THE CHINCH BUG. 5 
of from two to three weeks. The time required for the eggs to hatch 
is from about ten days to three weeks, and it requires about forty 
days for the young to become fully developed after hatching from 
the egg. 
In the eastern portion of the country, where the short-winged 
form (fig. 2) prevails, it is not certain that there is more than a single 
generation annually. This short-winged form differs very greatly 
in its habits from the long-winged form, the first passing the winter 
in the meadows, which it usually attacks in preference to grain fields, 
whereas during the period known as the Indian summer the developed 
bugs of the long-winged form (fig. 1) may be observed flying about, 
evidently searching for winter quarters. With the short-winged 
form these migrations to and from the places of hibernation are 
impossible, the insects being totally incapable of flying. <A hint of 
this peculiarity may be witnessed in the case of the exclusively long- 
winged form of the first generation, for in migrating from one field 
to another, even though fully half of the individuals may have 
developed wings ample for flight, they often travel on foot with the 
young, even going considerable distances from one field to another. 
If, however, an artificial barrier is interposed in their path, the 
winged adults appear suddenly to find out that they have another 
and more efficient mode of travel, and fly over these obstructions. 
Throughout the Middle West, then, where this insect does its 
greatest Injury, crops suffer from two attacks annually, although 
the later one is not always noticed. It must be remembered, how- 
ever, that, although attracting little or no attention, this later attack 
is of the utmost importance, for if there are but few of the second 
generation developing to adults, there can be no serious outbreak the 
following spring. If, on the other hand, there are enormous numbers 
of adults developing in the fall and going into winter quarters, there 
is a probability that, with weather during spring favorable for their 
development, there will be an excessive abundance the following 
year. 
HIBERNATION. 
While the matter of winter quarters has been previously mentioned 
in a general way, the winter habit of the pest is of such importance 
that this phase of its life history is deserving of full explanation. 
Again and again serious destructive outbreaks of the pest in wheat 
fields have been traced directly to the influence of shocks of corn 
fodder allowed to stand in the fields throughout the winter. The 
chinch bugs which flocked to these corn shocks the previous autumn, 
suitable quarters not being available elsewhere, were thus protected 
throughout the winter, migrated from the shocks in the spring, 
and spread over the wheat field. In other cases destructive out- 
