174 



THE BOOK OF WHEAT 



from $100,000,000 to $200,000,000 for the wheat crop alone. 

 The insect shifts so rapidly from place to place that remedies 

 are practically of no avail unless there is concerted action in 

 an infected region. 1 



Chinch Bug (Blissus leucopterus Say). This is a native 

 insect. Its ravages were first noticed toward the close of fcho 

 eighteenth century, and since that time notable outbreaks and 

 serious losses have been quite constant. It is now found from 

 Nova Scotia and Manitoba southward to the Gulf of Mexico, 

 as well as on the Pacific coast, in Mexico and Central America, 

 and on several of the West Indian Islands. The genus Blissus 

 is widely distributed over the Old World. It is a gregarious 



CHINCH BUG! VARIOUS STAGES FROM EGG TO ADULT ENLARGED 



pest, and its destructiveness is due to this fact rather than to 

 its enormous numbers. 



LIFE HISTORY. Hibernating in grass stools, straw, rubbish 

 or other shelters, the chinch bug begins its life cycle by a 

 spring flight to the wheat fields. The mating occurs at the 

 wheat roots. The eggs are deposited about May 1st, from 100 

 to 500 by each female, and the egg period is of 2 or 3 weeks' 

 duration. The young hatch in about 2 weeks, and at maturity 

 in July they make a second flight to late corn, millet or other 

 crops. In this country, except in northern regions, a second 

 brood appears after this flight. The second brood is most in- 

 jurious in August and matures in September and October. It 

 is the first brood that injures wheat, while both broods attack 

 other crops. A short-winged form incapable of flight fre- 

 quently occurs, especially in maritime districts. There are a 

 number of species of Hemiptera that are often mistaken for 

 chinch bugs. 



1 Marlett, Principal Insect Enemies of Growing Wheat; Osborn, 

 Hessian Fly in the United States. 



