INSECTS AFFECTING OHIO SHADE TREES x^,J^ 



"The Caterpillars prefer to hide during the daytime, and ad- 

 vantage may be taken of this habit to tie burlap bands in the middle 

 around the tree trunks and then turn the upper portion of the bur- 

 lap down over the string. The bands can be lifted daily and the 

 caterpiUars beneath killed. This method proved of such great value 

 in the work against the gypsy moth that thousands of trees were 

 banded during the latter part of the caterpillar season." 



"The larva is quite resistant to arsenical poisons, and it re- 

 quires a large dose to kill it, especially when the caterpillar is nearly 

 grown. There is probably no better poison for this pest than 

 arsenate of lead, using at least S pounds to every SO gallons. The 

 application should be made as soon as the leaves are well grown, and 

 then the caterpillars will be poisoned while young and most sus- 

 ceptible to the insecticide." 



_._,,_,.„ ,, . The adult of this species is one 



^tmy Elm CaterbiUai or Mourning j. ,, . ,-, „. ., 



\., -,^„r^ of the butterflies quite com- 



Cloak Butterfly, Kvanessa , „ . . ^ t. • 



. ' . monly seen flying about. It is 



anttofa Liinn. • , •, • , , j t, ^x. 



strikingly marked by the gen- 

 eral dark-brown color of the wings being bordered by a margin of 

 broken yellow, the whole general appearance being that of black 

 bordered with white. 



The eggs are deposited in rings around the twigs of the food 

 plant, which for Ohio is usually wiUow, though elms are sometimes 

 attacked. The full grown larva is black with a row of red spots 

 down the back. It bears numerous long spines which in turn bear 

 shorter branches. It measures about two inches in length. The 

 pupal stage is passed as an unprotected chrysalid attached to some 

 portion of the food plant. The winter is passed in the adult stage 

 in some sheltered nook. 



Control methods consist in spraying with poison, or in collect- 

 ing the larvae and destroying them as they feed in clusters. 



The general body color of the 

 Black Walnut Qitertillar^Batana j^^.^^ ^f t^is insect varies from 

 tntegerrttna QrotQ &K.ohin&on. , , , i. 1.1 i ^ -t • 



dark brown to black, and it is 



clothed in long, white hairs. When disturbed it suddenly raises 

 both ends of the body to a vertical position, holding only with the 

 body legs. This peculiarity, in combination with its general color, 

 renders the insect comparatively easy to distinguish. The full 

 grown larva is about 2 inches in length. It has been observed by 

 the writer feeding on black walnut only, though it is reported 

 from other states as feeding upon butternut, hickory and others. 



The larvae feed in clusters on the leaves and at certain intervals 

 travel to the trunk or larger branches of the free for the purpose 

 of molting, leaving a silken path as they go. They settle in a large 



