INFLUENCK OF CULTUKAL CUNDli K iN S. 47 



From a cairful study of I'ahh' \'II1 i( is (niitc evident tliiit no 

 sin<rlt' cultural factor will l)e found to explnin the xaivini,^ moitaiilN. 

 The character of the soil in each Li,i-on|) \afi<'s fiom smikK post oak to 

 black river bottom. The direction of the lows fails to show an\ con- 

 sistent r(dationshij) to tlu* proportion of wcexil stai^^es (h'^troNcd. 

 The conthtion of cnhiNalion was i-(>eoi-(led foi- hut few lields. and nia\' 

 practically be disrei^a riled because of the lack of (hal a. In t he cohiinn 

 for spaciuii: of plants amoni^Mhe remarks are some points which wei-e 

 imdoubtedly inlhuMilial in prochieini;- th(> mortality i-esnhs shown. 

 Tal)l(^ \'I11 should \w studied in comiection with Table \ II. .\t 

 Beeville it was not(Ml that the stand was ])()()r and that onl\ one-haH" 

 of the <z:round was shaded where the stand was i^^ood. A lar^c propor- 

 tion of the scjuares were infested as early as July 12, and fallen, 

 drying sipnires were abundant on the i2:roun(L K(>ferrin_<^ to Table 

 \ II in connection with Table VIII, it will be seen that under those 

 conditions, with only fallen scpnires and bolls (»xaniined. the mor- 

 tality from heat was ([uite large, but that caused by ants was 

 relativ(dy more than three times as great. Had the ants not ])een so 

 active, it is A'cry likely that the percentage of mortality from heat 

 would have been very much greater. As it was, so many weevil 

 stages were destroyed by the ants soon after the forms had fallen 

 that the mortality from heat was kept comparatively low. 



At Beeville al)out the middle of July the cultural notes indicate^ 

 that the stand was uneven and that at best only about one-half of 

 t lie ground was shaded. During July and August the climatic records 

 show that the temperature averaged 1.5 degrees below normal, while 

 the rainfall amounted to 1.42 inches above normal. Doubt l(\ss the 

 excess of rainfall and the deficiency of heat are correlated. Under 

 these conditions, how^ever, there occurs the highest total mortalit}^ 

 found in any locality, i. e., 84 per cent. Of this total mortality heat 

 and drying was responsible for 20 per cent, while ants destroyed 62.8 

 per cent. In this case, therefore, it is evident that the ants were far 

 the most important factor in pr6ducing the highest recorded per- 

 centage in mortality, and it would ap])ear that their work was favored 

 by the conditions of open spacing, medium heat, and nuich moisture. 



At Overton the ants caused an even greater proportion of the total 

 mortality than is^ shown above for Beeville. At San Antonio the 

 examinations were not extensive, but the ants were responsible for 

 the entire mortality found. In these three cases of highest total 

 mortality the climatic factors would seem to have been much less 

 important than was tlie a])undance of the ants, which might have ])een 

 influenced by local conditions. 



At Corpus Christi all of the examinaiions w(»re made on July 10. 

 The notes show that at that time the ground was about two-iifths 



