116 QUINCE CULTURE. 



something over an inch long at maturity. The body is 

 bright yellow, and the head coral red. Though not 

 gregarious, they are often numerous enough to be very 

 destructive to the foliage of the quince and other trees 

 and shrubs. There are two broods in a year. The first 

 hatch about the middle of May, and the second late in 

 July. The first brood complete their growth by the 

 middle of July, spin their cocoons on the leaves or 

 branches of trees, and enter into the chrysalis state. 

 The chrysalis has little downy hairs, and three oval 

 clusters of bran-like scales on the back. They pupate 

 eleven days, when the female comes forth wingless, and 

 the male with wings that expand an inch and three- 

 eighths. The wings are ashen gray, crossed by darker 

 wavy bands on the upper pair, which are also marked by a 

 black spot near the tip, and a very small white crescent by 

 the outer angle. Their antennae are broadly pectinated. 

 The body of the female is a very thick, oblong oval, in 

 distinctly marked sections, and of a lighter gray than 

 the male. She waits on the outside of her cocoon for 

 the coming of the male, and after meeting him lays her 

 eggs in an irregular mass on the top of the cocoon, which 

 is spun between the leaves, and then covers them with a 

 frothy looking substance, which hardens to brittleness, 

 and is then impervious to water. After laying her eggs 

 she drops to the ground and dies. The young larvae, 

 when seriously disturbed, let themselves down by silken 

 threads ; and when the danger seems past they climb up 

 the threads to regain their former situation. 



Remedies. The leaves attached to the cocoon show 

 where their eggs are laid, so they can easily be found 

 during the winter, and destroyed. There are nine species 

 of two and four winged flies that are known to be para- 

 sites of this insect in the larval state. 



14. PEA.R-TREE SLUG (Selandria [Blennocampa] Ce- 

 rasi, Peck). This caterpillar is called a slug, from its 



