STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
CUT-WORMS. THEIR DESTROYER'S MODE OF KILLING THEM. 
817 
of its prey. It wanders about over the plowed land, until it comes upon a 
spot where it perceives the surface has been newly disturbed. This indi¬ 
cates to it that a Worm ha* probably crawled down into the ground at that 
spot. It immediately thereupon roots down into this loosened dirt, and 
disappears from view, the motion of the dirt indicating its movements, 
as it pushes itself along. At times it lies perfectly still, to discover if £*ny 
worm is moving in the dirt anywheres near it. Now it is the habit of the 
Cut-worm, the same as of most other worms, when any other creature ap¬ 
proaches and disturbs it, to give at short intervals a sudden, spiteful jerk, 
to menace and frighten away the intruder. But now, aware by the brisk 
motion made in the dirt near it, of the proximity of its mortal foe, it 
restrains itself from its wonted habit, and lies as still as though it were 
dead. It is only by some motion in the dirt, or by coming abruptly against 
it with its head and feelers, that this destroyer can discover the worm, for 
I have seen it draw the hind part of its body along the side of a worm 
which was lying perfectly still, and crawl away, without being made aware 
of the worm’s presence by touching it in this manner. 
One of the most interesting and wonderful exhibitions of insect economy 
which the world affords, is this Calosotna larva murdering a Cut-worm. The 
larva it may be is young and less than half the size of the worm, but the little 
hero never shrinks from the encounter. Upon discovering a worm, he is in¬ 
stantly on the alert, all vivacity and as if crazy with excitement. The worm 
perhaps holds its head bent down stiffly upon its breast. The larva hereupon 
briskly roots -and pushes the worm about and pinches it with his jaws, 
whereby he gets it to throw back its head, whereupon he instantly grasps 
the worm by its throat, sinking his sharp jaws through the skin, and cling¬ 
ing thereto with the grip and pertinacity of a bull dog. The worm mad¬ 
dened by the pain writhes and rolls over and over and thrashes his tormen¬ 
tor furiously about, to break him off from his hold; he coils his body like 
a Boa constrictor tightly around him to pull him away; ho bends himself 
into a ring with a small orifice in the centre, and then briskly revolving, 
draws him through and through this orifice to tear him off; but every 
expedient of the poor worm fails. The larva clings to his grip upon the 
worm’s throat, till the latter, exhausted by his violent struggles, gradually 
relaxes his efforts, becomes more and more weak and powerless, and finally 
succumbs to his fate. Having thus killed the worm the larva leisurely pro¬ 
ceeds to feed upon it, biting two or three holes through the skin in differ¬ 
ent places to suck out its contents. It is occupied three or four hours in com¬ 
pleting this work. And the larva becomes so gorged hereby that its own 
skin is distended almost to bursting. It then crawls slightly under ground, 
and there lies and sleeps off its surfeit, and then comes out and wanders 
of! in search of another meal of thC same kind. 
When this larva is small a single Cut-worm suffices it for one or two 
days; but as it approaches maturity it devours one or two worms daily. 
LAo. Trans.] 
52 
