Jeffersonian Republican. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1840-1853, 1845-05-01

of opaque white spots, abou, ten in number, can
be seen in each egg. In four days, more or
less, according 10 The weather, the egg is hatch
ed; the little wrnkled maggo,, or arva, creeps
out of the delicate membranous egg-skin, crawls
down the leaf, enters The sheath, and proceeds
along the stalk, usually as far as ihe next joint
below. Here il fastens, leng'hwise and head
DOWN. wards, TO the tender stalk, and lives upon
The sap. |, does not gnaw the STALK nor does
ii enter The central cavity thereof; but, as the
larva increases in size, il gradually becomes
imbedded in the substance Of the stalk. After
taking lis station, the larva moves no more,
gradually loses its reddish color and wrnkled
appearance, becomes plump and torpid, is at
first seml.translucen,, and then more and more
clouded with internal white spots; and, when
near maturity, the middle of the intestinal parts
Is OF greenish color. In five or six weeks
varying with the ,eason) The larva begins to
turn brown, and soon becomes of bright ches-
nut color. In this stale, the insect bears some
resemblance TO a flax-seed; ; and many observers
speak of this as the far.seed state. The larva
has now become chrysais, or pupa, and takes
no more food, The pupa within gradually
cleayes offfrom the outer skin, and in the course
of two or three weeks, is entirely detached
from il, so that The skin of the larva (now brown
and hardened. and of sort of leather texture,)
has become case or she'll for the pupa inside
The pupa shell is, of course, in size and form,
like the larva: it is oval, buIging out beneath,
and of the same curve above as the outside of
the stalk divided by cross lines into twelve
segments, and is about an eighth of an inch
long. Within this shell the pupa gradually ad-
vances towards the winged state; it contracts
in length, but no, in breadth and It's skin ap-
pears covered with minute elevations Just
before evolution, We find the pupa invested in
delicate membrane, or scarf, (Which, not long
previous, was its outer skin,) through which
many parts OF the future fly may be distinctly
seen. Finally, this scarf splits along the tho
rax, or back, and the Insect comes forth, both
from This aud the puPa shell, perfect two-
winged fly.
This is, in brief, the history OF an individual
which has been so fortunate as to escape all
the numerous enemies with which its lace is
surrounded from the moment the egg is depos-
tied +; but of these, more hereafter.
In the northern and middle States, at least,
winter whea, is sown in September or October
Soon after the plants have appeared above
ground, the Hessian fly begins to lay her eggs
upon them; and this operation is continued du-
ring several weeks, according to the season.
The eggs laid on the green leaves are in few
days hatched, and the young larva crawl down
the stalk, and take their stations generally
clustering around The STALK at the nearest Joint
below. Here, by sucking of the plant, they in
crease in size, become full and hard, and, pres
sing deeply into the stalk, they impair its
growth; and if their number abou, one joint is
large, the stalk is killed. Frequently the plant,
although impoverished, advances far enough to
h0oo oo' oo' "uCH 'ho SidiH OeSiUs tO I'LL, It's
own weight, or perhaps the wind, causes the
stalk TO break down. The injury done TO the
wheat is occasioned by the exhaustion of the
sap, and by the pressure on the yeldng-stak
In FIVE or six weeks the Larvae stop feeding,
the outer skin turns brown, and within this
brown and Ieathern case the pupe pass the
winter generally lille below The surface of
the earth. In April and May the fly is again
found deposi,ns her eggs on the same wheat,
wiz: that from grain sown the proceeding au-
iumn) and also on The spring wheat which has
just come up. These eggs hatch, and The
iarva hcrefrcm operate in The same manner as
those of the autumn pfe,iuus. These Larvae
become pupe abou, The middle Of June The
flies which lay their eggs in the spring are
probably in part from The pupe which became
such la'e III the proceeding aulum, aud partly
from pupa contained in siubbIe left the fprece-
lug summer. The period of the existence of
The Hessian fly in The pupe or fax seed slate
is exceedingly variable. After much ohserva-
iton, my own opinion is hat in general puna