66 Studies on Life-history of Bomhycine Moths. 



with shallow polygonal areas, with an indistinct very slightly raiser! 

 edge. The micropyle forms a distinct rosette at the apex of the 

 dome, composed of oval wedge-shaped areas. The larva escapes 

 through a wide elliptical opening, and docs not invariably eat up 

 its shell. 



Larva, stage I. — Length 2.5 mm. Described two or three hours 

 after hatching. The head is very large and black, much wider than 

 the body, which is pale livid flesh-color, with chestnut-brown warts, 

 which are not so dark as the head. The prothoracic shield is large 

 and broad, crescentiform. On the 2d thoracic segment are two 

 double transverse warts, with a minute median wart between. On 

 the 3d thoracic segment the two corresponding warts are less united, 

 the inner ones larger than the outer, and sometimes a faint minute 

 median one is indicated. The four dorsal warts on each abdominal 

 segment are arranged in a trapezoid. Each wart bears a single 

 hair. Suranal plate transversely elliptical. Duration of stage 1 

 about ten days (that of Miss Soule's brood about 6 days). 



Stage IT. — Described three or four da3^s after the first molt, length 

 4 mm. The body is now pale, almost whitish-carneous, the head 

 and warts strongly contrasting with the hue of the body. Usually 

 but one, and no more than two hairs arise from the warts, and the 

 hairs on the thoracic and last abdominal segments are longer than 

 those in the middle of the body. The head is black and the protho- 

 racic shield and warts are blackish-brown. 



Towards the end of the stage (July 2) the larvs are still grega- 

 rious. Length 6 mm. The bead is now black, not so wide as 

 the body, which is pale whitish as before, with black tubercles and 

 whitish tubercles, a few longer hairs at each end of the body; they 

 are sparse, with a few black ones intermingled. The warts are all 

 black, with only from 1 to 3 hairs arising from each one. Duration 

 of stage II about 10 days (duration stated by Miss Soule about 

 7 days). 



Stage III. — Length 10 mm., becoming 13-14 mm. Described 

 July 12th. The body is now thick, tapering at each end, shining 

 pearly-white, with large black tubercles from which arise white 

 hairs, of very unequal length, most of the longest ones equalling 

 the diameter of the body ; a few others, one from the side of each 

 segment, being twice as long as any of the others. On 2d thoracic 

 segment is a slender lateral black pencil of hairs, not so long as the 

 body is thick, containing a single black hair which is twice as long 



