason for the} incomplete

and

often erroneous conclusionsin referenceto figs reached

by

^the botanists

was

that they had

depended

very largely

upon

^certain entomologists ^{fortheir data.}

He made some remarks

_regarding

his

work

with _figs in Italy

and North

Africa. In reply^to the question

whether

there

were

_{any parasites} introduced with the Blastophaga ^into California, Mr.

Schwarz

_{replied that,} to his knowledge,

none

had been introduced, but that large

numbers

of the fig-insects

were

_{destroyed'by being caught} in the

webs

of spiders

spun commonly

^{on the} fig trees.

He

said it

was

_very important ^{thatothervarieties} of Caprifig^treesbe brought^in.

Mr.

Swingle mentioned

^a

Nematode,

Anguillula, which, probably living^as a mess-mate,

was somewhat

_injurioustotheBlastophaga inthe

Old World.

Dr. Stiles

was

inclined to consider this

Nematode

notas harmless as supposed,

and

he

mentioned some

allied forms ofthis

and

othergenera

which

have been foundtobe quite harmful.

The

_{followingpaper}

was

sent by ^Prof.Uhlerforpublication inthe

PROCEEDINGS

^:

SOME NEW GENERA AND SPECIES OF NORTH AMERICAN HEMIPTERA.

By

^P.

^R. UHLER, LL. ^D.

Div.

MYODOCHINA.

Dycoderus,new_genus.

Closely^{related to}Ptochiomera _Say. Headthick sub-conical, hairyand including theeyes,aboutas wideas the anterior lobe of the pronotum;

antennae verythick, the apical jointthicker than the others, about twice aslong^asthe_third, the second _longest, thinnest, tapering towards the base, the basal _{joint stout,} shorter than the _front,subfusiform; eyes globular, placed belowthe lineof the convex front, the front broad,tu-