CHAPTER XV 

 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS * 



The Pea-weevil f 



THE common Pea-weevil occurs in almost all parts of the world 

 where peas are grown, and is the usual cause of " buggy " peas. It 

 was the cause of the abandonment of pea growing in the central 

 Atlantic States as early as the middle of the eighteenth century. 

 It has usually been regarded as a native of North America, having 



FIG. 238. The pea-weevil (Bruchus pisorum L.): a, adult beetle; 6, larva; 

 c, pupa all enlarged. (From Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



been introduced into Europe. It does but comparatively little 

 damage in more northern latitudes and for this reason seedsmen 

 secure their seed peas from Canada and northern Michigan and 

 Wisconsin. 



The weevil is about one-fifth inch long and about one-half 

 that width, being the largest of the pea- and bean-feeding weevils 

 in this country. " Its ground color is black, but it is thickly cov- 

 ered with brown pubescence, variegated with black and white 

 markings as shown in Fig. 238. The sides of the thorax are notched 

 or toothed, and the abdomen, which projects beyond the wing- 

 covers, is coated with whitish pubescence and marked by two black 

 spots. The hind thighs are thickened and each bears two promi- 

 nent teeth." 



* See F. H. Chittenden, Insects Injurious to Beans and Peas, Yearbook 

 U. S. Dept. Agr. for 1898, p. 233. 



f Bruchus pisorum Linn. Family Bruchidce. 



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