maturing and 
ing of the 
Pyralidae 
The ravages of the insect are not confined to the sugar-cane. 
It attacks with equal avidity sorghum and the stalks of the com¬ 
mon Indian corn, or maize. The insect has gradually worked its 
way northward from the region of the Gulf, having found lodg¬ 
ment here and there throughout the Southern States, and is now 
known to occur quite abundantly at times as far north as Mary¬ 
land. It is double-brooded in Virginia. 
The most serious damage is inflicted upon the crop where 
the larvse attack young stalks. Plants which are older and well 
established, though 
they may suffer to 
some extent from the 
insects, are generally 
not damaged suffi¬ 
ciently to prevent the 
harden- 
grain; but 
where the stalks are 
young and quite ten¬ 
der, they fail to mature, 
are stunted, sicken, and 
ultimately die. The 
accompanying figure 
shows the dwarfed 
and sickly appearance 
of such a stalk, which 
has been invaded by 
the borer. The life- 
history of the insect 
has been briefly given 
by Howard as follows: 
“ In early spring the 
parent moth lays her 
eggs upon the young 
cane near the axils, and 
the young borer pene¬ 
trates the stalk at or 
near the joint, and commences to tunnel, usually upward, through 
the soft pith. The larval growth is rapid, and the borer is active, 
404 
Fig. 224. — D. saccharalis. a, appearance of 
corn-stalk infested by larva; b, stalk cut open to 
show larval tunnel and pupa. (After Howard, 
“Insect Life,” Vol. IV, p. 99.) 
