Clover-weevil
(Line shows natural size)
“What gluttons! They think they must have blossoms, tender and sweet-smelling.”
“It is the clover-weevil, and it measures scarcely three millimeters in length. The body, of a uniform black, is slightly globular behind. You know clover well enough, with its blossoms massed in a round head. Well, the clover-weevil lays its eggs on the flower-head before the blossoms open.” [[329]]
“Without boring into each flower separately to lay its eggs in?” Jules inquired.
Clover-hay Worm
1, 2, larvæ; 3, cocoon; 4, chrysalis; 5, 6, moth with wings spread and closed; 7, worm covered with silken web.
“The weevil does not take that trouble. The larvæ must manage for themselves. As soon as it is hatched out each one pierces the base of the flower that suits it and works its way inside. Once there, it eats the heart of the bud, especially the part that would have become fruit, the little pod with its seeds. That done, it takes on its insect form.
“Another weevil, equally small and equally numerous, runs neck and neck with this one in destroying clover blossoms. It is black, with yellow legs. Both abound in cultivated fields. In winter they can be found gathered at the foot of trees, waiting for the clover to bloom before they go to work.