November 1S92.J 



PSYCHE 



353 



H.-S. in that the fore wings are much darker. 

 The male has no white markings except the 

 apical streak, and the transverse lines, usual 

 in the Notodontidae, can be seen faintly 

 crossing the wing, while in P. dimidiata 

 they are quite obsolete except at the internal 

 margin. T. a. line very faint, defined by the 

 inner edge of the black cellular patch, obso- 



lete below median vein, but below submedian 

 fold very distinct, white, sharply produced 

 inward and bordering the fawn colored patch. 

 T. p. line from costa along discal cross vein, 

 either straight or sharply dentate on the 

 veins, lost between veins 2 and 3, but distinct 

 on internal margin in a short white dash, 

 reaching internal vein. 



OVIPOSITION OF A HOMOPTEROUS INSECT IN YUCCA. 



BY C. H TYLER TOWNSEND, LAS CRUCES, N. MEX. 



On May 15, 1891, a grayish homopterous 

 insect, one of the Fulgoridae, or lantern-flies, 

 was found very numerous on leaves of Yucca 

 angustifolia. It was also found on Y. mac- 

 rocarpa (?)*. Specimens are determined by 

 Dr. Uhler as Oecleus decens Stal. 



At the same daie on which the insects 

 were found, it was noticed that the leaves of 

 Y. angustifolia were largely covered with 

 very small patches of a pure wfcite, woolly or 

 cottony, fluffy material, arranged in more or 

 less irregular rows. They were found to be 

 punctures consisting of slightly raised swell- 

 ings of the surface of the leaf, each swelling 

 being marked by this cottony covering. Thev 

 exhibited much the general appearance, at 

 first sight, of colonies of a small white 

 cottony scale. These are the egg-punctures. 

 They are always placed on the upper side of 

 the leaf, and usually, if not always, near the 

 tip or point. Superficial examination shows 

 only this woolly, snow-white, flurry sub- 

 stance, apparently containing nothing, but 

 covering the slightly raised puncture in the 

 leaf. The above fulgorid was found wherever 

 this woolly material occurred, usually 

 on and about it, and consequently raised the 

 question in my mind of some connection 

 between the two. 



On May 21, the punctures were carefully 

 examined and found to contain eggs. The 



* This species may be Y. baccata. 



egg measures jt mm. in length, by \ mm. in 

 width. Examination on May 15 had dis- 

 closed no eggs whatever, and I imagine that 

 they were not yet all deposited at that date. 

 The presence of the insects would perhaps 

 indicate that they were in the act of ovipos- 

 iting and preparing the leaves for the recep- 

 tion of the eggs. The leaves of Y. tnacro- 

 carpa (?) contained, at that date, no 

 punctures. Though I have not at any time 

 observed the insects making these punctures, 

 I still feel confident that the latter belong 

 to this fulgorid, since there is no other insect 

 frequenting the Yuccas that could make them. 

 I may add that I have found the abdominal 

 saws or pincers of a female specimen with 

 some of the same white fluffy substance still 

 adhering to them. 



On May 31, plants of Yucca angustifolia 

 were found to be thickly oviposited in. 

 Some plants had the tips of nearly every leaf 

 covered with the white flu fly material. 

 Numbers of this insect were present, many 

 of them on the punctured portions. 



On June 2, similar egg punctures were 

 found on the leaves of 2'ucca macrocarpa (?) 

 marked by the same woolly material. Three 

 specimens of an Oecleus, which Dr. Uhler 

 says is the same as O. deceits, were found 

 clustered on the woolly punctures. They 

 were, however, decidedly smaller than those 

 previously found, and which had occurred 

 only on T. angustifolia. I was inclined to 



