STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
795 
MIDOR. LARVA. 0RAWL9 ABOUT OK THE WHEAT EARS. 
inside, thus toughening the inner skin of the worm, there the 
outer skin is always cast off. Whether it is cast off under any 
other circumstances I am yet in doubt. 
Before they become matured some of the larvae it is probable 
leave the florets in which they are nestled and crawl about upon 
the wheat heads and enter other florets. Thus I think it comes 
to pass that we sometimes meet with one or two large larvae in the 
same floret with a company of minute ones. It no doubt some¬ 
times happens that a floret becomes overstocked with more larvae 
than the kernel can sustain, whereupon part of them forsake it 
on discovering they must starve if they remain there. Coming 
out probably when the grain is wet with rains or heavy night 
dews, they wander over the heads till they find and enter other 
florets in which'they can be better accommodated. Where there 
are but few larvro in a head they are found upon the two outer 
kernels of the headlets, rarely on either of the two inner ones. 
But where the larvae are numerous all the kernels share alike in 
supporting them. 
After the grain ripens and they have done feeding upon it, on 
the coming on of a rain moistening the heads of the wheat and 
rendering the bodies of the larvae within them soft and pliant, 
they leave the florets, one after another coming out and wander¬ 
ing over the outer surface of the chaffs and out upon their 
beards, as though bf this exercise to become more limber and 
expert in crawling before they attempt to descend the straw. 
And if the rain passes over and the heads begin to become dry, 
they hasten back into their lurking-places between the chaffs. 
And if wheat heads be placed in a glass or earthen jar and ex¬ 
posed to the rain, whereby the larvae descend from them, when 
the water collected in the jar is poured off or evaporates, the 
larvai wandering about and discovering there is no earth there 
lor them to enter will all crawl back again, ascending the 
straws and re-entering the heads. Thus, by leaving but one ear 
in the jar, all the larvae from a number of ears may be herded 
together in this one; or by substituting a perfect ear in its 
stead we may produce the paradoxical phenomenon of a wheat 
ear thronged with these larvm and yet not one of the kernels in 
it shrunken. 
A powerful rain which is unattended with wind, especially if 
it occurs in the night time, brings the larvm out of the ears of 
