TH E ( r A B . > E N W EB W ORM. ■ 1 •* I 
the middle of April in central Texas and larvae of tin- firs! brood art- 
found nearly full grown by the middle of May. The moths of this 
brood oviposit late in Maw of the second in late June or early July, 
of the third about August 8, and of the fourth about September 15. 
There would still be ample time for a fifth brood in the fall, especially 
in the southern part of the Stale. Without rearing one series through 
an entire 1 season it would doubtless be impossible to determine the 
probabh 1 number of generations, for the moths appear almost con- 
tinuously in July, as is seen by the following record, which shows the 
number of moths taken at trap light at Terrell on the dates given — 
July 3, 3; 7, 4; 8, 5; 9, 4: 10, .V. 14, 6; 26, 4. 
Young cotton and corn are usually affected when about 8 inches 
high, so that replanting makes a very late crop. Alfalfa is also often 
seriously damaged, the injury occurring somewhat earlier in the spring 
than that to corn and cotton, and again in August or September. 
Undoubtedly the larva 1 working on the alfalfa in tin 1 fall remain in 
the fields over winter. In the spring they work upon the alfalfa, and. 
when that is cut. they move out into the cotton and corn adjoining in 
such numbers that this migration has often been observed and reported 
to us. About the middle 1 of July. 1903, alfalfa was thus injured in 
Oklahoma. On August 24, 1904, .Mr. Lewis found that the 1 alfalfa 
near Scurry, Kaufman County. Tex., had been souk 1 what injured, and 
learned that the insect had done similar damage about tin 1 same time 
in 1903. On September L the same injury was found at Wolfe City. 
The larvae had migrated to the adjoining rows of cotton, which had 
been partly defoliated, and had then disappeared, evidently being in 
the pupal stage, as were those being reared in the laboratory at that 
time. September 12, 1899, Mr. W. D. Hunter sent to the Division of 
Entomology two moths of this species, stating that it had been exceed- 
ingly destructive to alfalfa in southeastern Nebraska during that year. 
As has been previously recorded, the favorite food of the insect is 
the common pigweed or "careless weed" (Amaranthus), from which 
the insect received its local name of "careless worm."' It is common 
throughout the arable portion of tin 1 State, as is evidenced by reports 
of it> occurrence from near San Antonio, from Victoria, and from east 
Texas (Anderson County), but it seems particularly injurious in t ho 
northern part of the 1 State 1 . Many of the larvae captured were para- 
sitized by Apanteles /<ij>/i)/<jj,,^ Ashm. and Cardiochiles explorator Say. 
One specimen was parasitized by a larva which emerged and formed its 
cocoon July k 2D. the adult, which proves to be Mesochonts thelitis 
Cress, emerging August 4. 
Thespecies hasaiso been found to be parasitized by Exorista hypeim 
Coq. and Phorocera parva Bigot, specimens of which have been bred 
by Mr. Pergande. 
