The weevil appears in late August and early September. After the nut kernels have hardened, the female chews a hole in the shell and deposits her eggs in little pockets in the nuts. Creamy white grubs hatch from the eggs and feed inside the nuts during the fall, attaining a length of about three-fifths inch. When they reach maturity, the grubs chew a hole about one-eighth inch in diameter in the shell, emerge from the nut and drop to the ground in late fall and early winter. They burrow in the soil to a depth of 4 to 12 inches and construct a cell. Some individuals remain in the larval stage until the following fall when pupation occurs. Other larvae do not transform to pupae until the succeeding year. The adults appear during the summer, following pupation. The entire life cycle requires from 2 to 3 years, most of this time being spent in the soil. [Illustration: Figure 11. Overwintered larva of the pecan nut casebearer and characteristic injury to the developing shoots.] _Control._—Frequently, certain trees in the orchard are more heavily infested than others, since the adults usually do not go far from the tree upon which they developed. The time at which insecticide applications should be made to control this insect can be determined by jarring the trees. Begin checking the first week in August. A large sheet should be placed under a tree and the limbs jarred with a padded pole. The weevils drop to the ground and remain motionless for a short period, at which time they may be counted. When three or more weevils are jarred from each tree, an application of spray containing 6 pounds of 50 percent DDT wettable powder per 100 gallons of water should be made[8]. [Illustration: Figure 12. Eggs of the first generation pecan nut casebearer deposited on the tips of the young nuts.] STINK AND PLANT BUGS The adults of several species of stink bugs and plant bugs suck the sap from young pecan nuts causing an injury known as black pit, in which the interior of the nuts turns black. The injured nuts fall from the trees before the shells harden. Feeding by the insects after shell hardening, Figure 14, produces brown or black spots on the kernels. Areas affected taste bitter, but the remainder of the kernel is unaffected. Stink bugs are familiar to everyone. Plant bugs resemble them and are usually shades of brown, smaller and narrower in body outline. Plant bugs and stink bugs overwinter in the adult stage in debris on the ground. In the spring, the adults are attracted to growing vegetation such as cover crops or weeds, where they deposit their eggs. The immature bugs develop on low-growing vegetation. When they reach maturity, their wings are fully developed and they fly to pecan trees. A few eggs may be deposited on pecan trees, but the young bugs apparently are unable to develop on them. Only the adults are present in sufficient number to inflict economic injury. There may be as many as four generations each year.