NOCTU^ELIT^E. 313 



habits as the species just mentioned. It belongs, however, to 

 a different section of the genus, and on the discal area is an 

 oblique, golden, irregular oval patch, containing two unequal 

 dots. The larva is pale green and has a broad, lateral, white 

 stripe. The chrysalis is brown and protected by a thin, loose 

 cocoon. P. divergens Fabr. lives on the Alps, in Finmark, and 

 in Labrador. Mr. F. G. Sanborn found, July 6th, a closely allied 

 species on the summit of Mount Washington, N. PL, which dif- 

 fers from P. divergens in the forked, golden, discal spot being 

 a third smaller, while the two branches of the spot go off at 

 right angles to each other. On the fore wings the second line 

 from the base is acutely dentate on the submedian vein, where 

 in P. divergens it is straight, and the outer line is also den- 

 tate, not being so in P. divergens. The hind wings are yel- 

 lowish at base, with a wide black margin. It may be called 

 Plusia montana. Mr. Grote has described P. ignea (P. alticola 

 of Walker) from Pike's Peak, which is closely allied 

 to P. divergens. Plusia cerea Hiibner (Fig. 242, side 

 view) is a reddish brown moth, with obscure markings, 

 and without the usual metallic spots. It expands a 

 little over an inch, and is not uncommon in the North- 

 ern States. 



Aletia is a slender-bodied genus, with triangular Fig. 242. 

 fore wings A. aryillacea feeds upon the cotton. It is a 

 brown moth with a dark discal oval spot centred by two 

 pale dots. She deposits, according to Mr. Glover, a low, much 

 flattened, vertically ribbed egg upon the surface of the leaf. 

 The larva is a looper, whence it can be readily distinguished 

 from the army and boll worms, and its body is thickest in the 

 middle, very hairy, green, dotted with black along a subdorsal 

 yellowish line, and with black dots beneath. It matures early 

 in the season, and a second brood becomes fully grown in Sep- 

 tember and October. When about to transform it gathers a 

 leaf together by a web, thus forming a rude cocoon. (Glover.) 



Like our northern army worm (Leucania unipuiicta) the 

 Army worm of the South (Fig. 243, egg and larva, Riley), 

 makes its appearance in great numbers in a single day, 

 committing the greatest havoc in a few hours. Professor J. 

 Darby, of Auburn, Ala., writes me that "Saturday, Septem- 



