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HOW TO TELL SEX OF CATOCALAS. 



Dr. J. H. McDunnough says: "Collectors tell us they have difficulty in 

 determining female Catocalas. The male has the abdomen narrow, pointed, 

 and ending in a strong tuft of hair. In the female the abdomen is stouter, with 

 scarcely any hair-tuft, often with a keel-shaped process on under-side near 

 extremity (vide C. relicta,) and the end of the ovipositor may often be «een 

 protruding as a small circular tube. An absolutely certain method of deter- 

 mination is to examine the frenulum or spine at the base of the hind wings, 

 which serves to fasten them to the fore-wings; in the male this is always a single 

 stout spine; in the female it consists of two or three slender spines." 



CARE OF CATOCALA LARWE. 



R. R. Rowley, Superintendent of School, Louisiana, Mo., says: "I keep 

 Catocala eggs in a cool place until the leaves are bursting out in the Spring, 

 say early in April, lest the little larvae appear before their food and die, as I 

 have had them do when they hatched in March. In early April I place the 

 eggs on white paper on the inside of a tin lid to a jelly glass, inverted, and 

 when I find they are hatching I cautiously open the lid and place a tender leaflet 

 inside. You will find that by keeping the glass inverted it will be easier to 

 remove and renew the food. I wouldn't advise you to try to remove the food 

 for several days, till the tiny creepers become less active. Fresh leaves, however, 

 can be inserted every few days. After the larvae have passed the second moult, 

 in about six or eight days, I transfer them to roomier quarters, where I keep 

 them till they pupate. I use the Stickney glass cigar jars with metal lids. These 

 jars hold over half a gallon, are six inches in diameter, and the open end is as 

 wide as the rest of the jar. These I keep right side up, with a paper on the 

 bottom to absorb moisture, and clean them out every second day, sometimes 

 every day, and replenish the food-supply as often as it needs renewing. Never 

 let the leaves wilt. Open the jar two or three times a day and with a palm 

 leaf fan change the air in them. I also change the air in the jelly glasses in the 

 same way, only I fan lightly to keep from blowing the little crawlers away. 

 I usually double the paper on the bottom of the jars, or drop extra pieces of 

 paper in when the larvae are about ready to spin, so that they can crawl under 

 the paper and spin their cocoons. I never even dampen the food with the young 

 larvae, lest they drown in the drops of water. With larvae half-grown or larger 

 I often dip my fingers in the water and flirt the water into the open jar among 

 the leaves. I have reared larvae to pupation without ever giving them water 

 other than that in the leaves they eat. It takes from five to seven weeks to 

 bring Catocala larvae to pupation and then another twenty to thirty days to 

 mothhood. The larvae usually moult five times, sometimes four. Always place 

 your pupae so they can climb up some rough (board, paper or cloth) surface, 

 when they emerge, so that the young moth can hang body down, and expand 

 its wings, else it will be a cripple. Larvae of hawk-moths and the silk-worm 

 family may be reared directly in the Stickney jars. To insure the health of the 

 larvae, pure food should be always in the jars and the air changed often with a 

 fan. You should be able to get the Stickney jars from the cigar stores, as they 

 cannot be used again by the manufacturers. There is also a brown glass jar, 

 of less size, used for cigars.'' 



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