The forefeet of the changa are powerful and remarkably adapted 
for digging, the joints of the foretibia? and tarsi being so articulated 
as to form a sharp, curved, shearing apparatus. The hard, rounded 
prothoracic shield is well suited for shaping the sides of the tunnel 
by rotary movements as digging progresses and for firming the soil 
in the newly made galleries. 
Although clumsy, owing to the weight of its specialized forelegs, 
the changa is a rapid runner, even on the surface of the ground, 
where it often accelerates its gait by short hops. In its underground 
galleries it is a very rapid traveler, moving forward or backward 
with equal ease. Changas of the first three stages are very active, 
hopping many times their own length and running with great 
agility. The saltatory power is lost in the later instars, as the fore- 
legs become heavier, and in. leaping, the insect often somersaults in 
midair. The adult is also a heavy, clumsy flier and after performing 
long swoops lands heavily. Migrating individuals have been re- 
corded (54, p. 256) as soaring over tree tops, and such migration to 
the distance of a few miles is considered probable. Flight during 
daylight hours has not been observed in Porto Rico, but is recorded 
from Georgia (54, p. 262). The adults not uncommonly fly into 
lighted houses dur^g the early evening, from dusk on, especially on 
damp, cloudy nights. 
FEEDING HABITS AND FOOD PLANTS. 
The changa feeds primarily on vegetables, animal food seeming to 
form only a small part of its diet. Almost any young plant growth 
is attacked. The insect remains underground and feeds from below, 
commonly selecting the crown of the plant as the point of attack. 
When the growth is very tender the insect consumes almost the entire 
sprout, pulling it into the soil while feeding until only the top leaves 
are left above ground. Sometimes the seedling is partially gnawed 
through at its base. Tender roots also are often eaten. 
Of the staple crops, tobacco is the most seriously damaged. Owing 
to the use of the Paris green and flour mixture, the changa is not 
now so important a pest of this crop as it once was. Practically all 
the grasses serve as food for the mole cricket, " grama * (Paspalum 
sp.) and " yerba dulce " (Eleusine indica) being its favorites among 
the common wild species. When sugar cane is planted on loose or 
sandy soils the changa sometimes causes great damage to this crop. 
Its injury to the young canes often makes necessary a considerable 
amount of replanting before a stand can be obtained. The injury 
to cane is confined to the germinating seed and to the bases of the 
young shoots, which are partially gnawed through. The boring into 
13110°— 18 2 
