132 KANSAS Academy of science. 



one-half an inch long and of yellowish color. This piece of ground he had planted 

 in corn for five years consecutively. Rethought the worm had destroyed two-thirds 

 of the crop. Mr. Stidham did not know the life history of the worm, but, from the 

 great number of little green beetles in his corn, concluded they were the parents of 

 the worm. 



A short distance to the east, on the same ridge, Mr. J. L. Garrett had 12 acres 

 attacked. This piece, according to his estimate, will not average two bushels to the 

 acre. A piece of corn near by, not badly infested, will yield 25 bushels per acre. 

 Mr. Grandin, another resident of the ridge, had 15 acres so badly damaged by the 

 pest that the field, on the 1st of September, looked as it might after a heavy hail 

 storm. Very few stalks could be found standing firmly in the ground. Mr. Grandin 

 thought he would not obtain one-third of a crop. 



These are the worst cases along this ridge, but every farm along the ridge has 

 the insect in its soil. Some of the farmers said the pest destroyed an acre; others 

 that they had noticed it in their corn, but not in great numbers. 



About li miles southwest of this, a 30-acre piece of corn was similarly attacked. 

 This ground is bottom land, has raised corn five years consecutively, and has until 

 this year produced about the best corn in this locality. It will not yield this year 

 two-thirds of a croj?. One-half mile southwest of this, Mr. Olendorf has 14 acres of 

 corn which has been about half destroyed by the pest. Mr. Olendorf is the only 

 man in the neighborhood who has had previous experience with the insect. He 

 stated that nine years ago they destroyed about two-thirds of the corn crop of Car- 

 roll county, Missouri. He said they could not seriously damage corn planted in 

 ground for the first time after some other crop; that corn must be planted from 

 three to five years consecutively before they could work effectively. 



On 35 acres of corn near by, the writer had an opportunity to watch the working 

 of this insect from the first of August until the first of October. After the corn was 

 "laid by" it grew quite unevenly. Just as the tassels appeared above the top leaves 

 of the stalk, numbers of grass-green beetles, about four-tenths of an inch long, head 

 and prothorax reddish brown, began to enter the tassels. Here they fed upon the 

 pollen, knocking it down into the sheath of leaves around the tassel. The mass 

 caused decay around the base of the tassel, and, in some cases, killed the tassel be- 

 fore it had grown to its full height. Twelve of the beetles were frequently found in 

 one tassel. Stalks containing that number could generally be lifted out of the 

 ground with the finger and thumb. All the corn examined was drilled corn, so that 

 it can be inferred that the insect ascends the stalk on whose roots it has fed when in 

 the larval state. 



After the pollen has gone, the insects can be found between the husks of the ear, 

 and also between the green leaves and the stalk. They are very active, and seek 

 flight upon the slightest disturbance. In flight, they resemble a particle from the 

 tassel, or a small piece of corn leaf; so that one might examine a stalk with several 

 insects on it and, unless they were seen before taking wing, might suppose there 

 were no bugs on the stalk. 



From observation and reports from farmers, the following may be said: The in- 

 sect probably passes the winter in the egg laid in the field the previous fall, hatches 

 out about the middle of May, in the form of a white worm, one-quarter of an inch 

 long and as thick as a pin. In this form it fastens itself to a corn rootlet, cutting it 

 off, then contirmes to encircle the stalk until all the rootlets are cut or until it has 

 become full fed. At this stage it is about one-half inch long, and yellowish white. 

 Now it becomes a pupa, and appears at tasseling time as a grass-green or yellowish- 

 green beetle, ready to feed upon the pollen. Thus it is destructive to both the root 

 and the top of the corn. It works best in ground which has produced corn for sev- 



