bot. Ges. Wien, p. 332 [rosæ fixed as type of Rhodites]. Adler, 1877, Deut. Ent. Zeit., XXI, p.209 [Biology]. Paszlavszky, 1882, Természetrajzi Füzetek [Budapest], V, pp. 192, 277 [Biology]. And many other references in European literature.
Detailed descriptions or illustrations are to be found in the following more available American publications:
Comstock, 1895, Man. Study Ins., p. 621, fig. 747. Beutenmüller, 1904, Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. Guide Leaf. 16, p. 7, fig.; 1907, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., XXIII, p. 632, figs. 1-4, P1. XLIII, figs. 5-6. Thompson, 1915, Cat. Amer. Ins. Galls, pp. 22, 45, P1. v, fig. 92. Viereck, 1916, Hymen. Conn., p. 441, P1. VI, fig. 5. Lutz, 1918, Field Book Ins., p. 468, P1. c, fig. 5. Felt, 1918, N. Y. State Mus. Bull., CC, p. 144, fig. 149, Nos. 5-6.
Female.—Head, antennæ and thorax entirely black; abdomen red, piceous black posteriorly; wings with a large brown cloud covering the radial cell and extending beyond it. Head: entirely black or piceous black, mouth-parts reddish brown, tips of the mandibles black; front finely coriaceous, face rugoso-punctate with scattered hairs; antennae entirely black, pubescent, 14-jointed, the third joint about twice as long as the fourth. Thorax: entirely black, mesonotum coriaceous; anterior parallel lines and lateral lines smooth; parapsidal grooves and median groove more apparent in some specimens than in others; parapsidal grooves sometimes traceable to the pronotum; scutellum black, finely rugose, the foveæ at the base similarly rugose and hardly distinct from the rest of the scutellum; pronotum rugose; mesopleuram almost wholly smooth and shining, with a narrow, rugose area dividing the shining area unequally. Abdomen: bright red, lightest basally, the posterior segments piceous black, the hypopygium reddish brown and with a few, short hairs, abdomen otherwise smooth; second segment produced dorsally, there equalling almost two-thirds the total length of the abdomen; the hypopygium prominent, broad, acutely-pointed, “plow-shaped.” Legs: coxæ rufo-piceous to light reddish brown, tibie and tarsi light reddish brown; legs entirely hairy; tarsal claws simple. Wings: yellowish-tinged, a large brownish area entirely covering the radial cell and extending considerably beyond it; wing-veins clear brown, darkest on the first abscissa of the radius; areolet moderately large; cubitus extending to the basal vein; radial cell entirely closed, first abscissa of the radius arcuate on the inner side, but with a considerable thickening on the other side, which makes it angulate into the radial cell. Length: 2.7–3.5 mm.
Male.—Similar to the female, differing as follows: third antennal joint almost three times as long as the fourth; abdomen small, black, piceous or reddish basally; wings without the radial cloud; length, 2.0–2.5 mm.
[The above descriptions made from large series of specimens from localities over Massachusetts.]
Galls.-A large mass (Figs. 3 and 4) of moss-like filaments surrounding a cluster of hard, bud-like cells. The filaments are pale green or reddish or purplish-tinged when young, becoming brown or black during the winter; they are sometimes simple, forming a tangled mass, or may be broad, branched, or leaf-like; the whole gall is spherical or oval, about 50 mm. or less in diameter. Each cell of the central core is a modified bud, monothalamous, thick-walled, with a distinct but inseparable larval cell; the cell is more or less covered with irregular projections; and often several cells fuse. Terminal on the stems of roses, especially of the sweet briar; it has been recorded from eighteen species of rose, and is likely to be found on almost any of the species.
