St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1889-07-27
The Cotton Worm and its Enemy, the
Ant

Ant
The following correspondence is taken
from the Report of the T. s. Entomolo-
gical Commission. for 1885:
LARIssA, Texas, Oct. IS, 1879
In answer to your fourth inquiry. viz:
''Do wet or dry summers favor its multinli-
cation 2" | would answer that about ten
years ago the Rev. n. A. Davis, now of
Jacksonville, in this county, suggested to
me the probability that the small red or
brown ant, abundant in the South, was the
natural enemy of the cotton worm. and
especially effective during dry summers,
After two summers observation, was CON
WINGED of the truth of the reverend gentle
mans conclusions. His opinion and two
wears observation induced me to write the
following to one of our county papers:
THE COTTON WORM 1S11).
'The danger from the cotton worm il
now over and we may review the history
of it's depredations during the summer.
Only few farmers have suffered, save in
the anxiety which they have felt during
the maturations of their crops If you
recollect, the worm was worst during the
few weeks following the rainy season, and
as the dry season advanced the worm
gradually receded and the hopes of the
farmer revived. The first generation of
these troublesome insects appeared to have
taken place in the wettest lands early in
the spring, and it was about the second
generation that MANAGED the crops. Wet
| weather favors the increase of the worm
and dry weather soon destroys it, This
| observation has been made by many farm
ers long ago. A similar observation has
long since been made in regard to the
cotton louise. Early in the spring when
the cotton is in 1t first and second leaf, if
the weather is rainy the louise soon covers
| the tender cotton plant and threatens to
destroy it. But when the dry season
supervenes the little insect disappears,
and the plant soon RECEIVERS from the mis-
chief To what shall we attribute the
| disappearance of the insect in both cases
1t is evidently due to that little predatory
and almost omnipotent ant, which retreats
to it's hole and gathers in large punches in
dry places during the rainy seasons but
whenever the drought sets in, climbs the
stalk of every plant in search of prey. 1t
is carniverous and deals death and destruc-
ton among insects in the crawling stage
of existence wherever it goes When the
cotton louise multiplies dangerously on the
.
the farmer loses all hope of his crop, I'M
less the dry weather comes and the little
ant begins to milk the cows (the lice are
called ant cows) by climbing up to them
and striking them with their hands, and
eating fluid which is made to exude from
them by the conclusion. This process
soon destroys them. Then, at later sea-
son, especially it the ant is driven to its
clo INV 10
increased to dangerous extent, threatens
the more mature plant. Again the same
ant. when the sunshine permits, saves the
cotton by climbing the stems and Selling
the houncing worm, cuts it into two on
the ground, to which both have fallen in
the struggle, and thus in a very short
time it thinned out the worm, either de-
stroying or holding it in allegiance.
"The history of these two enemies of
cotton growers accords with the expe-
rience of observers. The dry weather,
per Sc, does not save the cotton from louise
or worm in the former or latter season
only as it permits the predatory ants to
destroy them nor does the wet weather
favor the production of the insect only as
it drives the ants to their holes. Were it
not for the ant the cotton plant would
never make the first limb, or escaping this,
could not mature single boil, on account
of it's second enemy, the worms
'Then let US curse the little biting ant
no more whenoEe happen to get shoe
full, but remember that we are indebted
to this diminutive creature for every
thread of cotton that has gone into the
, commerce of the world"
Thus you see that about ten years ago
the Rev. N. A. Davis informed me of his
discovery of the destruction of the cotton
worm by the ant to which | have added
the additional fact of the destruction OF
, the cotton louise earlier in the season by
!, the same ant. The observation of each
s, succeeding year has confirmed me, since
, that time, in the opinion, and our last
summer, the driest l ever saw yielded no
, specimens of the worm or louise within my
= observation Yours, respectfully,
F. l.. YOAKUM.