ENTOMOLOGY 131 



The Lesser Chestnut Weevil. The lesser chestnut weevil has 

 the scape of the antenna longer than in the preceding species and 

 the first joint longer than the second. The average length of the 

 body is about one-fourth of an inch, but the size varies, as in all of 

 these insects. 



The distribution of this species extends from Canada and 

 Massachusetts to North Carolina, Tennessee, and Ohio, and proba- 

 bly farther westward. The investigator has seen sets of specimens 

 labeled Arizona. Although in some localities the larger species is 

 much more in evidence, taken all in all, the lesser weevil is the 

 more common and is probably even more widely disseminated. 



The egg has not come under observation, but is undoubtedly 

 very similar to that of the preceding, being proportionately smaller, 

 which is true of the remaining stages. The larva is only a third 

 of an inch long and its length is about three times its width. The 

 body is milk-white and the head light brownish yellow, while the 

 A -mark has a short lateral branch each side. The pupa differs from 

 that of the larger species by size. 



The life history of our two chestnut weevils is so similar as to be 

 practically the same for both species. There are, however, minor 

 differences. These, as well as related nut and acorn weevils, hiber- 

 nate exclusively in the larval condition and in the soil. Both make 

 their first appearance at about the same time with the first bloom- 

 ing of chestnuts but this period may vary from late in June to 

 July, according to locality and season, or, more properly speaking, 

 the mean temperature. At this time the beetles are found rarely 

 and scatteringly, and as oviposition has not been observed then it is 

 doubtful whether it begins until considerably later. What function 

 these early arrivals fulfill is problematical. The beetles increase in 

 number as the nuts approach maturity, or until about the middle of 

 September or a little time before the nuts are first marketed. Then 

 they may be seen in greater abundance, several pairs, frequently of 

 both species, often occurring on a single bunch of burrs. As it 

 requires about two weeks for the egg to develop, it is not probable 

 that they are laid much earlier than when the nut begins to form. 



Eggs are laid singly, but many are placed in a single nut, as 

 high as 40 or more (of the smaller weevil) in imported nuts, and as 

 many as 9 in native nuts. The larvae when hatched feed on the 

 tissue of the growing kernels, enlarging with their own growth the 

 cells thus made. 



Rarely larvae bore through the burr. On leaving the nuts they 

 burrow into the earth to depths varying from 2 to about 8 inches, 

 according to the hardness of the soil. If confined in soft earth or 

 sand they penetrate still deeper. The larval period probably lasts 

 from three to five weeks in the nuts, and about ten months in the 

 earth, pupation taking place within three weeks of the issuance of 

 the beetle, the latter remaining several days in the earth before 

 appearing above ground. 



The most practical remedy for nut weevils that can be suggested 

 is the early destruction of the worms in the nuts by means of bisul- 



