102 MEMOIRS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



near tlic end to :i sli;ir]» jxtiiit. The pencils consist of tlnce to fonr liaiis arisiiij; I'loin a ]iair of 

 small warts, one clnsc to but on cadi side of tlie median line and situated Just hcliind each dark 

 dorsal dasli. On the sides of tlie second thoracic and the ninth alxloiniiMil sejiinent is a l)lack 

 patcli. more or less oblony and Ja,uj;cd on the upper edf;e. The sntuics between the sejjnients 

 are not black. The underside of the body is blackish. At tlie base of the abdominal leys is a 

 black ring, and another near the jilanta. and a lon.ffitndiiial black stripe ilown the outside of the lej;'. 



Miss Soiile adds that "the yellow one came out with the body lilack, tlichair maltesc-gray, 

 lighter over the head; pencils darker gray with black tips. The gray one was like it." 



Larva, Staije VI. — Length, '.'<') mm., August 11. The hairs concealing the body are now 

 uniformly white (Harris, referring to the living larva, says, "of a beautiful white color"), having 

 entirely changed their color. Tlie dorsal black lines are now more connected; tke three long 

 pencils are pale at base and black toward the tip. The lateral black spots send two points 

 ujiward, and the sutures are now black. The head is stained with black on the vertex and along 

 the sutures anil around the mouthparts. The thoracic and abdominal legs are black, but the 

 plantie of the abdominal feet are pale. Most of the hairs are dark on the distal half but \ni\e at 

 the basal half, and from the black lateral spots arise from two to four si)indle-sliaped black hairs; 

 also several others which stand out from the mass of dull gray hairs, arising from minute tubercles 

 along the sides of tlie body. The legs are hirsute, and the body is black beneath. 



Miss Soule's full-fed larva was :>! mm. in length, '• densely covered with long silky hair, 

 varying in cidor froai pure white to deep gray: jiencils almost black with black tips. Head gray. 

 l}ody hardly to be seen, but black wherever visible." 



Summi()-y of the larnd clidiiiirs. 



1. No glandular hairs, and in Stage I the body is alrea.ly covered with long woolly soft hairs. 



2. In the third stage appears the dorsal black stripe, and a single black i)encil on the eighth 

 uromere. 



.'5. The two other black thoracic jiencils ap])ear in Stage IV. 



4. The hairs become yellow and the pencils bicolored, while the lateral black si)ots a]i])ear in 

 Stage V. 



'). Tiie last stage (VI) is signalized by an entire change in color from ocher-yellow to white 

 or gray. 



Length of egg stage, sixteen to seventeen days; of first larval stage, seven days; Stage II, 

 nine days; Stage III, eight to nine days; Stage IV, four days; Stage VI, nine days (Harris); 

 prepupal stage, three days (Harris's pupal stage). 



Cocoon. — Harris states that it does not spin a cocoim, but probably enters the earth. Miss 

 Soule also states that no signs of s])inning were found. 



According to Abbot, in (ieorgia the caterpillar "went into the ground .lune 20, came out the 

 14th of July. Auother went in the ITtli of October and came out on the li.Jth of Ajiril." 



Habits. — Dr. Lintner has described ijuite fully the larva of the other sjiecies {A. aiu/rlica 

 Orote) which feeds on the ash and syringa, traiistbrming to the ])U])a state September 14. His 

 larva seems to differ in the '• numerous fine black linings, among which may be traced two forming 

 a vascular stripe and two similar lateral stripes on each side." Lintner also speaks of "four dorsal 

 white lines, posteriorly black," on the iirothoracic segment, and also of." short stiff red hairs on the 

 sides of the second ami tliinl thoracic segments, and indeed it is evident that the larva- of the 

 two species differ considerably in markings." Our larva, on the other hand, aiijiears tobe identical 

 with that described by Harris (('ori'esiMindence. ]>. .'507) under the name of Axtusia torri'facta.' Sni. 

 and Abb., the two last stages of which he describes. He found it on the burdock, and says that 

 it "eats leaves of willow well," and further on states that he found one "on a leaf of I'miiun 

 virginiana.'''' 



Miss Soule states that a female found at Nonquitt, Mass., laid a mass of eggs duly 13, the 

 larva- hati-hing on the L'Oth. The first molt occurred August 2, the second August ">, the third 

 August 10, the fimrth August 15, the fifth August 20. The freshly hatched caterpillar rested on 

 both sides of the sassafras {Sassafras officinale) and ash (Fraxhnis) leaves, and moved very fast. 

 " When touched they ciiih-d un like the arctians. Thev drank grei-dilv and ate their cast skin." 



