The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1911-10-11
COTTON BOOT. WEEVIL
DEADLY PARASITE ENTERED
THIS COUNTRY IN 1902.
Since Then it Has Advanced State by
State. - South Carolina VIII Be
Reached, Next.

IS. Grand Flower-feeder. because ne
leeds on the flower Of cotton, the
worlds most important textile plant
entered the United States at Browns
lille. Texas. in 1892, having Woreo
I'D from his original home II Guale-
mala when cotton fields stretched a
cross Mexico. The insect has ions
oeen resident in Cuba and is pfooa-
bly, indigenous there.
The Cotton Boil Weevil eelon7s "
The Snout beetles. family "Nieh -
we'll represented in this co"Alis' 1oi
The peach and plum curcui!o' tn7 PC
,,,rcn,io the rice weevil, the gran
NV vaeyil. the chestnut weevil, the
oorn. h;llaus. are all allied to it
Cousins so to SPEAK.
IN Texas the Cotton Boil Weeyil
found its hardest task, on account OF
! climate unusually dry ami hot in
summer. and subject to sudden Sc
rere changes in winter, aecentuated
oy lack of cover.
Moreover the natural enemies Of
he insect were disorganizd. Texas
was filled with shooting clubs and
market hunters. There was con-
:inual bombardmenc going on from
he Sabine to the Rio Granda. Every
hing that flapped wing furnished
, target, Prairie chickens, the mag
aificent pinnated grouse of the prai-
lies, were shipped to market in car
Dads and at last externinated for
aone exist in Texas today except a
ew in isolated localities. The saw
ne of this one bird would have saw
d Texas millions of dollars, for they
re wide rangers and vigorous feed
ers. and were evenly dispersed over
the State.
In 1907, fifteen years after it en-
:ered the United States the Boil Wee
il entered Louisiana, causing a loss
# as per cent to the cotton crop OF
he State. which is about the dam
,ge in the infested portions of Miss
ss!ppi.
The weeyil has shown no signs OF
lying out, but is as numerous IN
Iexico and Texas as it was fifteen
ears ago. 1t attacks all kinds OF
;otton alike.
Parasites (insects which raise their
ouns On other insects) have not fui-
illed the predictions made for them
ut have had no appreciable effect
IN the spread of the Boil Weevil
N active agent in destroying the
.arva. however, has been the an
lSolenopss geminata.)
The reason that parasites do Sc
title in checking the weevil lies II
he weevi!'c life history. The egg:
s laid in the square or the boil, tht
.arva Ga white grub) matches inside
Doll or square and puptas ther
Only the adul form emerges ant
grown weevils are not easy for par
site to work on, with their bodle
aIiCaSSC udIU SoNSi
It has become clearer, with tn
iield work of each year, that ther'
vas but cne final check on the rava
,es of the Boil Weevil and that checl
vas the bird host.
no one has ever disputed that bird
eat the insect freely, and inrestiga
.ions of the Biological Survey shov
hat 65 species feed on. the insect
n the front rank are swallows Of al
kinds, bank swallows, barn swallows
.clet wing swallows and so on:
.iose second is furnished by night
hawks (bullbats) and chimney swift
while purple martins (nembcrs o
he swallow family are ieat de
;troyers Of Pa:l !,;:eVils.
To take a smile from the eXper
ence men, We take our food where i
nay be had easiest, as genera
.uie. There are many things W.
would sometimes prefer to eat am
would eat those things, except tha
sine and trouble are required t
have them; so we fall back on tn
.ood furnished by grocers and othe
providers.
The bird (and all animals in fact
,ursues the same course. Most bird
must have a certain definite amour
If insect food in order to keep heal
:hy, and there are insects more pala
able to them than are other insects
3ut when any particular insect i
abundant and easy to get, provided
):rds eat it all, they will take tina
insect rather than go afield on tn
uncertain chance OF finding son'
other.
The Boil Weevil being evervwher
.bundant where found and c. .Ae'
fields furnishes this easy foo'
supply and hence is taken in grea
quantities. Moreover most bird
.elish the insect and eat it with avi
iity. Therefore, it is clear that Coz
nas placed in our hands the remed,
With which to stay the pest and a
;ert ruin.
Just today reports fly in from al
oarts of South Carolina as 10 dana
ges done by the Cotton Leafcater
)iller (Argillacea alabama) and thl
,est is eaten by birds too numerou
70 mention. Prof. Conradi is au
thority or the statement that black
birds cleaned these caterpillars Of
Ten thousand acres of cotton nea
Dallas, Texas, in days time.
But to our mutton:
Cultural methods will not save
South Carolina There are 70 sum
rers so hot as the summers Of TeXa!
thermometer 1870 degrees in mid
summer 1909-government reading)
,or ORC oyar uirra visited With Sll6