June, 1922.1 Leiby: Biology OF Gnorimoschema. 89 



have deposited or dropped some eggs ; but these developed only par- 

 tially and never any semblance of an embryo. Moreover such eggs 

 were always deposited eight or nine days after those of a similarly 

 aged but fertilized female. Unfertilized eggs are therefore probably 

 dropped only abnormally, and parthenogenesis in gallo'solidaginis does 

 not occur. 



Hatching of Eggs: According to records of three years the eggs 

 hatch in North Carolina between March 22 and April 5. The 

 hatching date for New York has not been secured but when an early 

 instar under North Carolina conditions is compared with a similar 

 instar in New York, it can readily be determined that the eggs must 

 hatch in New York around May 16. 



The first determination of the time of hatching of the eggs followed 

 the failure of three successive winters in attempts to keep them through 

 the winter under semi-natural conditions. During the fourth winter 

 of experiment, eggs ''■ deposited regularly on dried leaves and stems 

 of goldenrod in fall were carried through by placing these leaves and 

 parts of stems in small shell-vials stoppered loosely at both ends with 

 cotton ; the vials were in turn placed in larger vials similarly stoppered. 

 This method solved the problem of continued excessive moisture pre- 

 viously encountered. The eggs hatched normally, the larvae producing 

 galls which were visible on the new goldenrod shoots at the same time 

 that the galls of a similar size were visible in the field. In the two 

 following years the date of hatching in vials was again closely com- 

 pared with the time of hatching in the field, and the dates found to 

 accord. 



Growth and Habits of Larva: The process of hatching and loca- 

 tion of a new goldenrod shoot by the young larva has been watched 

 continuously for as much as six hours at a time. The young larva 

 which measures but 1.3 mm. in length seems to crawl aimlessly about 

 on blades of grass or over earth, and the watching of them in the 

 hopes they will find a goldenrod shoot is at times most exasperating. 

 But once the larva comes in contact with a goldenrod shoot, which 

 at this time is four to five inches in height, it proceeds to crawl up 

 the shoot to the bud end, crawl about on the tender leaflets for a little 



1 These eggs had been oviposited in by the polyembryonic parasite Copi- 

 dosoma gelechice and it was primarily intended to keep these particular eggs 

 for rearing of the larvae in spring. 



