Doering: Lepyronia qladraxuularis. 521 



The egg stage probably lasts two weeks, followed by a six weeks' 

 nymphal stage. The adults appear in June and feed all summer 

 and fall until after mating, when the males probably die and the 

 females go into winter quarters. 



OVIPOSITION. 



Females collected in the spring were confined on small Solidago 

 and sweet-clover plants under lamp chimneys. Three females col- 

 lected on April 18 died on April 23. Two of the females apparently 

 laid no eggs. Thirty-eight eggs were found in the abdomen of one 

 and thirty-three in the other. The third female laid in all nine 

 eggs, one of them being found alone in one leaf and the other eight 

 in a group in another leaf. The latter were laid in a row along the 

 slender petiole of the Solidago leaf. Both leaves in which the eggs 

 were inserted were brown and withered and were found at the base 

 of the plant. This same female was dissected and six eggs were 

 found in the abdomen. Another female collected on April 19 died 

 April 23 without laying any eggs. Forty-five eggs were found in 

 her abdomen. Two other females were taken on April 24, from one 

 of which, at this time of writing, only one egg has been obtained. 

 It too was inserted in a partially dead leaf. 



The eggs are inserted in the plant tissue. A longitudinal slit is 

 made in the leaf and the egg deeply inserted, so that it makes a 

 slight bulge in the leaf on the opposite side. The slit appears to 

 be plugged with a whitish substance, which probably is part of the 

 plant tissue. 



NUMBER OF INSTARS. 



The nymph passes through five nymphal stages, each stage differ- 

 ing from the others somewhat, both in structural detail and color. 



LENGTH OF THE STAGES. 



The length of the various stages was difficult to determine, due to 

 the difficulty in rearing the insects. The work accomplished dur- 

 ing the summer of 1921 was of little value. It was started with 

 nymphs of the third, fourth and fifth instars. These were brought 

 into the laboratory on large cuttings of host plants, which w^ere 

 placed in water and covered by lamp chimneys. The intention was 

 to change the spittle insects to fresh plants as quickly as the original 

 ones wilted. Apparently there was not enough plant juice to supply 

 the amount of fluid for so many new masses of spittle necessitated 

 by the changes. A few nymphs, however, were carried through to 

 adults. In the spring of 1922, having obtained the very small first 



