26 



Within the cocoons, in two or three davs they transform to pupae 

 of a reddish brown color densely clothed with short pale yellowish 

 hairs. The moths appear in two or three weeks, soon lay their eggs 

 and then die. The insects are not abundant many years in succes- 

 sion, as their enemies, the parasites, increase and check them. 



Many methods have been suggested for their destruction, but the 

 most available and economical are to remove the clusters of eggs 

 whenever found, and burn them, and to shower the trees with Paris 

 green in the proportion of one pound to one hundred and fifty gallons 

 of water. 



THE STALK-BORER. 

 Gortyna nitela Guen. 



Fig. 19. 



The perfect moth, Fig. 19, 1, expands from one to one and a half 

 inches. The fore-wings are of a mouse-gray color tinged with lilac 

 and sprinkled with fine yellow dots, and distinguished mainly b}' a 

 white band extending across the outer part. The moths hibernate in 

 the perfect state, and in April or May deposit their eggs singl}- on 

 the outside of the plant upon which the young are to feed. As soon 

 as the eggs hatch, which is in about a month, the young larvae, or 

 caterpillars, gnaw their way from the outside into the pith. 



The plant does not show any sign of decay until the caterpillar is 

 fully grown, when it dies. The caterpillar. Fig. 19, 2, is about one 

 and one-fourth inches long, of a reddish-brown color with whitish 

 stripes along the body. The stripes on the sides are not continuous, 

 and the shading of the body varies, being darker on the anterior than 

 on the posterior portion. "When fully grown. Fig. 20, the color is 

 lighter and the stripes are broader. At chis stage of life it burrows 

 into the ground just beneath the surface, and changes into the pupa 

 state. The pupa is three-fourths of an inch long, and of a mahogany 

 brown color. The perfect moth appears about the first of September, 

 and there is only one brood in a season. 



The caterpillars feed in the stalks of corn, tomatoes, potatoes, 

 dahlias, asters, and also in young currant bushes, besides feeding on 



