August 1S93.] 



PSYCHE. 



503 



A DESCRIPTION OF THE LARVA OF A SPECIES OF THE 

 LINTNERI GROUP OF GLUPHISIA. 



BY HARRISON G. DYAR, BOSTON, MASS. 



Gluphisia severa Hv. Edw. 

 1SS6 — H. Edwards, Ent. amer., ii, 167. 

 Egg{?). Hemispherical, the base flat; 

 smooth, slightly shiny whitish green, the 

 micropyle round, small, black. Under a 

 half inch objective it is seen to be covered 

 with irregular flattened reticulations, not 

 raised above the surface of the egg. much as 

 in Cerura, but more irregular, ranging in 

 shape from quadrilateral to hexagonal. 

 Diameter 1.1 mm. Found on a poplar leaf, 

 deposited singly. I am not sure that this 

 egg belongs to this species, as it failed to 

 hatch, but it was found with the larvae and 

 probably belongs here. 



First larval stage. Not observed. 

 Second stage. Head slightly bilobed, not 

 shiny, pale green; mouth whitish; ocelli 

 black; width 09 mm. Body smooth, 

 slender, without humps or tubercles, uniform 

 pale green, not shiny, with a faint yellow 

 subdorsal line. No other markings. 



Third stage. Only the cast head case 

 was observed, the width of which was 1.45 

 m m . 



Fourth stage. Width of head, 2.3 mm. 

 Much as in the first part of the last stage. 

 There is a moderately distinct, pale yellow, 

 subdorsal line without other markings, or 

 else traces of lateral and stigmatal yellowish 

 lines, the former broken, the latter continu- 

 ous, but faint. Spiracles small, faintly 

 ocherous. As the stage advances the stig- 

 matal line becomes the most distinct, the 

 others becoming faint. 



Fifth stage. Head very slightly bilobed, 

 somewhat flattened in front, uniform pale, 

 sublustrous green, mouth parts paler, jaws 

 black; width 3.5 mm. Feet normal, all used 

 in walking, concolorous with the body,, the 

 claspers whitish. Body long and slender, 



noctuiform in appearance, without humps or 

 tubercles; piliferous dots absent, the hairs 

 being reduced to mere rudiments. Color 

 uniformly non-lustrous pale green, semi- 

 transparent, showing plainly the pulsations 

 of the dorsal vessels. An obscure, pale 

 yellow, stigmatal line. Spiracles dull ocher. 

 The larva rests on a slight web on the back 

 of the leaf, the head held out flat. 



As the stage advances the markings 

 become much more pronounced. The head 

 is mottled with white, especially on each 

 side of the clypeus; clypeus white centrally ; 

 a yellow line appears on the side of the 

 head from the base of the antennae behind 

 the ocelli, in line with the stigmatal band 

 when the insect is in its normal position of 

 rest. Stigmatal line distinct, pale yellow, 

 bordered above, very narrowly, with crim- 

 son on the thoracic segments, and reaching 

 nearly to the end of the anal plate. Dorsal 

 region whitish green, becoming almost 

 white; subventral region clear green, with 

 yellow dots; spiracles orange, feet faintly 

 tipped with vinous. There are faint traces 

 of a yellowish subdorsal line, and one on 

 each side of the dorsal vessel, but they 

 become white and are seen as somewhat 

 more distinct parts of the general whitish 

 dorsal shading. Still latter, the rudiment- 

 ary piliferous dots become surrounded with 

 yellow. There are seven on each side 

 above the stigmatal line, seven in the sub- 

 ventral space (where they appear more 

 distinctly on account of the absence of white 

 shading) and others on the venter of the 

 legless segments. 



Length of larva. 41 mm. at maturity. 



Cocoon. Spun among leaves. It is com- 

 posed of gummy silk, slight, but tough. 



Pupa. Nearly cylindrical, rounded, no 



