20 
larva in one instance left the plant and went entirely beneath the sur- 
face and fed upon the tender roots. 
Many observations upon recently hatched larvae in breeding cages 
proved that they feed reluctantly upon corn blades, except in the heart 
of very young plants. In their continued search for something better 
they nearly always perished. In the field very young Boll Worms are 
rarely found on leaves or husks, but always in the silks near the tip of 
the ears. This fact, taken in connection with laboratory observations, 
indicates that the larvae hatched from eggs on the leaves and husks at 
once seek out the silks. Doubtless many perish before reaching the 
ears. They feed mostly upon the tender silks up to the time of the 
first molt, aud later begin feeding upon the milky grains. 
The larvae sometimes come out from their ear of corn and either take 
position on the outside of that ear or go down to the stalk and there 
molt. Only a small number, however, have this habit, the majority 
molting without leaving the ear. 
Upon cotton the newly hatched larva sometimes hides itself in a 
cluster of expanding leaf buds, fastens them together loosely with a 
few silk threads, and either feeds under the shelter of the young leaves 
or bores the peduncles and tender growing stems. So far as observed, 
this slight webbing occurs only previous to the first molt. 
During spring and summer the Boll Worm undergoes its transfor- 
mations more rapidly, and the intervals of molting are correspondingly 
shorter. The following record is an exahiple: 
Egg hatched June 11, 9 a. m. First molt, June 17, 9 a. m., six days 
after hatching. Second molt, June 18, p. m., or not more than one and 
a half days after the first. Third molt, June 20, two days after second. 
Fourth molt occurred at time of pupation, June 25, five days after the 
third. Length of larval state, fourteen and one-half days. The exact 
number of days between the molts varies slightly, but the general fact 
remains that the second and third molts occur in quick succession, while 
the first and last are often at much longer intervals. Before the first 
molt their growth is slow, but afterwards the rapidity of growth under 
favorable conditions is remarkable. During the period from the first 
to the third molts the larvae feed incessantly from morning to night. 
Before the first and after the third molts occasional short intervals 
occur during which they may be found resting. 
There is no question but that Boll Worms deliberately prey upon 
each other when they become numerous in ears of corn. Frequently 
an ear is opened and a larva found in the act of devouring another. 
These observations, however, had the objection that there was no rec- 
ord of the larvae previous to the time of making them, and that there- 
fore the victims might have been parasitized or diseased and unable to 
resist attack. Accordingly an ear containing three or four quite large 
Boll Worms was taken from the field and the worms were carefully ex- 
amined as to parasitism or previous injury. They were then placed back 
