. Bulletin. Insects; Insect pests; Entomology; Insects; Insect pests; Entomology. THE SMOKY CRANE-FLY. 127 ing cages and by dissecting the abdomens of females that had just emerged, was approximately 300. This number had also been found to be about the egg-laying capacity of Tipula bicornis, as from three specimens Prof. F. M. Webster (1892) obtained 297, 282, and 289 eggs, respectively; and also of Tipula tephrocephala, from the abdo- men of a female of which 255 eggs were obtained. A specimen of Tipula angustipennis which the writer collected at Pullman, Wash., however, contained 602 eggs, a
. Bulletin. Insects; Insect pests; Entomology; Insects; Insect pests; Entomology. THE SMOKY CRANE-FLY. 127 ing cages and by dissecting the abdomens of females that had just emerged, was approximately 300. This number had also been found to be about the egg-laying capacity of Tipula bicornis, as from three specimens Prof. F. M. Webster (1892) obtained 297, 282, and 289 eggs, respectively; and also of Tipula tephrocephala, from the abdo- men of a female of which 255 eggs were obtained. A specimen of Tipula angustipennis which the writer collected at Pullman, Wash., however, contained 602 eggs, and Mr. E. O. G. Kelly found that a con- fined specimen of an undetermined Tipula from Kansas laid 417 eggs. The eggs laid in our rearing cages failed to hatch, but from the notes made by Mr. E. O. G. Kelly on the egg stage of an undetermined species in Kansas they probably hatch in from one to three weeks. The larva? (fig. 63, «), which often occur in enormous numbers, as many as 200 having been found in an area covering a little over 1 square foot, feed upon the roots of various plants, seeming to prefer the Leguminosae, and, contrary to most published ac- counts of the habits of these larva\ they not only suck the juices of the roots but devour the plant tissue itself, as is evidenced by the stomach contents of several larvae examined in this office. Moreover, the well-developed biting mandibles would indicate a tissue feeding habit. They feed during the early fall and hibernate as half-grown larvae, resuming activities in the spring. In feeding, these larvae move about in the ground quite freely, as is evidenced by the small molehill-like ridges which they leave, in going from plant to plant just under the surface of the ground. They become full grown about the middle of July, form perpendicular cells about 3 or 4 inches underground, and remain inactive until about the middle of September, when they pupate. The pupal stage lasts from a week to ten days. The pupa (fig. 64).
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