Oct. 21. i9i8 The Meadow Plant Bug, Miris dolabratus 191 



but such a transfer, even if possible, must have little, if any, practical 

 importance, considering the normal condition of the great mass of eggs 

 being placed near the ground and protected for their period of develop- 

 ment in the stubble. 



PLACE OP DEPOSITION 



In order to determine as certainly as possible where the majority of 

 the eggs are deposited, counts were made of a number of stems of the 

 grasses on which the adults commonly occur and from a field where the 

 insects had been present in large numbers during the present summer. 

 One hundred stems each of timoth)^, orchard grass, meadow fescue, and 

 witch grass were selected from a point where the insects must have 

 been abundant and where eggs should certainly be plentifully found. 

 Out of this number two timothy stems were found with eggs, one of 

 meadow fescue, and one of orchard grass, but the witch grass had none. 

 An additional 25 stalks of timothy were split, and many stalks were 

 examined and slit part or all of their length without finding any eggs 

 in the upper part of the stem. In no case were eggs found beneath 

 leaf sheaths or in stems where it would have been necessary to puncture 

 through the leaf sheaths to reach the stem. 



It appears very clear, therefore, that the great majority of the eggs 

 are placed in the stems of plants near the ground and below the level of 

 cutting, so that but very few can be carried out of the field with the hay 

 in cutting or harvesting. This makes very clear the presence of immense 

 numbers of insects in meadows which are regularly mowed and from 

 which the hay is removed, and emphasizes the effect of the short-winged 

 condition and inability to fly of the greater proportion of the females. 

 However, a sufficient number of eggs may be placed in the stems above 

 the height of the stubble or be raked up in stems from the ground and 

 carried in with the hay to provide for limited dispersal and account for 

 the transportation of the species from one region to another (PI. 12). 



DESCRIPTION OF MIRIS DOLABRATUS 



No very satisfactory description of Miris dolabratus is available in the 

 accessible textbooks or manuals. 



The adults are about two-fifths of an inch long (9 mm.), rather slen- 

 der, with long black antennae which are thickest at the base, the head is 

 rounded, set fairly close to the thorax, which widens behind; and the 

 wings lie nearly flat on the back, are narrow, and have nearly parallel 

 sides, extend to or slightly beyond the tip of the abdomen in the males 

 and long-winged females and to the fifth abdominal segment in the 

 short-winged females. The color is yellow or yellowish gray with 

 dark markings, which form two rather indefinite stripes on the prono- 

 tum and elytra. The antennae and legs are black, with yellowish bases 

 or yellow with black hairs and spots. 



