THE WORKS OF J. H. FABRE THE LIFE OF THE WEEVIL BY J. HENRI FABRE Translated by ALEXANDER TEIXEIRA DE MATTOS, F.Z.S. HODDER AND STOUGHTON LIMITED LONDON TRANSLATOR’S NOTE I have gathered into this volume the essays on Weevils contained in the Souvenirs entomologiques, lest I should swell unduly the number of volumes devoted to Beetles, of which there will be three in all, or four if we include the present book. Chapters I. and VII. to IX. have already appeared, wholly or in part, in an illustrated miscellany, entitled The Life and Love of the Insect, translated by myself and published by Messrs. Adam and Charles Black (in America by the Macmillan Co.), and Chapter V. and parts of Chapters XI. and XII. in a similar volume, entitled Social Life in the Insect World, translated by Mr. Bernard Miall and published by Messrs. T. Fisher Unwin Ltd. (in America by the Century Co.). I am permitted by arrangement with the firms named to retranslate and reissue the chapters in question for the purpose of this collected and definitive edition of Fabre’s entomological works. I am also under no small obligation to Mr. Miall, who has given me the benefit of his assistance throughout. Alexander Teixeira de Mattos. CONTENTS PAGE TRANSLATOR’S NOTE V CHAPTER I THE OLD WEEVILS 1 CHAPTER II THE SPOTTED LARINUS 18 CHAPTER III THE BEAR LARINUS 43 CHAPTER IV THE BOTANICAL INSTINCT 58 CHAPTER V THE ELEPHANT WEEVIL 71 CHAPTER VI THE NUT-WEEVIL 94 CHAPTER VII THE POPLAR-WEEVIL 112 CHAPTER VIII THE VINE-WEEVIL 127 CHAPTER IX OTHER LEAF-ROLLERS 140 CHAPTER X THE SLOE-WEEVIL 157 CHAPTER XI THE PEA-WEEVIL: THE EGGS 184 CHAPTER XII THE PEA-WEEVIL: THE LARVA 199 CHAPTER XIII THE HARICOT-WEEVIL 213 CHAPTER XIV THE IRIS-WEEVIL 235 CHAPTER XV THE CIONUS 246 INDEX 275 CHAPTER I THE OLD WEEVILS