June 1914 
Feeding Habits of the Boll Weevil 
239 
The 12 weevils in the spring series fed quite freely and regularly. In 
a total of 69 examinations feeding was found in all but 3 cases, and 1 of 
these was when nothing but mature fruit was offered. An analysis of the 
feeding shows the following: Corolla, 39 times; stamens, 37 times; buds, 
27 times; and young fruit, 10 times. While this shows the usual prefer¬ 
ence for the corolla and stamens, the amount of feeding on buds is 
unusually large. 
Eggs were deposited by each lot of boll weevils, but on only four 
different days, a total of 15 being found. The maximum number per lot 
in one day was eight. 
The maximum longevity of these boll weevils was 43 days, with an 
average of 19.2 days. This is above the average for boll weevils fed on 
either cotton bolls or leaves. 
The period from emergence to deposition was 5 days in each series. 
Although 15 eggs were deposited in this series, they were distributed 
in only 4 buds. These were placed in cloth-covered tumblers on moist 
sand and tested for emergence of adults. When no adults appeared at 
the proper time, the buds were opened and the contents examined. Of 
course, it was impossible to determine at that time whether the eggs 
actually hatched, but if they did, the larvae died before reaching any 
considerable size, as there were no signs of larval work in any of the buds. 
Only six boll weevils, divided into three lots, were used in the summer 
series. In a total of 37 examinations feeding was found in all but 8 cases. 
The feeding by parts of the plant was divided as follows: Anthers, 24 
times; corolla, 13 times; and buds, once. 
No eggs were found any time, but owing to the extremely dry weather, 
the buds at this season were not very choice and the supply was not suffi¬ 
cient to have fresh ones always present. 
The maximum longevity for the series was 26 days, the average for the 
two sexes being 14.1 days. 
Twelve boll weevils were started in the fall series on September 9 
and 10. These were fed on the buds, bloom, and young fruit of the pink 
variety of Hibiscus, the food being renewed often enough to insure the 
presence of a fresh supply all the time. This was continued as long as 
the food was available. 
Four females and seven males were used, one male having escaped on 
the second day of the experiment. Although these boll weevils were 
not examined more than once a day, each female was observed in copu¬ 
lation at least once at the time of this examination, seven acts of copula¬ 
tion by the four females being observed. 
Each of the females deposited at least one egg, the four depositing 19 
eggs. The period from emergence to deposition ranged from 12 to 18 
days, with an average of 14 days. The period of oviposition varied 
from 7 to 15 days, excluding the record of one female that deposited only 
one egg. The average was 11 days. 
In a total of 62 examinations for feeding during the period when food 
was present the feeding was usually quite extensive, and not a single 
case occurred when there was no feeding. An analysis by parts of the 
plant attacked gives the following: Stamens, 52 times; corolla, 50 times; 
buds, 5 times; and pistil, once. 
On October 13 the supply of Hibiscus was completely exhausted, and 
the boll weevils died 4 to 5 days afterwards, the average being 4.4 days. 
