Musk Beetle
(Aromia moschata). This insect is of rather large size (1in. to 1 1/4in. long), and belongs to the group of Longicornia, or long-horned beetles. The antennae are eleven-jointed, and, in the male, are longer than the body. The beetles are readily recognised by the smell of musk emitted by them (whence their popular name), and by their colour, which is shining metallic green on the body, passing into blue-black on the legs and antennae. They can make a sound by rubbing the neck-shield on the meso-thorax. These insects, where common, as they are in various parts of the South of England, do great damage to Willows, by feeding, as larvae, for several years in the stems of the older trees. The larvae may grow to the size of over 1in. long, by 1/3in. broad. They are yellowish in colour, with darker plates and folds on certain parts, and are somewhat depressed in form, broadest just behind the small head, thence tapering gradually. The segments are well marked off from one another by constrictions. By means of powerful jaws, the larvae are able to feed on the wood, and often cause the trees to decay. When full fed, they form cocoons in their galleries, and there change into pupae. The beetles emerge in July and August, and may be found on Willow stems, or, in fine weather, flying around the trees.
Remedies. The beetles should be collected and destroyed. The larvae may occasionally be exterminated by means of a sharp wire pushed into the holes; or by paraffin, or some other insecticide, injected from a syringe. Trees which are much infested should be destroyed.