Some Special Injurious Insects 



169 



covered in the United States. Birds, snakes and pre- 

 daceous insects assist man in holding the boll-weevil 

 under control, but no fact has yet been discovered that 

 suggests that it will not spread over the entire cotton- 

 growing section. 



237. Tent Caterpillars are often found in fruit trees. 

 They are easily discovered in the spring by their large 

 webs supported on the branches. They may be found 

 much earlier as small bunches of eggs, like those shown 

 in Fig. 108c. They are laid late in the summer and cov- 

 ered by a sticky 

 substance to pro- 

 tect them from the 

 winter rains. They 

 hatch out usually 

 just about the 

 time the buds open 

 and the caterpil- 

 lars feed on the 

 young buds and 

 leaves. They soon 

 spin a delicate 

 cloth-like web or 

 tent, to which they 

 retire at night, and 

 in bad weather. 

 These caterpillars 

 are well marked 

 with dots and lines 

 along the bodies 

 that are character- 

 istic for each spe- 



. . Fig. 108. The tent-caterpillar, a and b, larvae; 



CieS. Alter a time c, egg-cluster; d, cocoon; e, full-grown. 



