The morning call., 1893-02-16


tween the Matching Of an egg and the time
when the resulting and red-streaked and
black-spOtted ladybird begins fitting from
bough to bough. The larval stage lasts
about two weeks.
This seems a short time for the smRrtest
Larvae TO attain growth and education. but
they seem 10 have all the practical education
necessary. The parasi.ical ladyblrd, by
the way. deposits its many little eggs ID the
cotton described, and the first thing the grub
does is to begin sucking eggs-the scale eggs
10 the cottony nest.
In a few days the Larvae are crawling
about the limbs. They are awfully hungry.
They are regular gluttons. and they are all
looking for one thing, cottony cushion scales
and their eggs. They crush the shells OF
the microscopic eggs with their mandibles
aud suck the contents. When they find q
live scale they just sink those comparatively
powerful mandibles into the Insects side
and suck the juices from the body.
Now comes the explanation of tie
fight for blood that Mr.. Craw watched
through magnifying glass. When these
Larvae find eggs and scales plenty they keep
just reasonably busy getting away with
them. They eat about all the time, and as
they travel about from feast to feast. well
fed and prosperous, they move rather
slowly. They would be in danger of drop
ping OF II they travelled by their legs in
front alone, and so at each advance they
exude a little sticky secretion from their
abdomen which holds them while they
straighten out ahead again.
When healthy, growing larva becomes
hungry. however. his nature Is greatly
changed. He is active and seems in hurry
to find something. The pluck he displays
when he gets chance Is admirable. He
will attack the biggest scale he finds travel
ing around. aud will sink hls mandbles into
the Insects side and just hold on regardless
The scale will struggle frantically and rush
away, dragging the assailant IL cannot fight
or shake Off The larva first hangs on get
ting his dinner en- route. Soon the scale Is
exhausted, gives up the fight and dies.
But when the famished larva is travelling
along limb, wild with hunger and desper-
ate as a starved wolf, finding no more cot
tony cushion scales on his native tree, he
just attacks the first larva of his kind he
runs across. When two lusty and famsned
Larvae meet on leaf or limb each gazes wild
eyed at the other, each says, "Ah hal you're
my meat" and they rush 10 the combat.
The yanquished becomes the victor's din
ner. Ii a larya who has recently bagged a
half-dozen scales and a few dozen fresh
eggs climbs leisurely round a corner and
suddenly sees rapidly advancing poor rela-
tive, who has starved all day, he knows
just what is up If lie was born only last
Tuesday. He displays alarm, for he knows
by the weird light in his brothers eye
that he is likely TO be eaten raw and he at
once beats retreat. lie is not likely TO get
away and soon turns TO fight. He tries a
bluff by sticking his abdomen down ana
raising his head, thorax and legs In the air
by bending backward with wide open jaws
and striking downward at his foe. The
success of the bluff depends on the enemy's
hunger II the battle begins il proceeds
| about ike the one Mr.. Craw observed on
| the orange leaf.
These gallant cannibals we're eager for
| battle the moment they faced each other.
| Both could be seen opening and closing
| their mandibles at a distance apart of a
| little less than an inch. Each was a trifie
| less than quarter Of an inch long. They
were Of the same age and each bad been
| hungry the same length Of time, SO the con-
test was an equal one.
Each advanced fercely one thirty-second
| part of an inch, and each was plainly In a
| frenzy of rage and hunger One, which was
| the least bit darker than the other. took a
firm hold on the leaf with six feet, punched
| his body up toward his head. glued his
abdomen fast and let his front end stride
| ahead. His rival did the same. Both rose
| high in air with mandiDles working and long
legs clawine the air in defiance and struck
| downward with head and thorax as IL try
ing TO instIl terror in the heart OF The enemy.
They drew nearer and were within strk-
| ing distance. Then they began 10 display
| pugilistic art. The dark fellow struck at
his rival fereely. but the blow was lodged.
| Neither could bend his D0Gy sideways, and
| each seemed to know full well that the
| secret Of victory lay in getting hold on his
| antagonists side and saving his own from
his enemy's fatal jaws. The light one
began a flank movement and the
| dark one turned q trifie aud struck. The
| light one tried to parry it quickly with his
| legs and the dark fellow caught one in his
jaws, disabling il and winning first blood.
| The battle became fiercer and both seemed
| very active and brave, but the movements
were hard to catch. Those Jaws were the
| only effective weapons they had, and fata
hold was hard to get Now they would be
locked together somehow. fiercely writhine
and struggling, and now separated moment
before another rush. For FIVE or six minute.
they struck and struggled, and then thu
| dark champion rushed in and gained the
| fatal hold on his antagonists side. He
held Ii like the grim death 1t was. His
victim struggled In the frantic throes o.
death awhile, but he could not escape anC
he could not turn sideways TO fight back
His struggles grew fainter, then ceased
| The victor reyeed in the feast he drew
from the side of his prey.
Ali this well illustrated the wisdom oil
great natures plan. The cottony cushion
scale was evolved to temper the pride AM
arrogance of the orange barons OF Southern
California. The ladybird was created
winged appetite that the scale might ho
wholly destroy the fragrant groves. T
make this bug wholly fulfill its mission /
the juices OF one variety of the ccocda
That the ladybird population might
more perfectly adjusted to the demand
that death might mercifully remov
the victims of starvation, that a
| mighe not perish when scales wer