WIREWORM POPULATIONS IN RELATION TO CROP PRODUCTION: II. POPULATION CHANGES IN GRASSLAND

Six grass fields were sampled once a fortnight from July 1943 to September 1944, and the wireworms in the samples counted by the washing and flotation method.
The counts from twenty standard samples showed huge fluctuations which rendered them practically valueless as estimates of wireworm populations when treated singly. When treated as running means of four consecutive samplings, the counts showed certain seasonal trends, with minimum populations in July and August, rising populations throughout the autumn, maximum populations in the months from January to April and a sharp decline to the minimum populations again from April to July. On the average, the counts taken in winter were twice as high as those taken in the summer months.
The fluctuation was evident in all size groups based on larval length but was most marked in the wireworms 'under 4 mm.', '4 mm.' and '5 mm.'
Samples taken to depths of 12 and 24 in. showed that on the average about 75 % of the wireworms were found in the 0–6 in. layer and about 90% in the 0–12 in. layer. These proportions varied considerably with the seasons.
The seasonal changes in wireworm populations observed do not correspond with those expected from the life history of Agriotes spp. Possible explanations for this anomaly are discussed, but it cannot be attributed to any known technical or biological factor. Several possibilities remain to be explored.