THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST. 37 



season is caused by an Epidemic Disease taking them off. We might 

 as well maintain that, although there was no Epidemic Disease among 

 the children of Israel that had just crossed the Red Sea, or among 

 the Egyptians that staid at home, it was simply and solely an Epi- 

 demic Disease that slew the pursuing hosts of the Egyptians and cov- 

 ered the bottom of the Red Sea with their carcasses. 



THE ARMY-WORM— Le.ucania unipuncta, Haw. 



[Lepidoptera Noctuidae.] 



Among those insects which attract. especial attention, either from 

 the peculiarity of their habits, or the vast amount of damage which 

 they inflict, the notorious Army-worm holds a conspicuous place. 

 The mode in which these worms travel in vast armies when in search 

 of food, the great value of the cereals and the grasses to H which they 

 for the most part confine their ravages, their sudden appearance in 

 such incomputable numbers, and their equally sudden disappearance, 

 all tend to arouse the curiosity and interest of even the most indiffer- 

 ent observer. 



Before giving a history of this insect, it will be necessary to state 

 that there are four distinct caterpillars, producing four perfectly dis- 

 tinct moths, which have been designated as Army-worms in -various 

 parts of the United States. 



First— The Tent-caterpillar of the Forest ( Clisiocampa sylvatica, 

 Harr.) has been erroneously known by the name of "Army-worm " in 

 the northwest corner of the State of New York. A back view of 

 this caterpillar is given in the accompanying sketch (Fig. 11) 

 [Fig. n.] Dy which i fc w jn a t once be recognized by the 

 J^ reader. For a number of days, last June, this worm 

 might have been seen marching " single file " up the rail- 

 road track on Pilot Knob, in the scorching rays of the noon- 

 day sun ; and it is often found crawling along roads in very 

 'considerable numbers. Yet it cannot with propriety be 

 called an Army-worm, and our Eastern friends had best drop 

 P the title and avoid confusion in the future. 



Second— The Cotton-worm {Anomis xylina, Say), is 

 'very generally known by the name of " the Cotton Army- 

 worm," in the'South. The term as applied to this species is 

 not altogether inappropriate, as the worm frequently appears 

 in immense armies, and when moved by necessity will travel 

 over the ground in "solid phalanx;" and so long as the 

 word "Cotton" is attached— its ravages being strictly confined to 

 this plant— there is no danger of its being confounded with the true 

 Army-worm. The term has furthermore received the sanction of 

 custom in the Southern States, and of Mr. Glover in his Department 

 Reports. 



