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REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST. "ee 
INFLUENCE OF WEATHER ON THE INSECT. 
_-&, State what you know from experience of the effects of weatHer on the insect, and 
more particularly— 
_ 2a. The character of seasons most favorable to its increase. 
20, The character of the summer and winter—whether wet or dry, mild or severe— 
_ that have preceded years in which the worm has been abundant and destructive. 
2c. Do wet summers favor its multiplication ? 
2d. Effects of different kinds of weather on the eggs. 
2e. Etfects of different kinds of weather on the moths. 
2f. Month of year when greatest injury is done. 
STATISTICS OF LOSSES. 
3. Give, as correctly as you can, estimates of the loss to the crop in your county and 
State during notable cotton-worm years. 
MIGRATIONS OF THE MOTHS. 
It is a well-established fact that the parent moth of the cotton-worm is often found 
in autumn many hundred miles away from the cotton belt, and there is no reason to 
doubt that it is often carried by favorable winds to northward regions where it can- 
not perpetuaie its species and must therefore perish. Mr. A. R. Grote and others even 
believe that the species, perishes each year with the plant, and that the moth always 
-comes into the cotton States from more Southern countries, where the cotton plant is 
perennial ; in other words, that the moth is habitually migratory and cannot survive 
the winter in the great cotton regions of the States. While there are many facts that 
lend weight to this theory, there is, also, nmch to be said against it; and we desire to 
collect all facts that in any way bear on the question. While we hope to get much 
valuable information on this head from the Signal Bureau, we also ask for the expe- 
rience of correspondents. 
4, Please state, therefore, as nearly as you can from the records, the prevailing direc- 
tion and force of the wind in your locality, first, 
4a, In the month of l'ebruary; second, 
4b. In the month of March; third, 
4c. In the month of April; fourth, 
4d. In the month of May; fifth, 
4e. In the month of June; sixth, 
4f. Whether, in your opinion, there are winds from the south that are sufficiently 
strong and constant to counteract the prevailing trade winds which are toward the 
equator. 
4g. The prevailing direction of the wind from July till frost. 
: 4h. The side of a field on which the worms first begin to work. 
. 4i. Do local topographical features influence the extent of the worm’s ravages? 
4 <a Does or can the worm feed upon any other plant than cotton, and have you ever 
a own it to do so? 
q HABITS AND NATURAL HISTORY. 
: 
These have already been studied, and are pretty well known; but experience will 
differ somewhat with lucality, and we call attention to the following topics: 
5. State the time when the first moths are noticed in your locality. 
5a. Date when the first worms have been noticed in past years. 
5b. Date when the last worms have been seen in past years, or were noticed the 
present year. 
5c. Number of broods or generations of the worms generally produced. 
5d. In what other situations besides the folded cotton leaves have you known the 
worms to spin? 
18 5e. Have you ever known the chrysalis to survive a frost, or to be found in sound 
é and healthy condition in winter? 
, 5f. Have you ever found the moth hibernating or flying during mild winter weather? 
_ 5g. How late in the spring has the moth been found alive? 
NATURAL ENEMIES, 
It is a little singular that no enemies of the cotton-worm have hitherto been re- 
ported. That the insect has its enemies, both special and general, there can be little 
doubt, and we would ask particular attention to the following topics: 
6. Areany birds, quadrupeds, or reptiles known to attack the insect in your locality? 
6a. Are any predaceous insects or parasites known to prey upon it, citherin the egg, 
larva, or chrysalis state? 
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'y REMEDIES AND METHODS OF DESTRUCTION. 
2 7. What has been the result of the efforts to allure and destroy the moths, and what 
% methods have proved most satisfactory? Give your estimate of the relative value for 
this purpose of poisoned sugar, molasses and vinegar, and fires. 
