﻿184 EIGHTH ANNUAL REPORT 



conditions, the issue from the same string of eggs will manifest con- 

 siderable variation, and some of them have passed through the last 

 before others have reached the lourth. 



It is thus evident that the conclusions arrived at in the body of 

 this Report on such points as had not been settled by direct observa- 

 tion, are essentially correct so far as the above recorded facts bear on 

 them. The only part needing correction is on pp. 35-36, where 

 the statement that the moth will not oviposit in confinement, should 

 be qualified by adding, " when reared indoors from the larva," which 

 was indeed implied. When the ovaries are fully developed the moth 

 will oviposit under any circumstances, and will thrust her eggs into 

 any recess whatever, or even scatter them on the ground. I doubt 

 very much whether she can well deposit her eggs in the favorite po- 

 sition, except where the grass is quite thick, or where there is a mat- 

 ting of old grass, as she could not well support herself where the 

 blades are single and sparse; and from this view we get another rea- 

 son why burning all the old and prostrate blades and stalks prevents 

 the origin of the worms, in such burned places. I will conclude these 

 supplementary notes with descriptions of the egg as laid, and of the 

 different larval stages. 



Egg — When first laid, spherical, 0.02 in diameter, smooth, opaque white ; covered 

 with a glistening adhesive fluid : shell delicate, becoming faintly irridescent and more 

 sordid before hatching. 



Immature Larva — When newly hatched 1,7 mm. long: dull translucent white in 

 color, with very minute piliferous points giving rise to pale hairs. Head large and uni- 

 formly brown-black. Two front pair of prolegs .itrophied so as to necessitate looping 

 in motion. Drops by means of a web. In the second stage it is quite active, still loops, 

 and spins a web and drops at least disturbance. Head copal yellow, with six black 

 ocelli (the two inferior somewhat separated from the others) the brown jaws, and brown 

 marks on the legs conspicuous. Color of body yellowish-green ; darker anteriorly, the 

 venter being quite pale. The lines of mature larva barely indicated in faint, rose-brown ; 

 the most conspicuous being the broad stigraatal, a narrower one above it, and two 

 which are medio-dorsal. In the better marked specimens, the body above the pale 

 substigraatalline consists of 8 dark and 7 pale lines, the middle pale line medio-dorsal, 

 the second dark one from it most faint and most often obsolete, and the lower or stig- 

 matal one broadest and most conspicuous. Black piliferous dots distinct and normally 

 arranged, i.e., on the middle joints 4 trapezoidally on dorsum; 2 in stigmatal dark 

 line, one just above, the other just behind stigmata ; one at lower edge of pale substig- 

 matal line near the middle of the joint, and several that are ventral : the dorsal ones 

 on joints, 1 and 12 forming a reversed trapezoid to those on. middle joints: on jt. 11 a 

 square, and on jts. 2 and 3 a transverse line. In the third stage there is little change. 

 The head has still a copal yellow aspect, being pale with faint yellowish, brown mot- 

 tlings, the ocelli still conspicuous. The body is more decidedly striped, the dark stig- 

 matal and pale substigmatal lines more strongly relieved and all the lines approach 

 more to those of last stage. The pale hairs from piliferous dots are still quite noticeable 

 especially before and behind, and the dots themselves are generally relieved by a pale 



