June, '08] JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 205 



Larva. Even when first hatched, the larva can crawl rapidly about 

 and, fastening its single proleg, can raise one-half of its body free of 

 support and wave it about. Under moist conditions the just-hatched 

 larva can remain active for as much as two days without food, but if 

 subjected to diying, it will quickly perish. Careful experiments have 

 shown that the just-hatched larva can crawl at least four inches 

 through moist soil under ordinary weather conditions. There is, how- 

 ever, no evidence to show that it crawls in any especially determined 

 direction, except, possibly, downward. It will as readily crawl away 

 from food as toward it, but enters the soil at the first crevice it finds. 

 •As the larva grows, the yellow color so characteristic in early stages 

 becomes less and less apparent until, in its later stages, it is white with- 

 out a trace of yellow. During its entire life, the larva lives in the soil 

 on or in the roots of its food plant, or in the stem. It is perfectly 

 capable of passing from root to root, or even from plant to plant. So 

 long as the larva has moist soil it can live and work for its food, but 

 with the advent of drought it dies. Certainly these experiments and 

 observations abundantly confirm Sirrine's statement that the larva 

 requires moist earth to live in. When it becomes full-grown, it crawls 

 out of and away from the plant from one-fourth of an inch to several 

 inches, and by turning movements of its body, forms an oval earthen 

 cell. The cell is frail, but very smooth and cozy, with no evidence 

 of silk of any sort being used in its construction. This cell may be 

 broken and, unless the larva has begun to shorten and stiffen for pupa- 

 tion, it will crawl away and construct a new one. 



By the records of 24 individuals the length of time required to pass 

 from hatching to larval cell was shown to vary from 26 to 38 days, 

 with an average of 28.1. This stage was passed under an average 

 daily mean temperature of 73° F. with sum temperatures of 2068.9° 

 F. (read) or 2063.8° F. (measured). 



Pupa. The location of the pupal cell appears to vary with mois- 

 ture. It is always, so far as our observation goes, constructed in 

 moist soil, although later it may become very wet or very dry. The 

 actual location of the cells varied from one-half to two and one-half 

 inches below the surface. 



Records for 10 pupa? show an average of 13.9 days as the length 

 of pupal stage. Records of 14 individuals show that an average of 

 24 days is required for the insects to pass from larval cell to adult, 

 under an average mean temperature of 66° F. (read) or 65° F. 

 (measured), with a sum temperature of 1590.78° F. (read) and 

 1576.78° F. (measured). 



SeasoTial History. The beetles were first observed in 1907, June 



