38 HAWK-MOTHS. 
sprinkled with minute, raised, yellow dots. The under sur- 
face is pale pinkish-green; the feet are black; the prolegs 
pink; with a patch of black on the outside of each. 
THE ACHEMON SPHINX. 
(Philampelus achemon Drury). 
Among the fifty or more larve of moths that feed upon 
the foliage of the grape, we have some ten species of hawk- 
moths, all of which are widely distributed. Some of them 
are rare, but others will occasionally become quite destruct- 
ive. The best known of all is the caterpillar of the above- 
named Sphinx, which frequently devours all the foliage of 
the Virginia creepers, and strips whole canes of the grape. 
Being quite large it is readily seen, and it is always a case of 
gross negligence if such a large insect is not discovered and 
removed. In nurseries the damage is frequently very great, 
as one of the large caterpillars can kill numerous young 
vines ina short time. Hand-picking is in all cases the most 
simple and satisfactory remedy. 
The full grown caterpillar of this insect is usually found 
towards the latter part of August and early in September. 
It is a large larva, measuring almost four inches when 
crawling; at rest it measures much less, as the first two 
smaller segments are partly withdrawn in the much larger 
third segment. The caterpillar varies in color from pale 
straw-color to reddish-brown, the color growing darker 
and deep-brown towards the under side. An interrupted 
line of brown runs along the back, and another unbroken 
one extends along each side; below this latter are six scal- 
loped cream-colored spots, one on each segment, from the 
sixth to the eleventh. The much wrinkled body is dotted 
with minute spots, which are dark on the back but lighter 
and annulated at the sides. Head, thoracic segments, and 
spiracles are suffused with flesh-color; the prolegs and 
