42 



them for the Mexican cotton boll weevil. It is possible that the for- 

 mer species might have entered the cotton bolls for hibernation, but 

 the damage was not due to them, but evidently to a disease. It was 

 noted by our correspondent that they were found in cotton helds 

 which had "peas' 1 planted along the sides. 



BIOLOGIC NOTES. 



September 28, 1903, Mr. A. Fredholm, Fort Drum, Fla., sent pods 

 of cowpea affected by the larva of this species, as was positively 

 proved by rearing. At this time most of the larvae were mature. In 

 a second sending of pods, however, made considerably later, the insect 

 was still in the larval stage. The first pupa was found October 18, 

 transformed inside of a seed, and, as all other pupae that were noticed 

 were in the seed, it is presumable that in most cases the larva trans- 

 forms within a pod; but if the pod be rotten and lying on the ground, 

 the pupa can easil} T roll away and transform to adult in any convenient 

 spot on the earth. 



The greatest difficulty was experienced in rearing the larvae in the 

 unnatural conditions of the office laboratory, first because we did not 

 know the natural conditions under which the insect lived or its habits, 

 and second because the weather was entirely unsuitable to it. If the 

 larvae were permitted to remain in the molding pods they died of 

 mold, and if they' were taken from the pods they failed to develop. 

 One was found that had transformed to pupa in a pod which was rap- 

 idly decaying, and, by placing it in earth slightly moistened, it was 

 finally reared. These notes are only given as an example of what one 

 may expect in rearing in colder regions, under unnatural environ- 

 ments, species that are obviously subtropical. The larva in question 

 transformed to pupa October 18, and to adult November 13. In this 

 instance the pupal period was twenty-six da} T s, which is undoubtedly 

 from two to four times as long as normal. 



NATURAL ENEMIES. 



It was noticed about the middle of October, 1903, although cowpea 

 pods were kept in a room which is ordinarily dry, that all affected by 

 this insect were gradually becoming blackened, and a few days later 

 assumed an advanced stage of decomposition, this being the case even 

 when only a single larva inhabited merely the end of a pod. The 

 molds completely covered most of the pods and was referred to Mr. 

 A. F. Woods, Plant Physiologist and Pathologist in this Department, 

 who stated that among them was a species of Phoma, which was either 

 parasitic or on the border line of parasitism, and in wet seasons, at 

 least such as the one just past, did some injury to peas. It had not, 

 however, to his knowledge proved a very serious trouble. He also 



