SEPTEMBER, 1865. 271 



Nepticula saginella, Proc. Ent. Soc. Philad., Nov. 1861, 

 p. 85.* Fore-wings pale ochreous, sprinkled or dusted freely 

 with blackish-brown over the entire surface. Cilia ochreous, 

 slightly clothed with blackish-brown. 



Head and face blackish-brown. Eye-caps ochreous. 



The larvae were taken nearly half-fed in leaves of black 

 oak, on the 29th of July, and at this date most of the mines 

 are abandoned. The larva is bright green, with a central 

 dark-green line of ingesta. Head slightly touched with 

 brownish. 



The mine is a serpentine, rather short tract, which, when 

 occupied or recent, is white and nearly transparent, with a 

 narrow, very black central frass line. It is frequently bent 

 or curved as the larva approaches maturity. The cocoonet 

 is yellowish-white. Both the imago and larva are very 

 small. 



Upon the authority of Mr. H. T. Stainton, for which I 

 feel the highest respect, " the six anterior legs so universally 

 present in Lepidopterous larvae are wanting in Nepticula 

 larvae, and are replaced by membranous processes or prolegs ; 

 each of the remaining segments is furnished with a pair of 

 prolegs, making eighteen in all." I find, after a careful 

 examination, that counting the head as the first segment in 

 N. saginella, the third and fourth have a pair of legs, the 

 fifth segment is without any, and the six foUowing segments 

 are each supplied with a pair of prolegs. So that the formula 

 for the legs of N. saginella would stand thus, making sixteen 

 in all: 



2 6 

 2 6 



I have not yet examined the neuration of N. saginella, and 

 it may be that it is a Trifurcula. An examination necessitates 

 the destruction of the minute specimen, and I wish to defer it 

 till I have secured others. It appears to me, however, that 



* See ante, p. 175. H. T. S. 



