284 



THE STUDY OF INSECTS. 



mens the white predominates ; other specimens are almost 

 entirely black, excepting the spear-mark. According to Eu- 

 ropean authorities the larva is brown or blackish brown, with 

 a darker line along the middle of the back, and a row of horse- 

 shoe-shaped spots on the sides. It feeds on birch and sweet 

 gale. It is gregarious, a colony of larvae spinning together 

 the leaves of the food-plant, and thus forming a nest within 

 which they live and feed. The 

 larva has not yet been observed 

 in this country. 



The Scallop - shell Moth, 

 Calocalpe undulata (Cal-o-cal'pe 

 un-du-la'ta). — This is a pretty 



Fig. 336. — Calocalpe undulata. 



moth, with its yellow wings 



crossed by so many fine, zigzag, 



dark brown lines that it is hard 



to tell which of the two is the 



ground-color (Fig. 336). It 



lays its eggs in a cluster on 



a leaf near the tip of a twig 



of cherry, usually wild cherry. 



The larvae make a snug nest 



by fastening together the leaves 



at the end of the twig; and 



within this nest (Fig. 337) they 



live, adding new leaves to the 



outside as more food is needed. 



The leaves die and become brown, and thus render the nest 



conspicuous. The larvae are black above, with four white 



Fig. 337.— Eggs and nest of Calocalpe 

 undulata. 



