317 



Length above one inch and a half. Brownish; livid and shining above,- 

 opaque beneath. Head rather small, heart shaped, castaneous; a semilu- 

 nar shield on the first segment, above of the same color and horny; last seg- 

 ment with a small, brown, corneous shield. A few scattered hairs on head 

 and body, the latter mostly springing from the ordinary wart spots. Pro- 

 legs ten, rather short. Winged July 1st, 1850. 



Mamestra persicarise ? var. americana. [PI. i, fig. li.] 



Sept. 20th, 1841. Two specimens found on the grass. Pale yellowish 

 green, or dark pea green, with the eleventh segment pyramidally elevated; 

 top of the first ring olive green or blackish and divided into four dark, 

 quadrate spots by three longitudinal, whitish or light green lines; a con- 

 tinuous, pale, dorsal line, an olive green, semicircular spot on the top of the 

 fourth and fifth rings, a triangular spot of the same color on each side of 

 the pyramidal elevation, and a row of narrow, semicircular, greenish lines, 

 paler behind, on the intervening rings; the sides obliquely marked with 

 dark streaks widening below and confluent just above the feet. 



Easily distinguished by the two semicircular dark spots on the back, and 

 the oblique streaks on the sides. Two varieties, one pale and one dark 

 green. I fed it with the leaves of Polygonum persicaria. 



Chrysalis in the earth Sept. 24th, 1841. Winged, June 4th, 1842. 



Mamestra leucostigma Harr. mss. 



Larvae abundant under the decaying leaves of cabbages on the ground. 

 A double series of triangular black spots on the back, largest towards the 

 tail, and diminishing to nothing towards the head. 



Went into the earth Oct., 1822. Winged insect came out June 17, 1823. 



Mamestra picta Harr. 



Sept. 28th, 1841. Light yellow, with a broad black dorsal stripe, bounded 

 on each side by a narrow, deep yellow line (on which there is a black dot 

 on the middle of each ring, and the sides of the black stripe are also dotted 

 with white) ; another yellow line just below the spiracles; sides between the 

 yellow stripe white, with transverse, letter-like, black characters (like the 

 runic) ; a narrow space below the yellow line is also white, with irregular 

 black spots; spiracles white; head, feet and the whole belly light yellowish 

 red. Body very smooth, without tubercles. The hairs are few, very small 

 and inipercejjtlble to the naked eye ; head rounded, rather small ; gait reg- 

 ular, creeping; when distm*bed rolls up in a circle. 



Chrysalis Oct., 1841. Winged June 13, 1842. 



A sijeclmen found Sept. 17, 1849, was light yellow above and beneath, 

 with three broad, black stripes, bordered with white, one of the stripes dor- 



