HARLEQUIN CABBAGE BUG (Murgantia histrionica), an American heteropterous insect of tropical or subtropical origin, belonging to the family Pentatomidae. This insect is a native of Mexico and Central America. It made its appearance in Texas in 1864, and in a way repeated the history of the Colo rado potato beetle; it found an abundance of cultivated cabbages, multiplied rapidly, and quickly spread. It appeared in North Carolina in 1867; in 187o it was found in Missouri and Tennes see; in 1876 it reached Delaware; in 1892 it was injurious in New Jersey, and in 1894 it was found on Long Island. At present it is destructive throughout the entire South as far north as tide-water Virginia. North of this point it is only occasionally injurious, ap parently being killed by severe winters, reinvading the territory later. It is a brilliantly coloured red-and-black plant-bug, about half an inch in length, and is known by several common names, such as calico-back, fire-bug and terrapin-bug. It sucks the sap from the leaves and leaf-veins of cabbage and other cruciferous crops, causing the plants to wilt and die. A small plant will be killed in a day or so, and as many as 5o or 6o mature bugs are often found on a large plant. It is supposed to hibernate in the adult condition. The barrel-shaped eggs, white-and-black in colour, are laid in double rows on the leaves. The young are active and resemble the adults except that they are wingless. They moult five times before reaching full growth. In the South there may be several generations annually, probably four or five. It is a difficult insect to fight, since insecticide applications that will kill it also injure the plants. Clean-cultural methods, especially a thorough cleaning-up of the fields during the winter time; the use of trap crops of mustard or other cruciferous plants in the spring, on which the insects may be killed by oil applications, the trap-crops themselves being of no value ; and hand-picking, are the methods recommended. On trap-crops in the spring, they may be destroyed by hand-torches. (L. O. H.)