THE HAG-MOTH. " 421 



the tip is bare. The antennae of the female are thread-like 

 and not fringed. The wings expand from one inch to one 

 inch and one eighth. The caterpillar figured by Mr. Abbot* 

 is oblong oval, striped with purple and yellow, with twelve 

 fleshy horns, of an orange color, on the sides of its back, 

 namely, six on the fore part, two on the middle, and four 

 on the hind part of the body. Mr. Abbot says that it eats 

 the leaves of the dogwood (JJornm Florida), oak, and of 

 other trees ; that it makes its cocoon in September, and 

 that the moth comes out in July. 



A still more extraordinary slug-caterpillar (Fig. 208), 

 having a very remote resemblance to the last, j,. gos 



has been found here on forest-trees, and oc- 

 casionally in considerable numbers on cherry- 

 trees and apple-trees, from July to Septem- 

 ber. It is of a dark brown color, and is covered with a 

 short velvet-like down ; its body is almost oblong square, 

 but the sides of the rings extend horizontally in the form 

 of flattened teeth ; three of these teeth on each side, that 

 is, one on the fore part, the middle, and the hind part of 

 the body, are much longer than the others, and are curved 

 backwards at the end. When fully grown, the caterpillar 

 measures nearly an inch in length. It does not bear con- 

 finement well, and often dies before completing its trans- 

 formations. Dr. Melsheimer, to whom I am indebted for 

 one of the moths, informs me that the caterpillar eats the 

 leaves of the wild cherry, as well as those of the white and 

 red oak, that it makes its cocoon (Fig. 



. V & Jig. 209. 



209) about the middle of September, 

 changes to a chrysalis the following April, 

 and that the moth appears in about eight 

 weeks afterwards. The name given to 

 this insect by Sir J. E. Smith f is pithe- 

 cium, the meaning of which is a shriv- 

 elled and monkey-faced old woman, bestowed upon it prob- 



* Insects of Georgia, p. 145, pi. 73. f Ibid., p. UT, pi. 74. 



