March, '09! ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 131 



Most of the larvae were collected after several hard frosts 

 had killed the leaves of the plants most exposed, and when 

 taken from the dead-looking sprouts were quite benumbed with 

 cold. The number of parasitized larvae were few and the cat- 

 erpillars thrived well in 6-gallon tin cans. A number of the 

 larvae, after spinning, were unable to shed their skins and per- 

 ished. The percentage of chrysalids that failed to yield moths 

 was small. All in all, it is a very satisfactory larvae to handle, 

 barring the odor from the ordure and the dropping leaves. In 

 fact, the character of the plant and the great number of the 

 larvae made it nearly impossible to keep the breeding cans clean 

 and odorless, and the loss in larvae was mainly due to that 

 cause. The first imago of illecta came from pupa May 3Oth, 

 making the length of pupal stage 22 days. 



From the two hundred and twenty larvae collected, one hun- 

 dred and fifty pupae were secured, and from these latter, over 

 a hundred perfect imagoes. The last imago appeared June 2ist. 

 From the unusual abundance of the larvae, one would think 

 the imagoes could be readily found, but not a moth did I see 

 in the woods or brush in the daytime. The only illectas I ever 

 took were at bait at night. The apparent kinship of illecta and 

 abbreviate}] a, at least in color, suggests the probable likeness 

 of the larvae of the two species and the probable kinship of 

 their food plants. Neither in the larvae nor in the imagoes is 

 there any color variation worth mentioning in illecta. 



Freshly hatched larvae of Catocala vidua are of an almost 

 transparent greenish brown, becoming a dark amber, with very 

 dark heads. Eggs of this species hatched May loth. Toward 

 the second moult the larva becomes lighter and more or less 

 streaked longitudinally. After the second moult much lighter 

 and still streaked lengthwise. The subdorsal streaks blacker 

 on the top of the second and third abdominal segments. Body 

 quite bristly. The top of the fifth abdominal segment a little 

 darker than the rest, but with little appearance of being humped. 

 True and prolegs light gray. After third moult, larva one and 

 one-quarter inches long, quite light. Lateral row of setae. 

 Head gray-brown with longitudinal fine darker lines and a 

 short, dark side-dash. As after second moult the sub-dorsal 



