174 MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. I905. 



on the upper surface. "What the physiological effect would be of 

 imbibing constantly for 6 to 11 weeks in this position might 

 seem a trifle uncertain as a matter of conjecture, but it certainly 

 works all right as a practical demonstration and when the time 

 finally comes to secrete the egg sac, the advantages of this 

 peculiar habit become evident. During July when the scale has 

 attained full size, a snow white felty covering of curly filament 

 is secreted, fitting closely over the entire body. If the secretion 

 is removed before the female has begun to deposit eggs a plump, 

 smooth, oval, slightly pink, object is found to be quite filling the 

 closed sac. When it begins to deposit eggs, the female scale 

 pushes the anterior end of its body through the sac in front, 

 breaking open the end pointed downward. Then slowly con- 

 tracting as the eggs are laid, the scale becomes, by the time the 

 sac is filled with eggs, a shrivelled helpless object already 

 nearly dead. Sometimes it remains in the opening forming a 

 plug for the sac, but more often it drops to the ground. 



The oval sac is usually slightly more than quarter of an inch 

 in length. One fair sized sac contained 740 pinkish yellow eggs. 

 The closed end being directed uppermost, the eggs are more 

 thoroughly protected than otherwise would be the case. 

 Enough filaments of the sac are scattered among the eggs to 

 hold them in place. 



The eggs of this summer generation hatch in July and August, 

 and the scales mature in the fall, secreting before winter (in 

 October and early November for ]\Iaine) sacs in which the eggs 

 remain until spring. 



The Male Scales. — Xo adult males were captured during the 

 two seasons. Three male pupae were found among 136 mounted 

 scales taken from grass blades in Portland, August 17, 1904. 

 The wing pads, antennae and legs were distinct in all. One was 

 more nearly mature than the others and seemed about to 

 emerge. Most of the female scales mounted at this time range 

 from i^ to 3 millimeters. The male pupse are less than i^ 

 millimeters long, while a full grown female scale often measures 

 a little over 6 millimeters. The male scales would naturally be 

 expected to appear before the females begin to secrete the 

 cottony covering. 



Number of Generations. — From the middle of July to August 

 4, 1904, freshly formed tgg sacs as well as egg sacs from which 



