720 



AN INTRODUCTION TO ENTOMOLOGY 



furrow, the bottom of 

 which is sometimes 

 thickened so as to ap- 

 pear Hke a humeral 

 vein (Fig. 919). 



The larvas of most 

 of our species Hve ex- 

 posed on the leaves of 

 trees and shrubs ; but 

 some of them, as the 

 New Mexico range- 

 caterpillar, feed on 

 grass. They are more 

 or less armed with 

 tubercles and spines 

 and are very conspicu- 

 ous on account of 

 their large size. Most 

 of them transform 

 within silken cocoons, 

 which are usually very 

 dense, and in some 

 cases have been utiliz- 

 ed by man. These co- 

 coons are often at- 

 tached to trees and 

 shrubs, and are some- 

 times inclosed in a 

 leaf. They can be 

 easily collected during 

 the winter months, 

 and the adults bred 

 from them. The lar- 

 v^ of some members 

 of the family, as Hemi- 



leuca maia, enter the ground to transform. 



The family Saturniidas as now recognized includes what were 



formerly regarded as two distinct 



families, the Hemileucidse and 



the Saturniidas. Our latest list 



includes only 34 species, of which 



the following are the better 



known. 



The Maia-moth, Hemileuca 



maia. — The genus Hemileuca is 



represented in our fauna by elev- 

 en species, but only one of these is 



found in the East. In this species 



(Fig. 920) the wings are thinly Fig. 920— Hemileuca maia. 



Fig. 919. — Wings of Samia cecropia 



