1887 



(;L,EAJSl^(jiS IN UKK CUl^i'UKK 



Slvi 



ANOTHER BEE-MOTH. 



AND ONE NOT DESTRUCTIVE TO COMBS. 



BN the ]2th of August last, Mr. J. H. Martin, 

 Hartford, N. V., sent me by mail, in a g'ood 

 strong box, some comb which contained sev- 

 eral larva' of some moth. He stated that 

 these larvii- were quite abiindant on his un- 

 used combs, but said they did no harm— indeed, he 

 thought them a benefit, as the combs which were 

 peopled by them were undisturbed by the common 

 bee-moth, which, as all know, is really to be dread- 

 ed, as it mutilates the combs quite seriously. He 

 asked for name, habits, etc., and wished, if of gen- 

 eral interest, that information be gi%'en through the 

 bee-papers. 



August 20 I visited the apiary of my brother at 

 Owosso, Mich., and found that he had been consid- 

 erably troubled by the same insects. They were 

 numerous on the combs; and though they did not 

 mutilate the combs, they diil spin their silken cords 

 nil over it, and drop their fecal pellets in the cells in 

 a way that would not make the combs very pleas- 

 ant to the bees. My brother also found the two in- 

 sects, this small one and the larger well-known bee- 

 moth, Oalleria cereana, working side by side. Some 

 of these were carefully placed in a breeding-bottle, 

 and now I have the moth. We conclude, then, that 

 eggs may be laid in July or August, the larva found 

 at work in August, September, and October, and the 

 moths found from October till spring. There is, 

 doubtless, a spring brood. 



The insect proves to be Ephestia interpunctella, 

 Hubner, or Ttnia zece. Fitch, tliley, in his 9th Miss- 

 ouri Report, p. 31, refers to this insect as Ephestia 

 ze(e, and calls it a wax-feeding larva. Lintner, in 

 his 1st Report, speaks of Ephestia interpunctcUa as 

 the cabbage-moth. The same author, in his ento- 

 mological contributions, speaks of Ephestia inter- 

 punctella as existing in both Patagonia and the 

 United States. In Vol. VII., p. 23, Ontario Entomo- 

 logical Society, this insect, under the name Ephestia 

 ze<v, is referred to as introduced by the grain exhib- 

 its at the Centenial Exposition at Philadelphia. 



Dr. Fitch, in his second N. Y. Report, p. 320, de- 

 scribes this moth in all its stages. He was not 

 aware that it had been previously described by 

 Hubner, and so called it Tinea zea'. He speaks of 

 it as feeding on Hour, and as especially common in 

 stale Indian meal. Dr. Fitch also gives a good fig- 

 ure of the moth. This author concludes, that the 

 moth might exclaim with Barlow, in his hasty-pud- 

 ing: 



".\11 my bones weif mnilc of Indian corn. Delicimis grain!'' 



Dr. Filch also calls attention to the fact that this 

 insect, like the larva of the grain-moth. Tinea granel- 

 la, fills the substance on which it feeds, with a web. 



The correct name of this moth is Ephestia inter- 

 pimcteUa. As it has never had a common name, so 

 far as I know, I would propose that of lesser bee- 

 moth. I have beard of it so generally this summer 

 from several besides the two persons already re- 

 ferred to, that I think it is quite partial to honey- 

 comb, or rather to what is stored in the cells of the 

 comb. It feeds on the pollen in the cells, and in- 

 .iures the comb only by its web and filth, which I 

 think would soon be cleaned out by a good vigorous 

 colony of bees. 



DESCRIPTION. 



The full-grown larva, in general color and size. 



see Fig. 1, resembles the apple, or codling moth lar- 

 va, very much. It is about % of an inch long, and 

 pink in color. The head is brown, with darker jaws 

 and lateral edges. It bears a few light-colored 

 hairs. The dorsal shield of the first thoracic seg- 

 ment is also brown, with about 's of its area on each 

 side much darker than the central third. This 

 shield is crossed by a central dorsal light-colored 

 line which passes on to the head, when it soon 

 forks and extends to the base of each jaw. It also 

 bears a few white hairs. Below this shield on each 

 side, just in front of the spiracle, is a piliferous 

 dark spot. Six rows of similar spots extend the en- 

 tire length of the larva. The six spots divide the 

 dorsal portion of each segment into nearly equal 

 parts, though the dorsal space is a little broader. 

 The lower spots on the thoracic segments are in 

 front of the spiracles; on the other segments, be- 

 low them. On the third from the last segment, the 

 middle of the three spots is larger, and has a cen- 

 tral white spot. The two dorsal spots run together 

 on the two last rings in most of the larvse. The un- 

 der side of the body is light-colored. 



The pupa is formed in a slight cocoon of light-col- 

 ored silk in the cells of the comb. Very likely, if 

 not confined it would leave the comb and seek some 

 crevice or other concealed position. It is ,';; of an 

 inch long, and of the usual form and color. 



EPHESTI.\ INTERPUNCTELLA— LARVA AND MOTH. 



The imago. Fig. 2, or mature Insect, is a pretty 

 little moth, and is accurately represented as to size, 

 form, and markings, by the figure. It is '/2 an inch 

 long, and expands IJof an inch. The base of the 

 primary, or front wings. Is straw color, while the 

 opposite ends for something more than one-half 

 their length have brown and dark scales intermin- 

 gled, so the color is brownish purple. The brown 

 prevails almost exclusively at a small central area, 

 forming a brown spot. Two less distinct brownish 

 spots are seen just back of this spot near the inter- 

 nal margin, the inner one being the larger. Two 

 indistinct brownish lines extend parallel with the 

 outer margin of these wings. The outer margin is 

 fringed with dark graj*. The posterior, or secondary 

 wings, are light-colored, with a satin-like reflection, 

 and broadly fringed with the same color. The tho- 

 rax and abdomen are colored like the secondary 

 wings, except that there arc more dark .scales. 

 which sMghtly shades the color. The eyes are black ; 

 the head and antennae dark gray, with a distinct blu- 

 ish reflection. 



These moths, like the common, or old bee moth, 

 Galleria cereana. Fab., belong to the family Pyralida-, 

 or snout moths. They are so named because of 

 their projecting palpi, which, as they reach out in 

 front of the head, look not unlike a snout or nose. 

 These palpi are marked features of all moths and 

 butterflies, or, as we may say, of all lepidoptera. 

 They are the mouth organs that usually curl up be- 



