256 Report OF THE ENTOMOLOGISTS OF THE 
egg-laying begins about July 20, but dissections show that the 
deposition of eggs could begin the latter part of June and that it 
ceases entirely by the last of July. Hence, the egg-laying period 
of the beetles, in this section, extends over about one month. It 
is not known for how long a period an individual beetle continues 
to deposit eggs, but this period surely varies in different individ- 
uals. Specimens in confinement and excited, deposited a large 
number of eggs in a few hours; many of which were in clusters. 
In all field observations the eggs have been found deposited singly. 
Some writers have stated that the eggs are deposited in the soil 
and on the stems near the roots. In only one instance have I 
been able to find an egg near the roots; this was found in a cavity 
in the stem where the beetle had been feeding. I have frequently 
found the eggs caught in the hairs of the leaves at the growing 
tips of the vines. This, together with the fact that very few 
larvee compared with the number of beetles which appear in the 
fall, are found in the stems, especially of muskmelons; and con- 
sidering that the larve have been found feeding on the rind of the 
fruits of muskmelons, indicates that the eggs are usually dropped 
wherever the beetle happens to be feeding. Hence, they are just 
as liable to be dropped on the ground as on the surface of a leaf. 
Probably the eggs are laid during the middle of the day, and, as 
the beetles go to the underside of the leaves and even crawl under 
the vines to find shade, the eggs are generally deposited in these 
places. 
In 1864, Dr. Fitch? stated that the eggs are dropped on the 
ground. A number of other writers state that the eggs are prob- 
ably deposited below the surface of the ground on the roots of 
the vines. If these writers are correct in their assumption, the 
beetles vary considerably in their habits of depositing eggs. The 
length of time required for the egg to hatch is not known. 
Larvae.—According to Dr. Henry Shimer,® the larva or grub 
5 Tenth Report on Noxious and Other Insects: 439. 
6 Prairie Farmer, August 12, 1865. 
