﻿— 
  I 
  op 
  — 
  

  

  when 
  disturbed, 
  or 
  spinning 
  a 
  thread, 
  dropping 
  to 
  the 
  ground, 
  and 
  slip- 
  

   ping 
  out 
  of 
  sight 
  in 
  crevices 
  or 
  in 
  the 
  loose 
  earth. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  feeding 
  

   is 
  done 
  at 
  night, 
  the 
  larvae 
  usually 
  resting 
  in 
  the 
  web 
  by 
  day. 
  The 
  full 
  

   grown 
  web-worm 
  spins 
  a 
  delicate 
  brownish 
  cocoon 
  within 
  its 
  silken 
  

   retreat 
  in 
  the 
  earth, 
  and 
  changes 
  there 
  to 
  a 
  brown 
  chrysalis 
  with 
  a 
  pair 
  

   of 
  terminal 
  prominences 
  each 
  bearing 
  three 
  short 
  spines 
  at 
  the 
  posterior 
  

   tip 
  of 
  the 
  body. 
  The 
  moth 
  is 
  buffy 
  or 
  grayish, 
  with 
  darker 
  markings 
  

   as 
  in 
  the 
  figure. 
  Like 
  the 
  other 
  moths 
  of 
  its 
  family 
  it 
  is 
  strongly 
  at- 
  

   tracted 
  to 
  lights. 
  

  

  This 
  species 
  seems 
  to 
  hibernate 
  as 
  a 
  moth, 
  and 
  the 
  published 
  data, 
  

   together 
  with 
  those 
  in 
  our 
  possession, 
  indicate 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  definitely 
  

   the 
  occurrence 
  of 
  about 
  four 
  generations 
  in 
  a 
  year. 
  The 
  first 
  moths 
  of 
  

   the 
  season 
  noticed 
  in 
  the 
  West 
  in 
  the 
  latitude 
  of 
  central 
  Illinois 
  appeared 
  

   late 
  in 
  May 
  and 
  early 
  in 
  June. 
  These 
  probably 
  developed 
  from 
  an 
  un- 
  

   observed 
  generation 
  of 
  larvae, 
  the 
  descendants 
  of 
  the 
  hibernating 
  imagos. 
  

   A 
  brood 
  of 
  larvse 
  followed 
  in 
  June, 
  becoming 
  adult 
  early 
  in 
  July; 
  and 
  

   another 
  came 
  about 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  that 
  month, 
  examples 
  occurring 
  on 
  

   sugar 
  beets 
  in 
  Illinois 
  July 
  13th. 
  Larvse 
  of 
  this 
  brood 
  taken 
  from 
  sugar 
  

   beets 
  July 
  26th 
  had 
  pupated 
  July 
  31st, 
  and 
  a 
  moth 
  emerged 
  August 
  15th. 
  

   Adults 
  of 
  this 
  brood 
  have 
  been 
  taken 
  by 
  us 
  abundantly 
  in 
  late 
  July 
  and 
  

   in 
  August. 
  Larvse 
  found 
  in 
  Kansas 
  August 
  nth 
  were 
  thought 
  by 
  Dr. 
  

   Riley 
  to 
  indicate 
  a 
  fourth 
  larval 
  brood. 
  We 
  have 
  had 
  pupae 
  and 
  adult 
  

   larvse 
  from 
  soy-beans, 
  collected 
  August 
  27th. 
  These 
  had 
  nearly 
  all 
  

   pupated 
  by 
  September 
  4th, 
  and 
  the 
  adults 
  emerged 
  September 
  loth 
  to 
  

   13th. 
  September 
  ist 
  and 
  2d, 
  full 
  grown 
  larvse 
  and 
  moths 
  were 
  very 
  

   common 
  in 
  our 
  beet 
  fields 
  and 
  also 
  on 
  purslane 
  and 
  pigweed 
  {^Ama- 
  

   rajitiis). 
  Larvse 
  put 
  in 
  breeding-cages 
  entered 
  the 
  earth 
  for 
  pupation 
  

   September 
  6th 
  to 
  nth, 
  emerging 
  October 
  15th 
  to 
  i8th. 
  Some 
  very 
  

   young 
  larvse, 
  perhaps 
  representing 
  a 
  fifth 
  brood, 
  were 
  also 
  noticed 
  Sep- 
  

   tember 
  2d. 
  The 
  young 
  web-worm 
  grows 
  rapidly, 
  apparently 
  requiring 
  

   not 
  more 
  than 
  ten 
  days 
  to 
  mature. 
  

  

  Three 
  hymenopterous 
  parasites 
  have 
  been 
  reared 
  from 
  this 
  species: 
  

   Limneria 
  eiirycreontis 
  Ashm., 
  Agathis 
  exoraius 
  Cr., 
  and 
  a 
  species 
  of 
  

   Pachymeriis. 
  A 
  Tachina 
  fly 
  has 
  been 
  bred 
  from 
  it 
  which 
  appears 
  to 
  

   be 
  an 
  important 
  parasite. 
  Ladybirds, 
  ground-beetles, 
  etc., 
  also 
  prey 
  

   upon 
  it. 
  

  

  The 
  Beet 
  Wee-worm. 
  

  

  Loxostege 
  sticticalis 
  Linn. 
  

  

  This 
  species 
  suddenly 
  appeared 
  in 
  great 
  numbers 
  in 
  Nebraska 
  in 
  

   sugar-beet 
  plantations 
  in 
  1892, 
  causing 
  great 
  destruction 
  to 
  the 
  beet, 
  

   but 
  not 
  to 
  other 
  cultivated 
  plants. 
  The 
  injury 
  was 
  mainly 
  done 
  within 
  

   a 
  few 
  days, 
  one 
  plat, 
  for 
  example, 
  losing 
  half 
  its 
  foliage 
  within 
  thirty- 
  

   six 
  hours 
  after 
  the 
  first 
  signs 
  of 
  injury 
  were 
  noticed. 
  The 
  destruction 
  

  

  