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THE STUDY OF INSECTS 



The most striking in appearance of the noctuids, if we except the 

 black witch and one or two allied species, are the moths belonging to the 

 genus Catocala. These moths are of large size, often expanding 3 inches 

 or more. The fore wings are visually brown or gray, marked with wavy 

 or zigzag lines. The ground-color of the hind wings is black; but in 

 many species these wings are conspicuously banded with red, yellow, or 

 white. This peculiarity has suggested the name underwings by which 

 these insects are commonly known in England. The genus is a very 

 large one; more than 100 species are now known from this country; 

 and many of these are extremely variable, so that nearly twice that 



Fig. 417. — Catocala ilia. 



number of named forms are now recognized. The ilia underwing, Cat- 

 ocala ilia, will serve as an example (Fig. 417). The larvae of the under- 

 wings feed on the leaves of various forest trees. Many species infest 

 oak and hickory. By careful search both the adults and larvae can be 

 found resting on the trunks of these trees; but it needs sharp eyes to do 

 it, as the colors of these insects are usually protective, the bright-colored 

 hind wings of the moths being covered by the fore wings when the in- 

 sect is at rest. 



In the same group with the underwings are the clover-looping owlets. — 

 Among the more common noctuids that occur in our meadows and pas- 

 tures, and that fly up before us as we walk through them, are two species 



belonging to the genus Ccenurgia. These 

 may be called the clover-looping owlets; for 

 the larvae feed on clover, and, as they have 

 only three pairs of prolegs they walk in a 

 looping manner. One of these species is 

 Ccenurgia erechtea. This moth (Fig. 418) 

 has dark or light drab-gray fore wings, 

 which are marked by two large dark 

 bands, as shown in the figure. These bands 

 are always separate, distinct, and well de- 

 fined towards the inner margin in the male; in the female the markings 

 are much less distinct, the bands usually invisible. 



The other common species of this genus is Ccenurgia crassiiiscula. In 

 this species the fore wings have either a distinct violaceous brown or a 

 red or buffy shade, with the two large dark bands very variable, often 

 shading into the ground-color on the outer edge or coalescing near the 

 inner margin; all the markings are equally distinct in both sexes. 



Fig. 418. — Canur^ia erechtea. 



