300 FIFTH REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL COMMISSION. 



Full-fed larvcB. — White, covered with white hairs in short spreading tufts, a row of 

 eight black tufts on the fourth segment ; two long, black, pencil-like tufts on the 

 fourth aud tenth segments ; four white pencils on the second and third, and two on 

 the eleventh and twelfth segments. Head and prolegs black, the surface of the 

 body with minute black tubercles, and a transverse black line between each segment. 

 (Harris.) 



The moth. — Very light ocher yellow ; the long narrow-pointed fore wings are thickly 

 sprinkled with little brown dots, and have two oblique brownish streaks passing 

 backwards from the front edge, with three rows of white semi-transparent spots 

 parallel to the outer hind margin ; hind wings very thin, semi-transparent, and with- 

 out spots. The wings expand about 2 inches. (Harris.) 



47. The luxa moth. 



Actias luna (Linnaeus). 



Order Lepidoptera ; family Bombycid^. 



Devouring the leaves in August, a large thick-bodied caterpillar, about 3 inches 

 long, apple green, each segment with six small bright rose-red elevated dots, and low 

 down along each side a pale yellow line running lengthwise immediately above the 

 lower row of dots, from which line at each of the sutures a pale yellow line extends 

 upward upon the sides. Spinning a large oval cocoon, which is found among the 

 fallen leaves ; the moth, one of our largest insects, appearing late in May and during 

 June ; pale green, with eye-like spots in the center of each wing, the hinder pair pro- 

 longed into two long, broad "tails." 



48. The American silk worm. 

 Telea polyphemus (Linn.). 



Mr. D. L. Harris, of Cuba, III., writes me that he has found this cater- 

 pillar more abundantly upon the hickory than upon the oak. Mrs. 

 Dimmock has contributed the following bibliographical account to 

 Psyche, iv, 278 : 



Atiacus lunalimn. (Syst. Nat., 1758, ed. 10, p. 210). Harris (Rept. Ins., Injur. Veg. 

 1841, p. 277-278) describes larva, cocoon, and imago, and gives Juglans aud Carya as 

 food-plants; he repeats (Treatise on Ins. Injur. Veg., 1862, p. 382-384) these descrip- 

 tions, adding a figure of the cocoon and imago ; later (Entom. Corresp., 1869, p. 293- 

 234, pi. 4, fig. 14) he describes and figures the larva, specifying the food-plants as 

 Carya porcina and Juglans cinerea. Morris (Synop. Lepid. N. A., 1862, p. 225-226) de- 

 scribes the larva and imago. Trouvelot (Amer. Nat., Mar. 1867, v. 1, p. 31) gives a 

 note on the cocoon, aud adds Quercus aud Platanus to the food-plants. Minot (Can. 

 Entom., Nov. 1869, v. 2, p. 27) describes the egg. Riley (4th Aun. Rept. State Entom. 

 Mo., 1872, p. 123-125) describes the egg and larva, which he states to have five stages, 

 and figures larva, cocoon, and imago; among food-plants he mentions Liquidambarf 

 Fagus, Betula, Salix, and plum. Lintner (Entom. Contrib., No. 3, 1874, p. 126-128) 

 describes the larva, which molts four times. Gentry (Can. Entom., May 1874, v. 6, p. 

 86) describes the normal form of the larva, and a variety of it. Bunker (Can. Entom., 

 April 1875, v. 7, p. 63) mentions how to distinguish the cocoon of this species from 

 that of A. polyphermis. Rogers (Can. Entom. 1875, v. 7; Aug. p. 141-143; Oct., p. 

 199-200) describes egg, larva, cocoon, and imago. Thaxter (Psyche, Sept. [10 Nov.] 

 1876, V. 1, p. 194) adds Ostrya virginica and Caatanea to the food-plants of the larva. 



