MELIT.EA I. 



Mature Larva. — Length, from LI to L3 inch; cylindrical, the extreme seg- 

 ments smallest, the others ei^ual ; the dorsum and sides armed with seven rows 

 of long, tapering, fleshy, hlack spines, each of which springs from a round, shin- 

 ing, blue-black tubercle, the tubercles of each segment nearly meeting ; each 

 spine bristling with stout black hairs ; there is also another row of similar, 

 but much smaller spines, Ijclow the spiracles ; in this row the fourth segment has 

 no spine, the fifth to tenth two each, in line, the eleventh one, the twelfth a 

 tubercle without spine ; on tlie under side of the body, on fifth and sixth seg- 

 ments, in line with the legs, is a single small tubercle, with a short, branching 

 spine, and between the pairs of legs on the same segments are several minute 

 tubercles, with tufts of hair from each ; the second, third, and part of fourth, and 

 the last two or three segments black ; the others deep red-fulvous, striped trans- 

 versely with black, one stripe running with the spines, one covering the junction 

 of the segments, and another anterior to this last ; under side orange, with a 

 black ventral stripe; legs black, pro-legs smoky-brown; head black, bilobed, 

 tuberculated and covered with short black hairs. The larva; live in colonies, in 

 webs of their own construction, imtil the hybernating period is over. 



Chrysalis. — Length, .8 inch ; cylindrical, with a rounded dorsal excavation 

 below the mesonotiuu ; head case narrow, truncated, compressed transversely ; 

 mesonotum rounded, slightly prominent at sunnnit ; abdomen and thorax fur- 

 nished with several rows of tubercles, those of the medio-dorsal and first lateral 

 rows prominent, pointed, the rest scarcely raised above the surface ; color vary- 

 ing from pearl to pure white, marked and spotted with brownish-ljlack ; the 

 tubercles orange, each marked anteriorly by a ])lack crescent ; a broad black 

 band passes along the lower side from one extremity to tlie other, bifurcating 

 at top of head ; an irregvdar Ixmd more or less edged with orange crosses the 

 wing cases, and the hind margins of the wings discover brown serrations ; 

 along the dorsum, at the posterior part of each segment, are four abbreviated 

 black marks, set obliquely as radiating from a common centre ; between the 

 medio-dorsal and first lateral tubercles, and between these last and the second 

 laterals are two black dots, placed vertically on each segment, and there is also 

 an oblique marl-c behind each of the first laterals ; other dots and marks on the 

 head cases. (Fig. h.) 



Thei-e is much variation in the extent of the black bands ; some specimens also 

 have the alxlomen largely suffused with orange. Duration of this stage from four- 

 teen to eighteen days. 



This beautiful species is found as far northwai'd as the Lake of the Woods, 

 and in the States, from Maine to Wisconsin ; also in Virginia, and the States 



