RILEY NOTES ON THE YUCCA BORER. 329 



champ, of Bluffton, S. C, was impressed with the extremely 

 rapid and darting motions of the insect as it passes from plant 

 to plant; and Mr. E. A. Schwarz, of Detroit, who has had very 

 excellent opportunity of observing the species in Volusia Co., 

 Florida, informs me that, when startled, Megathymus flies 

 directly upward 20 or 30 feet, then horizontally for a long stretch 

 — sometimes out of sight — and descends as directly as it rose. 

 It frequents open places, is very shy, and generally settles near 

 the ground. 



BIBLIOGRAPHICAL. 



The first notice of this insect that we have any record of is 

 that by Boisduval and LeConte, who figure it under the name 

 of Enda?nus? yuccce on Plate 70 of their Iconographie.* 

 Though there is no text accompanying the plate, it is evi- 

 dent from the generic reference that the insect is considered 

 Hesperian, and no one could hesitate to so consider it if guided 

 by the figures. In those of the imago the head is unnaturally 

 broad, the body too slender, and the antennas with the club too 

 slender and too much hooked. The wings in repose are thrown 

 forward as in Theda; the antennas erect, and the legs too slen- 

 der. The larva has the large and nutant head, narrow thoracic 

 ioints, and green, yellow and white longitudinal stripes so charac- 

 teristic of Hesperid larvae. The pupa has much the form and 

 color of Epargyretts Tityrus (Fabr.) In short, these figures, 

 in many respects, and those of the larva and pupa more particu- 

 larly, are so unlike the insect considered in the present paper, 

 that the question might justly be raised as to whether I am deal- 

 ing with the Yuccce of Boisduval and LeConte, if the figures in 

 the work in question were known to be generally trustworthy. 

 But I have already shown in these pagesf how inaccurate and 

 unreliable some of the said figures are ; while the food-plant, as 

 indicated by the specific name, and the size, markings and color 

 of the perfect insects in the plate, leave no doubt as to the iden- 

 tity of Yuccce B. & L. and the species here considered. Too 

 much imagination entered into the composition of that plate, and 

 the probability is that after LeConte's figures were received in 



* Hist. Gen. et Icon, des Lipid, dc /'Am. Sept.. 1S33. 

 f Transactions, etc., pp. 193-4. 



