64 



Table XIV. — Breeding-cage 



observations upon weevil choice 



o/ American and Egyptian 







squares. 









Period of observation. 



1. 



o o 



II 



i 



1 



American squares. 



Egyptian squares. 



a 



PI 



1 



< 



6 



i 



(3 

 bo 



1 



a 



I 



1 

 1 



< 



6 



a 



li 



r 



B 



1 

 1 



1 





8 

 5 

 5 

 5 

 1 



10 

 10 

 10 

 10 

 18 



16 

 16 

 16 

 16 

 4 



12 

 5 

 7 

 6 

 2 



15 

 19 

 25 

 17 



7 



5 

 1 

 2 

 6 

 



16 

 16 

 16 

 16 



4 



5 

 5 

 9 

 8 

 2 



12 

 13 

 27 

 14 

 10 



3 



2 

 3 



11.45 a. m. to 9.45 a. m 



12 m. to 5 p. m. day after. 







3 

 2 



4 





3 



5 



6 p. m. to 8 a. m 









Total 







24 



58 



68 



32 



83 



14 



68 



29 



76 



11 









In experiments 1 and 2 the American squares were attacked more 

 extensively than were the Egyptian, while in experiments 3 and 5 

 greater injury was done to the Egyptian. In experiment 4 the smaller 

 number of Qgg and feeding punctures made in the Egyptian squares is 

 counterbalanced by the larger number of squares attacked. Although 

 the totals from these five tests show slightly less injury to the Egyp- 

 tian than to the American squares, it could hardly be expected that 

 two arbitrarily chosen series, even if of the same variety, would show 

 an}^ closer agreement in the points of comparison made in this table 

 than is therein shown by the American and Egyptian squares. 



About July 25, 1904, a rather sensational report was published in a 

 number of prominent newspapers, claiming that a variety of tree cot- 

 ton had been found which was not only unaffected by frosts, but also 

 immune to the attacks of the boll weevil. An agent of the boll weevil 

 investigating force. Dr. A. W. Morrill, was detailed to study the cot- 

 ton which had given rise to the repoi't. Careful investigations were 

 made in seven different localities. No variety of cotton is positively 

 known to be unaffected by frosts. It was found that but a few stalks 

 of cotton were growing in any of the localities visited. The fruit was 

 scattered, in many places there being no bolls and the fiber of very 

 poor quality. An examination of the squares showed that they were 

 badly infested by the weevils in several of the localities visited, and 

 the isolated location in other cases might easily explain their escape 

 from attack. 



HAS THE WEEVHi ANY OTHER FOOD PLANT THAN COTTON? 



The question of the possibility of boll weevils feeding upon some 

 other plant than cotton is one of great importance. It is a well- 

 known fact that insects which have few food plants usually confine 

 their attacks to closely related plants belonging to the same botan- 

 ical famity, or even genus. Accordingly, most of the plants which 

 have been tested especially are those most closely related to cotton. 

 Four species of Hibiscus {H. escidentus^ TI. vesicarim^ H. mcmihot. 



