THE MOURNING-CLOAK 283 



Injury is sometimes caused in young hickories by the fact that 

 the presence of the larva or grub may cause a gall-like swelling 

 of the trunk and a heavy wind may break the tree off at this point. 



The Painted Hickory Borer. This is a strikingly beautiful 

 beetle (Cyllene picta Drury), velvety black, with numerous pale 

 yellow bands on the wing-covers and across the thorax. The 

 larvae or grubs boring in hickory and elm are not often destructive. 



To save valuable shade trees, trunks may be anointed late in 

 August with a mixture of soft soap and crude carbolic acid. This 

 should be repeated in September. Whitewash may also be used 

 as a repellent. 



The Mourning-Cloak. The caterpillars of this butterfly (Eu- 

 vanessa antiopa Linn.) are black, spiny, and marked with red 





FIG. 28G. The mourning-cloak butterfly. 



spots. They feed upon elms, willows, and poplars. The butter- 

 flies are dark bluish brown, more or less iridescent; the margins 

 of the wings are yellowish. Just inside of the yellowish margin 

 is a row of blue dots. 



Life History. The eggs are laid in clusters upon twigs of the 

 food plant early in the spring. The butterflies themselves (Fig. 

 286) hibernate, and appear early in the spring. The caterpillars 

 are seen in groups until they are full grown, when they separate. 

 Oftentimes their numbers are so large as to cause a small branch 

 to bend with their weight. 



Control. Frequently a cluster of young caterpillars, if ob- 

 served, can be crushed with the gloved hand or a twig holding 

 them may be cut off and burned. They are easily controlled 

 with arsenical sprays. 



