176 ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS [April, 'll 



sassafras and persimmon bushes. Frank Caldwell reported 

 eight cocoons of promethea from one sassafras, while the au- 

 thor took seven from a small bush. The remarkable likeness 

 among the cocoons of promethea, cynthia and the gigantic atlas 

 is rather surprising inasmuch as all three belong to different 

 genera. The caterpillar of each of these moths spins an elon- 

 gate cocoon inside a single leaf securely fastened to the twig or 

 compound leaf stalk by silk and left to dangle in the breeze. 



One polyphemus cocoon was found on a sassafras bush and 

 one on willow, but the latter just under a small birch tree which 

 yielded another. The author in the course of three or four 

 hours collected ninety-nine promethea cocoons from sassafras 

 bushes along a small stream valley that had its source in a cul- 

 tivated field. Down where the stream flowed through a pas- 

 ture not one cocoon was found, although there was an abund- 

 ance of the food plants. Near towns cocoons of this moth are 

 always rare here in Missouri, and the author has the first one 

 yet to find in the city limits of Louisiana, although he has of- 

 ten searched for them on persimmon trees. Still, a number of 

 years ago, he found them not uncommon on the shade per- 

 simmons inside the city limits of Fort Smith, Arkansas. 



This year cecropia cocoons seem scarce and most of our 

 finds have been on soft maple and willow, Lowell Pinkerton 

 securing the greatest number. 



While most of our large moths are more or less general 

 feeders in the caterpillar stage, we expect to find them more 

 abundant on special plants, promethea on sassafras, cecropia 

 on plum, polyphem-us on maple, luna on walnut, imperialis on 

 maple and regalis on walnut, and yet all of these except poly- 

 phemus and imperialis may be found on persimmon. The au- 

 thor has even found the larva of cecropia feeding on fever 

 wort, and once fed one through on walnut, securing therefrom 

 the darkest moth he ever bred. The larva of io will feed on 

 almost any leguminous plant, having been found on garden 

 bean vines. It does well on Amorpha. 



I am again under obligations to Miss Margaret Haley for 

 the careful typing of this article. 



