The Palmer- Worm. 



103 



would usually be if it confined its work to the foliage, like the 

 canker-worms. 



The caterpillars are exceedingly lively little creatures. They do 

 not loop or measure along like the canker-worms, but when touched 

 they move rapidly forward or backward with a wriggling motion. 

 If the branch on which they are at work is jarred, the caterpillars 

 quickly drop, but remain attached to a silken thread which they spin 

 as they go. Sometimes they will tlius drop to the ground, but usu- 

 ally they remain suspended by threads two or three feet long, finally 

 climbing back up the thread. Some correspondents reported that 

 when they jarred a large branch on an infested apple tree, 25 or 



29. — Young cqjples eaten into by 2'>nlmer-worms, natural size. Note the caterpillars 



in the first and third apples from the right. 



more of the caterpillars would suddenly appear dangling in the air, 

 as canker-worms do. 



While the palmer-worms thus closely resemble the canker-worms 

 in their manner of workino^ on the foliao^e and in their habit of 

 spinning down when jarred, they are readily distinguished by their 

 wriggling instead of a looping motion, and when full-grown they 

 are only about half as large as canker-worms. • 



Its destructive period. — All of the injury caused by this insect 

 is done by the caterpillars as they feed upon the foliage and young 

 fruits, and their work is practically confined to the month of June ; 

 doubtless many of the caterpillars hatch out and do a little feeding 



