230 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 4 



habits, localities, etc., so that by the end of the quarter almost every 

 member of the class had acquired a fair introduction to the science 

 and had an intelligent appreciation of its importance as related to 

 agriculture. 



LIFE HISTORY OF THE RICE WEEVIL fCALANDRA ORYZA L.) 



IN ALABAMA 



By W. E. Hinds and W. F. Turner 



An examination of the literature relating to this species shows that 

 our really definite information as to its life history is very scanty 

 indeed. Only scattered and incidental references to isolated facts 

 have been recorded in spite of its great economic importance. One 

 reason for this is, doubtless, that the injury done by this insect is 

 greatest in those sections of the country where economic entomology 

 is but a comparatively new study. Another reason may be that its 

 work has been confused with that of its close relative C. granaria. 



In the United States, certainly, Calandra oryza is the far more impor- 

 tant species of the two and here its injury seems to be of greatest impor- 

 tance in the Gulf and South Atlantic States especially. This is pri- 

 marily on account of the milder winters and the longer season 

 of activity during the fall when they may multiply most rapidly. 

 The injury done by this species would seem to be one of the factors 

 which has restricted the raising of corn and the production of livestock 

 and tended to promote the "one-crop" system of cotton culture which 

 has generally prevailed for a generation past. With the advance 

 of the Mexican cotton boll weevil {Anthonomus grandis Boh.) the rice 

 weevil becomee of increasing importance since the plan of fighting 

 the boll weevil involves, as a rule, the production of more corn and 

 the storage of the crop until it can be fed out to livestock. The rapid 

 depreciation of stored corn has retarded the general adoption of this 

 practice. 



In this paper we can attempt to give only a general statement of 

 the results of observations which have been accumulating in this oflBce 

 during the past two or three years. But we believe that much of the 

 data will be welcomed by other workers, especially by those in the 

 South. We cannot attempt to record any results of experiments 

 looking to the control of the pest, but shall record the facts of life 

 history in more detail than would appeal to the average farmer for 

 whom a bulletin may later be issued. 



The stages of the insect may be first considered : 



The Egg. — -The egg of the rice weevil is always deposited within 

 the kernel of some grain. It is regularly elliptical or sometimes rather 



