402 COTTON 



Earias insulana, Hampson, Cat. Lep. Phalsense, vol. xi, 

 p. 502 (1912). 



Earias dorsivitta, Staud., Iris, x, p. 165 (1897). 

 Earias ochreimargo, Warren, Seitz I, iii, p. 296 (1913). 

 Earias semifascia, Warren, Seitz I, iii, p. 296 (1913). 



A contribution by Mr. F. C. Willcocks to the Year- 

 book of the Khedivial Agricultural Society, for 1905, 

 pp. 57-91, comprises a complete account of the life-history 

 of the .insect, and description of all the stages. The 

 following account of the three incomplete stages is quoted 

 from the above in extenso. 



THE EGG. 



The egg is approximately 0*5 mm. in diameter; the 

 height is almost equal to the diameter. When first laid 

 it varies in colour from a pale turquoise blue to bluish- 

 green; later the green tint generally becomes dominant, 

 a brownish ring tinged with green appears around the 

 upper third of the egg, and an area of the same colour in 

 the centre. 



The egg is more or less globular in form, and is 

 surmounted by a prominent crown; viewed from above 

 the outline is circular. The shape is variable according 

 to the conditions under which the egg has been laid. If 

 deposited on a hairy surface, such as a bamiah fruit 

 (Hibiscus esculentus), the base is usually much rounded, 

 and consequently the spherical shape is well marked; but 

 when the egg is laid on a smooth, unyielding surface, 

 or if pressure is brought into use in order to fix it in 

 some crack or irregularity on the surface of the object 

 on which oviposition is taking place, the basal part is 

 more flattened, and the globular form is thus lost. 



In general appearance the egg is not unlike a miniature 

 poppy head, except, of course, for the more complicated 

 structure and sculpturing on the shell. 



The surface is marked with numerous vertical and very 

 slightly zigzag ribs, which stand out very prominently 

 from the sides. These ribs can be classified into two 

 sets of long and medium length respectively. 



