AMPELOPHAGA MYRON 121 



with its ovipositor and lays several eggs in the cater- 

 pillar's body. We have counted seventy cocoons on 

 one poor my ran. From the eggs hatch tiny grnbs, 

 which feed upon the tissues of the caterpillar until 

 they are full fed, when they eat their way through its 

 skin, holding firmly to the larva by their anal end, and 

 in this position spin their little white cocoons. Many 

 a caterpillar bristling with these cocoons has been 

 brought to us as a rare specimen ! Most persons who 

 see one like this for the first time think that the 

 cocoons are eggs. Only flies will hatch from such a 

 specimen, and there is no way of saving its life. 



Experience enables us to tell a stung specimen be- 

 fore the grubs come out to spin. There is a peculiar 

 look about the caterpillar, and when the grubs are 

 nearly full fed they can be seen moving about under 

 the skin of their host. The presence of these braconid 

 flies is one of the most trying calamities an entomolo- 

 gist has to bear. 



Myron is said to be double-brooded, but we find 

 moths, eggs, and larvae from May till October. 



