THE GEEEN SOLDIER-BUG. 81 



the bug's attention from the cotton bolls is of practically no economic 

 importance. 



DESTRUCTIVENESS. 



The green soldier-bug has shown itself to be of importance as a 

 cotton pest not only owing to its widespread occurrence but also to 

 the fluctuations in its numbers, which result in considerable local 

 damage from time to time. An instance of this kind has been men- 

 tioned by Professor Sanderson." The correspondent referred to, 

 Mr. R. L. Taylor, of Help, Bosque County, Tex., has kindly furnished 

 additional information concerning his experience with the insect. 

 This is of sufficient interest to present in summarized form at this 

 place, as it represents the experience of a cotton grower whose obser- 

 vations were made and conclusions arrived at independently of 

 previous knowledge of the destructive capabilities of the insect. 

 The accuracy of Mr. Taylor's observations is sustained by the close 

 correspondence between his description of the effects of the green 

 soldier-bug's attack and the effects of the attack of the conchuela, 

 which has already been considered in detail. He writes that the 

 insect was first noticeably abundant in 1901, and it was observed 

 that year that many bolls failed to open perfectly ; in some instances, 

 from as many as 30 bolls on a plant not more than 5 opened and 

 produced good lint. The insects were also abundant in 1902 and 

 damage to bolls was again noticed. In 1903 the damage was not so 

 severe, but much staining of lint was believed to be due to the work of 

 the bugs. A local cotton buyer claimed that the condition of the lint 

 was due to frost, although Mr. Taylor states positively that there 

 had been no frost at the time (October). Whenever the bugs were 

 present in numbers it was observed that the cotton was ^'spotted," 

 that is, one, two, or three locks of a boll opened, while the remainder 

 in each case failed to open. Shedding of badly damaged bolls was 

 also noted in 1902, but this was probably confined mostly to bolls 

 less than one-half grown, as was observed in the case of damage by 

 the conchuela. 



Bosque County, in which Help is situated, was first infested by 

 the boll weevil in 1902, and the first damage to cotton in the county 

 was observed in 1903. It should be noted that there is therefore no 

 possibility of the confusion of injury by boll weevil attack with that 

 of the green soldier-bug. 



NATURAL ENEMIES. 



No Tachinid parasites have thus far been reared from Nezara 

 Jiilaris, and in only one instance has the writer found a specimen to 



« Bui. 57, Bur. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., pp. 47^8, 1906. 

 22348— Bull. 86—10 6 



