

Vol. XLIII. LONDON, FEBRUARY, 1911. No. 2 



NEW HISTORIES AND SPECIES IN PAPAIPEMA AND 



HYDRCECIA. 



BY HENRY BIRD, RYE, N. Y. 

 (Continued from Vol. XLI, pag'e 118.) 



The environs of large cities are often prolific oi Papaipema species, 

 which, in comparison with rarer forms of other Noctuids, quite surprise 

 one at first. While the flora of a section must indeed be indicative of the 

 species to be expected, it is an undisturbed and unburned flora that at 

 this day exerts a lasting influence on the perpetuation of these moths. So 

 it happens the very urbanity which drives much insect life away helps, 

 through lessening the indiscriminate burning of neglected areas, where a 

 fire might be dangerous to buildings, to allow many species of this genus 

 to breed in good numbers. Although a preferred indigenous food-plant 

 has been established for most of their known larvae, there is one introduced 

 weed to which a great many will substitute upon necessity, this is the- 

 common Burdock, Arctium, and its prevalence in vacant city lots and 

 waste places is sure to be detected by some of these boring larvce. In 

 fact, it is hard to find an extended growth of Burdock that is not bored 

 by some Papaipemid, though cataphrada and 7iebris are the species to be 

 generally expected. Investigations around Buffalo, N. Y., show an 

 unusual number of species in Arctium, and several unfamiliar forms are 

 bred. The primitive flora and fauna of this section must have been very 

 rich ; the extreme fringe of the prairie zone here met the general Atlantic 

 State forms, with conditions of damp bottom lands and water margins in 

 proximity to the sand-dune life of the lake shore. It certainly reflected 

 many varied characteristics, as is evidenced by the flora of Niagara Glen 

 to-day. 



Opportunity was offered to observe Papaipema harrisii in well-estab- 

 lished colonies, and the following notes are additional to published data : 



The wide dispersion of Heracleum latiatum, the preferred food-plant 

 of this species, would naturally suggest some environmental forms, but 

 aside from this, much instability in colour of the imago is found in every 

 colony, and the range of variation seems most marked with it. We may 

 use the term colony, for though in no sense gregarious, the persistent 



