1294 Roger C. SmirH 
in the color at deposition in some of the species, but the arrangement and 
the situation in which they are found have thus far been most useful in 
identification. 
The color of the egg very closely simulates the green color of leaves. 
At first the eggs are of the same shade as is shown by the under side of 
most leaves of plants. As the embryo develops, the egg becomes gray 
with darker areas, but this change of color does not make it any more 
conspicuous. 
The anterior pole of the egg is somewhat flattened. In the middle of 
this flattened area is the prominent, raised, button-like micropyle. The 
micropyle is circular and its center is depressed. The broad border is 
divided into from thirty to forty minute triangular ridges, with their 
outer borders rounded. The micropyle in Chrysopa nigricornis and that 
in C. oculata show exactly the same characteristics. It is white at all 
stages, but in freshly laid eggs it may have a slight greenish tinge. 
The stalk of the egg 
The egg stalk is composed of a hyaline gelatinous substance, which 
hardens somewhat after exposure to the air for a few seconds. In mid- 
summer the stalks fail to harden to the same degree, due probably to 
the higher temperature. Then the stalk material may be drawn out like 
glue into a fine, clear thread. At all seasons the stalk hardens sufficiently 
to furnish a fairly rigid support for the egg and to withstand a strong 
wind. It is usually attached at the extreme posterior end of the egg, 
but in exceptional cases it may be attached to the side of the egg. 
Usually there is one egg to a stalk, but confined females occasionally 
deposit an egg attached to the stalk or on the egg proper of a previously 
deposited normal egg. In one instance noted, two stalks were attached 
to the stalk of a previously deposited egg; in another instance, an 
unstalked egg was found adhering to a stalked egg. 
The length of the stalk appears normally to vary directly as the 
length of the abdomen of the female. Chrysopa migricornis was the 
largest species studied, and C. plorabunda the smallest. The stalks 
of the eggs of the former were the longest (from 7.57 to 8.6 millimeters), 
and those of the latter were the shortest (from 2.46 to 3.82 millimeters). 
Females in confinement, however, often deposit eggs on stalks half, or 
less than half, the normal length. Stalkless eggs are not uncommon, but 
these are evident abnormalities. 
It is usually stated that the stalk is a protection against parasites and 
predatory enemies, particularly the larvae of their own kind. Eggs 
lying on a leaf are attacked as soon as the larvae become active, while 
the stalked eggs are generally the last discovered. Leaf crawlers, such 
