66G Agricultural Experiment Station, Ithaca, N. Y. 



It^ appearance. — The full-grown cutworm, shown about twice 

 natural size on plate 5, is of a sooty-brown color finely mottled with 

 gray, slightly darker on the back ; there is a small yellow spot on 

 the middle of each of several central segments, and a dark patch 

 on the segment before the last. A conspicuous yellow stripe, mot- 

 tled with red on its upper edges, extends along each side just below 

 the spiracles. Dark, sooty, longitudinal marks occur along the 

 subdorsal region, and also along the body near the spiracles. The 

 head is reddish-yellow, reticulated with rufous. On Segment ten 

 the sooty dorsal spots form an indistinct w. 



As is shown at c, natural size, and at d^ twice natural size, the 

 moth is very indistinctly marked ; the markings are often only ob- 

 scure shadings. The front wings are of a yellowish or purplish 

 brown, more or less suffused with black and gray. The hind wings 

 are shown in nearly their natural colors in the figures. 



Its habits and food plants. In Europe, this cutworm is recorded 

 as feeding on common chickweed, plantain, and Rumex aoutus. 



In this country it usually feeds on low-growing plants, but has 

 several times assumed climbing habits. In confinement it has been 

 fed upon knot grass, corn, grass, tips of grape-vines, apples, willow, 

 eupatorium, white mulberry, plantain, the leaves of soft maple, box- 

 elder, elm, apple, cherry, strawberry, currant, peach, raspberry, rose, 

 and purslane, etc. It attacks almost any field crop, and weeds even 

 are eaten with evident relish when no more succulent food is at 

 hand. 



It seems to occur more frequently in cold-frames and greenhouses 

 than other cutworms. In 1869, Dr. Riley found it doing con- 

 siderable damage to a lot of young grape-vines in a cold-frame ; 

 it has also been quite destructive to lettuce grown in similar 

 situations. In 1880, they were found climbing smilax in a green- 

 house at Lowell, Mass., and were again reported destroying 

 smilax in 1882 from Clermantown, Fa. In 1893, a correspondent 

 in Kalamazoo, Mich., sent us specimens of this cutworm which 

 he said had nearly destroyed his smilax ; they climbed up the 

 strings to the top and ate all the leaves. Thus, smilax seems to be 

 a favorite food for them in greenhouses. Several instances have 

 been recorded of carnations being attacked in greenhouses by 

 this cutworm. They climb up and eat into the buds ; in one 

 instance nearly 500 buds were thus destroyed in less than a month. 

 The source of infection in one case " was clearly traced to earth 



