64 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



The colour has faded toward the conventional translucence of maturity, 

 though there still remains a flush of purple-brown on the first four 

 abdominal segments. Length 1.48 inches. 



Mature larva : All traces of the longitudinal lines have disappeared, 

 its shade may perhaps be designated as a translucent flesh colour, lightest 

 on the thoracic joints. The tubercles show no gain in importance, and 

 compared with its congeners are not strongly defined. On the seventh 

 abdominal segment iv is low down below the line of the spiracles, very low 

 down, in fact, and close beside v. Other features remain as before. Head 

 now measures .11 inch across ; length of larva 1.65 inches. The actual 

 duration of the various stages was not noted, but the entire time consumed 

 after feeding had begun until maturity is reached was reckoned at about 

 fifty-one days. 



The pupa is similar to its allies and agrees with the regulation noctuid 

 type. From being formed in more or less of a cell, it does not show the 

 cylindrical shape of some others which, by reason of the small diameter of 

 their burrows, are so confined as to be unable to assume a truly normal 

 form. It is of the usual shining chestnut brown, with ordinary delineations, 

 armed with a bifidate spur of slender proportions. Length .65 to .80 

 inch. Pupation occurs about August 20, but the species are in no way 

 regular upon this event. Imagoes appear twenty-eight days later. 



It was a matter of some gratification that the specimens bred last 

 season proved to be partly those forms or variations of the imago having 

 the orbicular white-marked. Previous acquaintance with local examples 

 had only encountered those in which the ordinary spots were concolorous, 

 and it seemed possible the species might be subject to some geographical 

 or racial variations where these features might predominate. That this 

 variation occurs indiscriminately and does not bear on geographical lines 

 is slightly important, since the matter of variation in ffydrcecia is still open 

 to some study, and any fully-established points in evidence offer a help 

 toward final solutions. 



Hydrcecia limp id a, Gn. 



This' species had never been taken in this locality; in fact, the writer 

 had not been able to secure an example from any source, so that the dis- 

 covery of its larva and the subsequent acquisition of a good series of 

 imagoes was as great a surprise as it was a pleasure. Like many of its 

 associates which are strictly root-borers, this larva gives but a slight 

 intimation of its whereabouts, and one is indebted to some chance incident 



