100 REPORT 4, UNITED STATES ENTOMOLOGICAL COMMISSION. 



Fig. 26.—Chrysopa. 



iggs ; &, larva ; c, cocoons ; d, 



regretted that this voracious insect is not more abundant in the cotton 



fields 5 but it undoubtedly de- 

 ^^^^1 \\yV^^_^^^^^ stroys many worms. It is 

 v.,Av^ -\ .XV ^\ v\ popularly known as ^ ^the rear 



horse," "the camel cricket," or 

 'Hhe devil's riding horse," and 

 feeds upon all sorts of living 



fly, with left wings detaclaed. (After Westwood.) iuSCCtS. As an iustanCC Of itS 



voracity, we have already described (First Mo. Ent. Eeport, p. 169) how 



a single female devoured eleven Colorado Potato-beetles in one night. 



The eggs are glued tightly together in a 



peculiar mass and are deposited in all 



sorts of situations, but principally on the 



twigs of trees. The eggs are extensively ^k. 27-. CA.y.o^a with eggs. (From 



infested by a Chalcid parasite of the Packard;) - 



genus Podagrion^ and the adult Mantis is destroyed by a Tachina lly. 

 NeuropterAjOR Nerye-winged Insects. — The pnly species of 



this order that are likely to prey 

 uiDon Aletia belong to the Ant- 

 lions (Myrmeleo7iidce)y the Lace- 

 wings {IIemeroMidw)j and the 

 Dragon-Flies [LihelluUdce). The 

 Ant-lions work in the larva state 

 in pits in the ground, and the con- 



FiG. 2S.—2l7jrmeleon obsoletus. (From Harris.) staut plowiug thereof will alwayS 



prevent them from doing any material good, and they are naturally 

 scarce. The Lace-wings are numerous, but their larvae feed, like the 

 lady-birds, on the plant-lice, and have refused to touch Cotton 

 Worms when confined in boxes with them. The carious eggs 

 of these flies (Fig. 27), attached to the end of a delicate filament, 

 are often supposed to be those of Aletia. Many planters state 

 that these flies are always to be found where there are larvae of 

 Aletia, and Dr. Phares states that their larvae devour the eggs ^F^^-^f— 



' ^^ ^® Myrmeleon 



and young Cotton Worms. This is not improbable, though his larva, 

 statement is as yet unconfirmed b}^ other observ^ers. The larvae have 

 been seen by Mr. Trelease feeding uioon the nectar of the foliar glands. 



The Dragon-flies or Mosquito-hawks are aquatic in the larva state, but 

 the perfect insects are active in their pursuit of prey while on the wing, 

 and are reported on good authorit}^ to attack Aletia both in the worm 

 and moth states. Fig. 30, Jjibellula trimaeulata, is one of the commoner 

 species. 



Dr. F. ]M. McMeekin, of Morrison's Mills, Alachua County, Florida, 

 considers them as the most valuable enemies of Aletia, and states that 

 it is a common sight to see them catch the moths' on the wing. 



Lepidoptera. — Butterflies and Moths. — It is incontestably 

 proven by the evidence of almost every observer we have sent into the field 



