374 
JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 
[Vol. 11 
Description of Egg 
Fusiform, more tapering toward the anterior end, slightly curving; rice white; .50' 
to .75 mm. long and .15 to .20 mm. in width. The chorion is longitudinally grooved 
and is finely reticulated throughout. The reticulation along the ridges is somewhat 
coarser and at the posterior end is a much coarser network within which is included a. 
group of finer markings. 
Period of Incubation 
Two eggs deposited in the breeding cage August 10 hatched August 
13; eight eggs deposited August 7 hatched August 12. Eggs collected 
in the open at various times invariably hatched in 1 to 5 days. The 
incubation period is, therefore, from 3 to 5 days, and possibly longer 
during cold, wet weather. 
Habits of Larva 
The larva upon hatching is a tiny, translucent maggot, about 
1.0 mm. in length. In the rearing boxes newly hatched larvae were not 
observed to feed until the second day. The maggots are extremely 
sensitive to light or any disturbance of their surroundings. They will 
not feed when exposed to light and will stop feeding the moment they 
are disturbed in any way. This sensitiveness makes it almost impos¬ 
sible to observe their feeding habits in the field and in the hundreds 
of field observations of root-lice colonies C. glabra larvae have never 
been detected attacking or feeding upon root lice. When confined with 
root lice in small, tin boxes, the maggots feed quite readily and by sud¬ 
denly removing the covers can be seen for a moment in the act. The 
point of attack is generally on the side of the first segment of the ab¬ 
domen and more rarely on the ventral surface. The head is inserted 
well into the aphid and the soft body contents are sucked out. If not 
disturbed feeding is continued until nothing but the empty skin re¬ 
mains. Only full grown or nearly mature root lice are attacked, pos¬ 
sibly because the smaller lice are more active. 
Length of Larval Stage and Number of Aphids Devoured 
The records of seven, maggots hatched from eggs deposited in the 
breeding cage, reared in tin boxes and supplied with five large aphids 
per day are shown in the following table: 
