322 
PSPCHE: 
INTERNAL ORGANIZATION OF HESPERIA ETHLIUS CRAM., AS 
OBSERVED IN 
BY HELEN SELINA KING, 
THE 
LIVING ANIMAL. 
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. 
| With editorial annotations. | 
Tue larva of Hesperia ethlius may be 
found on the Canna or Indian-shot plant. 
This larva being somewhat diaphanous, 
and thus affording facilities for an ex- 
amination of its internal organization, 
I have made of it a careful study. 
The egg, when first laid on a leaf, is 
pinkish, smooth, biscuit-shaped, and 
with a central depression on its upper, 
convex side. As it matures it grows 
white. The larva emerges in six days, 
and eats up the upper third of its shell. 
which is detached like a lid, leaving a 
cup still adhering to the plant. At this 
time it is 1.6 mm. long, dull whitish ; 
head very large, black, glossy, and bi- 
lobed. ‘True feet 
In a few hours it sheds its skin. 
Having eaten asmall portion of the leaf, 
and thus prepared a section of it for its 
use, the larva folds this over and confines 
it to its place with a few stitches of silk, 
enlarging this temporary retreat, or 
folding a new section, as it grows, and 
just before the pupal -change lining it 
with silk. It feeds from this tubular 
case, just along its edges, retreating 
within when alarmed. It forcibly ejects 
all excrement from the upper, free end, 
together with all exuviae, so that, al- 
though it evidently sheds its skin several 
times, these cast skins cannot be found. 
The larva increases more rapidly in 
size at its early stages than later, and 
doubles its length in 24 hours. It is 
cylindrical, flattened on the venter and 
and anal tip black. 
presents rather a large upper surface. 
At this time a transverse band is seen 
on dorsum of the 11th segment, Gon- 
necting the posterior pair of stigmata 
which are faintly visible. Under a mi- 
croscope of 75 diameters may also be 
seen the dorsal vessel lying over and 
contiguous to the alimentary canal, and 
a pair of small bodies between these and 
the pleura, situated in the 9th segment, 
on each side [testes in @, ovaries in Q }. 
With its further development the body 
becomes more opaque, from the presence 
When 
it is 6 mm. long the small organs in the 
9th segment are well defined, being four- 
chambered, with the divisions suboyal., 
the extreme ones terminating sometimes 
[in the 9] in an acute point, the ante- 
rior one longest. These are 
about the size round of a broom-straw 
of food in the alimentary canal. 
vessels 
and about twice as long as wide; of a 
pale yellow, and opaque. 
Lying over the alimentary canal, and 
seemingly formed of a fold of it, are 
the two longitudinal tubular bodics, a 
little flattened, which are interrupted but 
not obliterated at the intersection of the 
segments | dorsal vessel, with its valves]. 
This tubular fold seems to recede from 
and approach the median line, each time 
apparently opening and closing on the 
posterior half of its length for the ad- 
mission of fluid. ‘There is a vermicular 
motion throughout these parts. but no fluid 
canactually be seen flowing through them. 
