82 



RESULTS FROM GIPSY MOTH PARASITE LABORATORY. 



Table U.— Results of dissections of caterpillars and later stages of Notoloplnis 

 anti<iiius parasitized by Hmnerimn ralidum. 



LIMNERIUM VALIDFM AS A PARASITE OF PORTHETRIA DISPAR (lTNNAEUS). 



Two experiments Avere undertaken to determine whether this 

 species of Limnerii(m can parasitize snccessfnlly the caterpiUars of 

 the gipsy math {Porthetria dispar Linnaeus). Both were, iinfortn- 

 nately, unsatisfactory in that the caterpiHars w^ere subject to disease 

 and soon died in confinement. The second experiment only gave 

 any results at all, and was started June 10, when 1 female Lhnnerhim 

 was confined wnth 20 caterpillars in the third and fourth stages^ col- 

 lected at Melrose Highlands, Mass. 



On June 17 the female Limnerimn was dead, and 19 of the cater- 

 pillars had succumbed to disease. These dead caterpillars were care- 

 fully dissected, and in 4 of them were found 18 eggs of Limnerinm, 

 occurring 2, 3, 5, and 8 in number, respectively. The eggs were all 

 unhatched, the embiyos undeveloped, and in some of the eggs the 

 contents appeared to be broken down, such eggs being undoubtedly 

 dead. Whether they had died through contact with dead and dis- 

 eased tissues of the caterpillars or had been killed previously by 

 some reaction of the host is not clear. In experiments with brown- 

 tail moth caterpillars earlier in the season, living eggs and even 

 larvffi were found within dead hosts; but in that case the caterpillars 

 had not died from disease, but were killed by superparasitism. 



On the 21st of June, (> more of the caterpillars had died. They 

 were dissected, and in one 5 eggs of Lim.nei^him were found still un- 

 hatched. By June 31 the remaining 5 caterpillars had succumbed 



