EYE-SPOTTED BUD MOTH. 7 



ness and excellent illustrative figure, by Prof. M. V. Slingerland, of 

 Cornell University, N.Y., U.S.A.* 



The life-history, taken in its main points from these two observers, 

 is that the half-grown caterpillar, which may be about the sixth of an 

 inch in length, passes the winter enclosed in silken web cells on the 

 bark of twigs of Apple or other fruit trees. In spring it comes out of 

 its case as a little brown larva, with a black head and black plate on 

 the following segment, and gradually grows until in June it is about 

 half an inch long, slightly hairy, of the above-mentioned colours, and 

 with the legs also black. 



The destructive work is begun by the caterpillars leaving their 

 cells and creeping to the nearest swelling and opening fruit and leaf- 

 buds, which they eat into ; but it is noted by Prof. Slingerland : — 

 " More often the caterpillar does not begin its work until the buds are 

 nearly half-opened. It then feeds upon the central expanding leaves 

 or flowers, tying them together with silken threads. Some of the 

 partly-eaten leaves soon turn brown, and thus render the work of the 

 insect quite conspicuous ; one correspondent wrote that his trees 

 looked as though a fire had swept quickly through them, as so many 

 leaves had turned brown. This tying together of the opening leaves 

 and flowers, and the brown appearance of many of them, are the most 

 characteristic indications of the presence of the insect." 



The caterpillars are stated to go on feeding in the spring for about 

 six or seven weeks, mostly at night, and to turn to the chrysalis state 

 " within a tube usually formed in the so-called nest by rolling up one 

 side of a leaf, or by bringing together two or three half-devoured 

 leaves, and securely fastening everything with silken threads " ; the 

 full-grown caterpillar retreats within, and lines the interior with a 

 thin closely-woven layer of silk. 



From this the moth was recorded (in the observations before me, 

 taken in New York State, U.S.A.) to begin to come out as early as 

 June 5th, and that often all had not emerged by July 10th. This 

 date of appearance agrees very nearly with that recorded by Mr. Janson 

 (p. 6), who noted the first appearance of the moths under his special 

 observations on June 8th, and that they continued to emerge in great 

 numbers up to the 20th of the month. 



The moth is of a general ashy grey or dark ashy grey colour, and 

 about half an inch or rather more in expanse of the fore wings, which 

 have a broad white band or blotch across them, and have also been 

 sometimes described as having some minute black and lead-blue 



* See Report of Entomologist and Botanist in ' Annual Eeport of the Experi- 

 mental Farms of Canada' for 1891 (published 1892), p. 195; and 'The Bud Moth,' 

 by M. V. Slingerland, Assistant Entomologist, Cornell University, Agricultural 

 Experiment Station, Ithaca, N.Y., U.S.A., pp. 57-66. 



