THE SEMITROPICAL ARMY WORM. 57 



joiait 5, sharply reappearing at joint 5 posteriorly, tlieii pale yellow, centered 

 with blackish mottlings at the centers of the segments and red above these; 

 subventral region black-shaded, strongly so on joints 2 to 5, weakly on the ab- 

 domen, white-dotted, paling to the venter; thoracic feet dark brown, the ab- 

 dominal ones pale brown, shining; a single cylindrical, round-tipped neck gland 

 reaching to the end of the labial palpi ; crochets of abdominal feet in a single 

 row, dark; tubercle iv slightly above middle of spiracle on joint 7. [Harrison 

 G. Dyar.] 



ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION. 



This is ti Lower Austral form and probably of tropical origin. In 

 the National Museum are specimens from Cocoanut Grove, Crescent 

 City, and Orlando, Fla. The species is also recorded from Talla- 

 hassee, and reported from St. Augustine and the region about the 

 Manatee River in Florida. From Texas we have specimens from Bos- 

 que County (Belfrage) and Dallas, and there are specimens col- 

 lected at Pernambuco, Benito Province, Brazil, 1)}' Mr. Albert Koebele, 

 Dr. J. B. Smith records the insect from Georgia and Central and 

 South America, and Grote records it from California. This indi- 

 cates a range extending from Brazil to ISIexico, Central America, and 

 the Antilles, and from Florida westAvard through the Gulf region and 

 Texas to California. 



LITERATURE AND HISTORY. 



Considering the fact that this species is reall}^ common in the 

 South and that it feeds gregariously and voraciously, it is somewhat 

 remarkable tliat it has not hitherto attracted attention b}^ its depre- 

 dations. The moth was described by Pierre Cramer in 1782.^" 

 Its natural food i)lants were known to Smith and Abbot, who wrote 

 of it in their classic work published in 1797.- The illustration ac- 

 companying that work, though over-colored as usual, depicts a per- 

 fectly recognizable moth of this species but a too-brilliant and light- 

 colored larva. Light and dark forms of the moth are figured. The 

 species is mentioned as PhaUena phytolacccv and is compared with the 

 related Prodenla commelhiw and Laphygma fntr/iperda, which form 

 the subject of the two plates and pages immediately preceding the 

 account of phytolacca'. 



As Smith and Abbot's work is not accessible to many, the following 

 copy of their accomit of this insect is rejuiblished: 



PiiAL.EXA PHYTOLACC.E. Poke-weed moth. 

 Phytolacca dccandra. Linn. Virginian luike-woed. 



Ph. Noctua spirilinguis cristata, alis deflexis: primoribns fusco striatis 

 puncto obscuro margine postico nigro maculato; anterior! punctate. 



" Numbers in superior tyi)e refer to corresponding numerals in the appended 

 liililiographical list (p. 70). 



