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MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



Fig. 43. — The Bronze Cutworm, 

 Nephelodea miniana. Larvae ; en- 

 larged, back and side views. 



another brood. The larvae, like the larv'ae 

 of most of our cutworms, hibernate over 

 winter in the ground about the roots of the 

 plants. 



Like the preceding cutworm, these cut- 

 worms can also be prevented to a large 

 extent from entering the corn field by the 

 furrow method, or by poisoning them with 

 bran mixed with Paris green and sweetened 

 water. Where it becomes necessary to re- 

 plant a corn field that has been injured 

 by these cutworms, it can be safely done 

 after the first of June. One can also largely 

 prevent the development of these cutworms 

 by plowing under the timothy fields intended 

 for corn by the first of September, thus 

 doing away with the places for the insects 

 to deposit their eggs. 



THE CORN BILL-BUGS. 

 Sphenophrous parvulus; S. ochreus; S. pertinax. 

 The corn bill-bugs are beetles belonging 

 to the family Curculionidae, which consists 

 of our so-called "snout-beetles."' While we 

 have several species of corn bill-bugs, three 

 of them are more commonly found injuring 

 corn. One, ^. parvulus, is a small species 

 that infests timothy and grass plants, and the 

 other two, 5". ochreus and 6". pertinax, are 

 much larger insects, and are found infesting 

 large swamp grasses and sedges, such as 

 rushes, reeds, etc. One species, 5". ochreus, 

 sometimes becomes nearly three-fourths of 

 an inch in length, but they vary wonderfully 

 in size, some of them being scarcely one-half 

 inch in length. These three species of bill- 

 bugs are rerescnted enlarged in figures 44, 

 45 and 46. The figure at the bottom in each 

 case will give one a very good idea of the 

 shape and comparative size of the snout or Fig. 44.— Tiie corn Biu-Bug. 



' Sphenophorus parvulus. Adult 



beak, which is so characteristic of the mem- beetles; greatly enlarged. 



