INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 225 



cocoon covered with bits of whatever it is breeding in and in it 

 transforms to the pupa. In a warm room the entire life cycle has 

 been passed in forty-seven days, and it seems probable that in 

 the District of Columbia, there are two generations a year. The 

 life is undoubtedly intimately related to the moisture and temp- 

 erature conditions under which it lives. 



Control. When a factory or storehouse has become badly 

 infested a thorough cleaning is the first step in the control of 

 the pest, as tobacco fragments and dust are usually present every- 



CL b e & 



FIG. 190. The cigarette beetle: a, larva; 6, pupa; c, adult; d, side viw of 

 adult; e, antenna all greatly enlarged; e, still more enlarged. (After 

 Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



where and ideal conditions for the multiplication of the pest are 

 afforded. 



Infested tobacco should be opened up, if packed tightly, 

 placed in tight boxes or in a tight room and exposed to the fumes 

 of carbon bisulfide, using it the same as for grain insects. 



The quantity used will depend upon the tightness of the 

 enclosure, the way in which the tobacco is packed, and the tem- 

 perature. One pound to every 200 cubic feet will usually be ample. 

 In factories where the beetle is abundant the tobacco should be 

 steamed before use, which will kill all stages of the insect. Loose 

 tobacco, cigars, and cigarettes, should not be left exposed to the 

 beetles, but should be covered up or placed in tight receptacles 

 to prevent their access. Badly infested factories and storehouses 

 may be fumigated with hydrocyanic acid gas. Heating would 

 be effective where practical. 



Several other insects are more or less serious pests of tobacco 

 in certain parts of the country or under local conditions. The 

 Tobacco Thrips* has caused considerable loss to growers of 

 wrapper tobacco in Florida where it is grown under shade. 



* #u/inps nicotanice Hinds. Order Thysanoptera. See W. A. Hooker, 

 Bulletin 65, and Circular 68, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



