190 Psyche [December 



leaflet for many days after ecdysis. These old skins are particu- 

 larly abundant locally during the middle of August. 



The newly emerged adults are soft-bodied and yellowish in 

 appearance and the normal color is not entirely evident nor the 

 pronotum completely hardened for more than twelve hours after 

 emergence. The insects fly in ten minutes after the last molt. 



Broods. 



On account of the overlapping of the stages of nymphal develop- 

 ment and the consequent prolongation of mating periods after 

 maturity, no definite number of days can be assigned to the 

 period from oviposition to the adult stage. The failure to rear 

 individuals from the eggs laid during the summer, also, has made 

 it impossible to determine the exact period of incubation for these 

 eggs, and the estimation of the number of broods can be based only 

 on observations in the field. Since, however, the first adults 

 which have hatched from the winter eggs do not appear until 

 about the first of June and the first nymphs from this generation 

 are to be found about the first of July, it would appear that the 

 time required for mating, oviposition, incubation and hatching 

 is approximately one month. As these nymphs require about 

 twenty days for development, the total period between generations 

 of adults would be nearly six weeks. Under favorable seasonable 

 conditions, then, it may be estimated that there are three broods 

 during the summer and one from the winter eggs, making four 

 broods per year. Thus the greatest number of adults would be 

 expected in early June, the middle of July, the last of August and 

 the middle of October, and the greatest number of nymphs in early 

 May, the middle of June, the last of July and the middle of 

 September. Field observations bear out this theory very well, 

 although, as has been stated, the variations in periods of develop- 

 ment make it possible to find nymphs of practically all stages 

 throughout the summer. 



Feeding. 



The beak of the Membracid is well fitted for piercing, being 

 strong and heav^^ and fitted with bristle-like mandibular and 

 maxillary setae. Both nymphs and adults have little difficulty in 

 forcing the beak almost as far as the clypeus into the young stems 



