0. ÖAÖAKI. 



V. 



Habits and Anatomy of the Mature Maggot. 



'J'he maggot, Avhen it reaches maturity, leaves its abode in the 

 body of the silkworm or its pupa, and through a hole it makes in any 

 part of the body of the host, passes into the cocoon and thence to the 

 outside world ( Fl. I F, ßgs. à. 6 ). To effect the final release, the mag- 

 got first softens one pole of the cocoon with saliva, and there makes an 

 opening by separating the silk fibres by means of its hooked jaw. 

 The action of the jaw upon the softened portion of it is so severe 

 and constant that we can always hear a peculiar cracking sound inside 

 the cocoon. When the maggot has succeeded in making a small hole 

 in the cocoon by the repeated action of its jaw, it projects its an- 

 terior end out of the cocoon {PL IV, fig. 4), and by a combination 

 of expansions, contractions, and screwings, it finally wriggles out of 

 the cocoon, leaving a round hole where it passed through (P/. Zr, 

 fig. 5 ). In rare cases the maggot changes into a puparium while 

 leaving a cocoon, that is, when one half of its body has gained the 

 outside while the other half still remains in the inside ( PL IV, 

 fig. 6). 



It is very strange that the infested silkworm or its pupa enclosed 

 in a cocoon produces almost always orjly one single maggot and no 

 more, though many eggs are taken in by the silkworm. This circum- 

 stance has led our silkworm growers to entertain a very false idea in 

 regard to the nature of the maggot. As only one maggot comes out of 

 one silkworm or pu[)a, they believe that the silkworm directly changes 

 into the maggot. I have already given the reasons why only one 

 maggot out of several attains maturity, and need not go into theui 

 again. 



