— 28 — 



Colors : (described from Bridgham's figure) Body straw-yel- 

 low, with three dorsal, more or less interrupted grayish or pearly 

 ])ale-l)rown lines, and a broad lateral stripe, below which the 

 lubtrcles arc yellow-ot'hreous. 'I'ht; suranal plate is flattened, 

 rounded in outline and hairy, with the surface rather rough and 

 hairy. In my single alcoholic specimen there is no sign of a 

 |)r()thoracic shield or plate. 



.Although the imago of /. van is very near that of /. incliisa 

 in markings, the larva is very different, there being no median 

 dorsal tubercle on the ist abdominal segment. In the lack of 

 these tubercles /. strii^osa resembles /. van. On the other hand, 

 the larva of /. a//>osigiiia, in respect to the presence of the two 

 dorsal abdominal tubercles approaches that of /. incliisa ; these 

 two species, then, as larv;Te, belong to the same genus ; while the 

 two other species {t'aii and sfr/'^osa), as respects the larvae, differ 

 genericall}- from itniiisa and a/bosigiiia, though the moths are con- 

 generic. It is evident that the larvae of I'ai/ and strigosa are more 

 general izetl, since they lack the rather highly specialized dorsal 

 tubercles, so prominent in the two other species of the genus. If 

 we regarded the moths alone we might erroneously consider that 

 rail and i/niiisa were i)oth coeval, whereas van must be a much 

 older, more generalized form ; hence, speculations on the phyl- 

 ogeny of Lepidoptera based on the imagines alone, may often be 

 uncertain. (For a brief description of the larva of /. sfrigosa, see 

 our Forest Insects, 453, and Bull. 13 Div. Ent. U. S. Dept. Agr. 30.) 



The larva of our /. a/lwsignia is closely allied in shape, and in 

 the two dorsal alxlominal dark tubercles to the European /. rcc/nsa, 

 except that the tubercles in the .American si)ecies are much larger 

 and more prominent. 



A considerable number of the Heaver parasite, Platypsylla cci.sloris have been 

 distributed by Mr. (1. IJeyer, who obtained them by beating dried beaver skins, 

 which were sent to him from Nebraska. A few specimens of the rare Leptimis 

 Viilidiis were also found in the same manner. 



Mr. (j. I). Bradford and Mr. Wm. Schaus, both members of our Society, are 

 at present on a collecting trip. The former went to Egypt last January and the 

 latter recently went to Floritia. No doubt, both will return with many rare and 

 interesting species. 



