REVISION OF THE OECOPHORIDAE — CLARKE 205 



Pupa. — Smooth. Prothoracic femora exposed. Labial palpi not 

 exposed. Cremaster present (short but distinctly developed) , straight 

 (not hooklike). 



Remarks. — This genus is remarkably homogeneous and the species, 

 for the most part, are difficult to separate. 



The larva is at once distinguished from larvae of other American 

 oecophorid genera (studied) by the above association of setae IV, V, 

 and VI of the ninth abdominal segment on a single pinaculum. 



The pupa is characterized by exposed femora, developed cremaster 

 and lack of exposed labial palpi and absence of pubescence. 



The specific separation, based on genitalia, is especially difficult 

 in the males. The simplicity of the genital structures and the similar- 

 ity in the armature of the vesica prohibit the selection of suitable 

 characters for keying out the larger part of the species. A key is pre- 

 sented, but when more preparations of the genitalia are made and 

 larger series of bred specimens are studied the characters used may 

 prove unstable. 



The females appear to possess better characters for separation. 

 Although the sclerotized portions of the ductus bursae are strik- 

 ingly similar and, with few exceptions, useless for separating the 

 species, I believe the number of branches on the signa are relatively 

 constant within a species. With this in mind I have used the signa, 

 in most cases, for separating the various species. 



As good superficial characters for the separation of species are 

 lacking, I have used alar expanse in several cases. This is ad- 

 mittedly weak but is the only tangible character available. Large 

 bred series will, in some cases, render the use of alar expanse value- 

 less, but for the present we must rely upon it. 



Busck =*^ placed seven species in the genus. Gibson ^^ added -fietch- 

 erella in 1909 and I have described one other {caryae) as new in 

 this paper. I have made ferrugiiwsa a synonym of faginella because I 

 can find nothing except its lighter color on which to base separation. 

 Two of the species are retained only because I do not feel justified 

 in placing them in synonymy on present evidence, bringing to eight 

 the total number of described species from North America. 



Despite the fact that we have many food-plant records compara- 

 tively little is known of the larvae. Two species, ohsoletella and 

 quercicella^ can be separated easily on larval characters, but we 

 know nothing about the characters of the larvae of the other species. 

 The larvae, with one or two exceptions, feed on the leaves of trees 

 and shrubs and pupate between two tied leaves. 



88 Busck, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 35, p. 197, 1908. 

 3" Gibson, A., Ottawa Nat., vol. 22, p. 226, 1909. 



