14 Psyche [February 



ON THE EARLY STAGES OF CERTAIN GEOMETRID 



SPECIES. 



By Wm. Barnes, M.D., and J. McDunnough, Ph.D., 

 Decatur, Illinois. 



As the result of our breeding of Lepidoptera during the past 

 two years we have accumulated a number of notes on the early 

 stages. Finding that in several cases there is apparently nothing 

 known of the life history, we venture to present these notes on 

 Geometrid larvae in the hopes that other workers may be stimulated 

 to study in more detail these species. There is an extensive field 

 open in the study of the early stages of our North American Geo- 

 metridse, Doctor Dyar being practically the only one who has pub- 

 lished during the last ten 3^ears any articles in this particular 

 line. 



When one takes into account the ease with which most Geomet- 

 rids will deposit eggs and the hardy nature of the larvae we are. 

 surprised that not more is known of the early stages; as an instance 

 we might cite that the whole of the Eupethecia group is practically 

 unworked territory, or if work has been done nothing has been 

 published, which is just as bad. The one difficulty in breeding 

 from the egg is that there is often no record of the food-plant and 

 the young larvse perish miserably before the proper leaves can be 

 found; we have found this the case with Eucymatoge intestinata, 

 Sciagraphia mellistrigata and others ; Pero honestarius has accepted 

 wild cherry, but has never thriven, dying after the first moult. 

 If collectors could but be induced to publish their observations 

 concerning larval food-plants, even if they could not work out the 

 life history themselves they would at least pave the way for some 

 other worker and facilitate greatly the study of the early stages. 



Dyspterls abortivaria H. S. 



Ovum. Pale green, turning darker before hatching; duration of egg stage 8 days. 

 Stage I. 



Head orange-brown; body pale yellow green, cylindrical; prothorax with two sharp 

 conical protuberances on anterior margin, somewhat resembling a dog's ears. Length 

 3 mm. 



