CORN, PESTS AND DISEASES 277 



work their way into the grain. They feed for about 

 three weeks. The creature passes the winter only in 

 granaries, warehouses, mills or elevators. It will breed 

 uninterruptedly, generation after generation, in stored 

 corn or wheat. After harvest the moth flies out from 

 the granaries to the corn and wheat fields and lays 

 its eggs upon grains of corn and wheat in the shock. 

 The larvae are not destroyed by the husking or thresh- 

 ing, and are carried back to the granaries and finally 

 to the warehouse. When once established in such 

 places, it will remain there an indefinite length of time. 

 The most efficient remedy now known for its arrest 

 and destruction is bisulphid of carbon. It can be 

 thrown directly upon grain without injuring its vital- 

 ity or edible qualities in the least. See Fig 90, showing 

 ear of corn riddled by the grain moth. 



The Grain Weevils — The granary weevil is a 

 small, flattened-snout beetle, less than a quarter of an 

 inch long, of a uniform shining, chestnut-brown color. 

 The larva is legless, short and fleshy, whitish in color. 

 In making preparations for the deposition of her eggs 

 the female first punctures the corn with her snout, and 

 then inserts an egg in the incision. The eggs hatch in 

 a short time and the larva devours the interior of the 

 grain and finally undergoes its transformation within 

 the hull. In wheat and other small grains a single 

 larva inhabits a. kernel, but in com several individuals 

 may inhabit the same kernel. About six weeks are 

 usually required for the transformation from egg to 

 adult. There are probably four or five broods in the 

 northern states, and six or more in the southern. The 

 adult beetles do a great deal of damage by gnawing 

 into the kernels. 



The rice weevil, another common species, was first 

 found in rice and was given this popular name by its 

 discoverer. It occurs in every state and territory and 



