February, '16] GOSSARD: clover leaf-tyer 81 



Food Plants and Character of Damage 

 The known food plants are the common red, alsike and white clovers. 

 From laboratory tests I conclude that alfalfa is scarcely or not at all 

 eaten. 



Clover foliage eaten bj^ the caterpillars presents a ragged appearance, 

 the epidermis from one of the surfaces being either partially or wholly 

 eaten away, while the epidermal cover remaining appears thin, papery 

 and white, except for minute splotches and streaks of green here and 

 there, which, through chance, were left uneaten. Either the upper or 

 lower surface will be eaten, whichever happens to be turned inward in 

 the cell in which each caterpillar ensconces itself. When newly 

 hatched, the young caterpillar chooses some natural or accidental 

 depression or crease in the leaf surface, such as overlies the midrib, 

 and ties the opposing surfaces together by a fine, whitish expansion of 

 silk, this with the leaf-walls forming a hollow tube within which the 

 caterpillar hides and feeds; or, very often, two leaflets, one of which 

 overlies the other, will be tied together with silk and the caterpillar 

 will feed between them. Such leaflets may be on the same or on dif- 

 ferent petioles. As the caterpillars grow older they show a tendency 

 to construct cells of considerable size, usually three-sided, each side 

 consisting of a leaflet. When full grown the caterpillars make a thin, 

 white cocoon of silk within their cells, and pupate. 



Life-History 

 There are three broods per season. The first brood of moths appear 

 in late April and early May and are nearl}^ all gone by May 20, strag- 

 glers holding on till mid-June. The eggs are laid on the leaflets, hatch 

 in two or three weeks, and the caterpillars come from about June 1 to 

 June 20. The pupal period lasts from seven to fourteen days and the 

 second brood of moths range from about July 1 to July 20. The 

 second brood of caterpillars are at work from about July 20 to August 

 15. The second brood of pupae come from about August 15 to Sep- 

 tember 20. The last brood of larvse feed from the middle of September 

 until some time in November, when they spin about themselves light, 

 white, silken cocoons like so many of their family relatives, and thus 

 spend the winter, possibly feeding a little in mild weather. They feed 

 voraciously in early April, must pupate about the middle of that month, 

 and issue in late April and May as the first brood of moths. 



Remedies 

 From this life-history it is apparent that the first clover harvest 

 will carry to the mow most of the larvse and pupse of the first brood, 



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