December, '09] JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 377 



Mitchell at Victoria, Tex., March 7 to 10, the dates being already 

 stated for examination of cornfields, the weevil in all stages, mostly 

 larval however, was frequently encountered in both hanging and 

 fallen bolls. Many of these bolls, including the seeds, were so completely 

 riddled internally that only the burr prevented them from crumbling 

 into dry powder. Larva? in these bolls isolated for rearing matured 

 as adults from March 24 until April 14. In the course of examina- 

 tion of the bolls from Alexandria, La., one fallen boll was found to 

 contains a number of live mites with two dead pupa? of ArcBcerus fasci- 

 culatus. The gregarious position of these mites within the nearly de- 

 stroyed pupal bodies at once indicated their predaceous nature. These 

 mites were identified by Mr. Nathan Banks as apparently his species, 

 Tyroglyphus breviceps. This species of mite affords additional inter- 

 est from the fact that it has been known at times to prey upon larvae 

 of cotton boll weevils in fields at Victoria and Calvert, Tex. 



The persistency of Anecerus fasciculatus in breeding in old cotton 

 bolls was notably observed this year at Natchez. Miss. Mr. R. A. Cush- 

 man found all stages in dried and decayed seeds of bolls which he col- 

 lected at this place on January 19. During the time of my assign- 

 ment at Natchez, from May 11 until June 29, for the purpose of record- 

 ing the appearance of boll weevils in hibernation experiments, adults 

 of the coffee-bean weevil also appeared frequently with boll weevils 

 in cages containing old plants with hanging bolls, and in one instance 

 from Spanish moss alone in the cage. To prove that Arcecerus fasci- 

 culatus actually bred in the bolls at this time, an examination of a 

 number of hanging and fallen bolls gathered from old stalks in an open 

 space adjacent to the cages was made on June 8, and resulted in find- 

 ing both larval and adult stages, many of the bolls showing severe rav- 

 ages. A weevil matured in fourteen days from an infested boll placed 

 in isolation. 



An important factor which relates to the favorable propagation of 

 the coffee-bean weevil is afforded by berries of the China tree, as form- 

 erly mentioned, (27). During my inspection work at Alexandria and 

 Mansura, La., the overwintered Chinaberries also received attention, 

 and the finding of larvae commonly at work in them denoted a general 

 infestation of the fruit. The abundance of these berries which re- 

 mained hanging on the trees therefore provided an attractive medium 

 for the breeding of the weevils. Not only as an alternative, but in 

 case of destruction or absolute lack of cornstalks and cotton bolls, the 

 weevil will evidently maintain a prolific multiplication in Chinaber- 

 ries. Mr. J. D. Mitchell has reported the emergence of an adult weevil 

 from a Chinaberry as early as February 28 at Victoria, Tex. On May 



