142 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



fell as prey to birds and other enemies which were only too glad to par- 

 take of such food without the labor of parting a troublesome web. The 

 insect is also preyed upon by a true parasite; several of its cocoons were 

 found filled with the whitish ones of an Apanieles, probably A. con- 

 gregatus ; though as none of the parasites were reared their identity can 

 not be certainly known. 



Mecyna reversalis (Guen). 

 The Genista Caterpillar. 



(Ord. Lepidoptera: Fam. Pyralid^.) 



GuENEE : Hist. Nat. Ins., viii, Delt. et Pyral., 1854, p. 409. 



Grote: in Bull, iv, U. S. Geolog.-Geograph. Surv. Terr., 1878, p. 679 



(from Texas); Check List N. Amer. Moths., 1882, p. 53 (as 



Boiis reversalis'). 

 Smith: List. Lepidop. Bor. Amer., 1891, p. 78, no. 4081. 

 Weed H. E.: in Insect Life, v, 1892, p. in (injurious to Lupines). 

 Lintner: loth Rept. Ins. N. Y. for 1894, 1895, p. 515. 



A number of brightly colored and prettily marked caterpillars of com- 

 paratively small size were received toward the last part of September 

 from Mr. William Falconer, of Glen Cove, Long Island, with the request 

 for their name. 



They were feeding abundantly on the foliage of species of Genista and 

 Cytisus in the greenhouses of Charles A. Dana, at Dosoris. They had 

 not been observed on other plants. According to Mr. Falconer, the 

 common greenhouse Genista {Cytisus Canariensis) grown in pots plunged 

 out of doors in summer, seems to be preferred by them. The hardy 

 Ge?iista tinctoria — a plant grown out of doors all the time is also an 

 especial favorite of theirs. Mr. Weed has reported this insect as very 

 injurious to various species of Lupines growing in the grass experi- 

 ment beds of the Mississippi Agricultural College. There appears to be 

 no other record of the food-habits of this species. In this connection it 

 is worthy of note that the English species, Mecyna polygonalis Hb., has a 

 similar food-habit ; its larvae being found on Genista and Cytisus, accord- 

 ing to Meyrick.* 



The work of the larvae was first noticed about the middle of July, at 

 which time they were quite numerous, in less than half-size and about 

 full-grown, and, as this variation in size had continued for the two months 



* Handhook Brit- Lepidop,, 1S95, p. 418. 



