two feet of water, and in a section of tho stream whore 

 it was almost impossible to remain on one's foot 

 because of the swiftness of the water. 



Eggs are laid in groups of a few, to more than two 

 hundred and fifty, are yellow to tan in color, flattish, 

 elongate-ovate in outline, glued to the surface of the 

 rocks and often slightly overlapping. Eggs vary in 

 size from 0.25 to 0.33 mm. wide, and from 0.40 to 0.45 

 mm. long, and the surface of the eggs is roughened. 

 Eggs may be laid on top of the rocks under some 

 conditions. 



Larvae often live several days out of water. Eggs 

 collected in Rumsey Canyon on April 25, 1954, 

 hatched in an aquarium three days later. The first 

 instar larvae were found to be gill-less, white, with 

 a black head, 1.02 mm. long, and with a width at the 

 head of 0.24 mm. The crochets were found to be in a 

 uniordinal series unlike the biordinal arrangement of 

 later instars. 



Larvae probably serve as fish food, as several small 

 larvae of this species were found in the stomachs of 

 a perch, Hysterocarpus traskii, collected by A. Cor- 

 done at Pitt 4 power house, on the Pitt River, near 

 Big Bend, Shasta County on September 1, 1953. 



Unplaced California Larvae 



Several larvae have been examined from California 

 for which no adults have been associated. 



Parargyractis sp. 

 (Fig. 11:7c/) 



On October 13, 1954, A. A. Grigarick and I collected 

 larvae and a few pupae of an apparently distinct 

 species at Little Stony Creek, Colusa County. The 

 species seems related to truckeealis Dyar, but the 

 large mandibles are quite distinct. No adults were 

 reared, but several parasitized pupae and two damaged 

 ichneumon adults were collected. Larvae were also 

 found in a stream near Ladoga, about three miles from 

 the Little Stony Creek locality, in association with 

 P. jaliscalis. The larvae were found under silken 

 tents in pools on fairly large rocks or on bed rock, 

 and unlike other species seen to date, the larva makes 

 a larval chamber near the center of the web, which 

 projects upwards slightly, and from which it can be 

 collected. Other larvae were found in old abandoned 

 cocoons. The pupal cases appeared white, and stiff, 

 owing to impregnation with salts. The creek runs 

 through a serpentine area, and it was assumed the 

 salts were of magnesium origin. On November 17 

 small- to medium-sized larvae were found, and one 

 adult ichneumon parasite emerged from a pupa soon 

 after it was collected. 



I also associate as this species larvae from Bartlett 

 Creek, Lake Countv, collected September 8, 1946, el. 

 1,000 ft., by H. Pi Chandler; Howell's, Plumas Co., 

 August 14, 1946, by H. P. Chandler, where it occurs 

 together with truckeealis; Dyerville, Humboldt Co., 



287 

 Lange: Lepidoptera 



August 14, 1946, H. P. Chandler; N. Fork of tho 

 Feather River, Plumas Co., el. 3,000 ft., by H. I'. 

 Chandler, together with truckeealis. 



The large mandibles of this species will easily 

 separate it from truckeealis. Tho pupae arc similar to 

 truckeealis, but the abdominal spiracles are noticeably 

 larger, and more stalked. 



Parargyractis sp. 

 (Fig. 11:7c) 



Larvae from Surprise Canyon, Inyo County, collected 

 March 31, 1951, by R. L. Usinger, constitute a dis- 

 tinct species. Both P. kearfottalis and P. schae//rr- 

 alis occur in this area, and so this could be either 

 species. The black head, short, white gills, and black 

 mandible with only a single strong tooth are char- 

 acteristic of this species. 



Parapoynx sp. 



(Fig. 11:70 



A single larva of this genus, with typical branched 

 gills, was examined. It was collected on Cerato- 

 phyllum in an aquarium at San Francisco, September 5, 

 1947, by W. B. Richardson. It is probably an intro- 

 duced species. 



REFERENCES 



BERG, C. O. 



1949. Limnological relations of insects to plants of the 

 genus Potamogeton. Trans. Amer. Micr. Soc, 68: 

 279-291. 



1950. Biology of certain aquatic caterpillars (Pyralidi- 

 dae: Nymphula spp.) which feed on Pota-nogeton. 

 Trans. Amer. Micr. Soc, 69:254-266. 



DYAR, H. G. 



1906. The North American Nymphulinae and Scopariinae. 



Jour. N.Y. Ent. Soc, 14:77-107. 

 1917. Notes on North American Nymphulinae (Lepid., 

 Pyralidae). Insec Inscit. Menst., 5:75-79. 

 FORBES, W. T. M. 



1910. The aquatic caterpillars of Lake Quinsigamond. 

 Psyche, 17:219-227. 



1911. Another aquatic caterpillar (Elophila). Psvche, 

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1923. The Lepidoptera of New York and neighboring 

 states. Memoir 68. Cornell Agr. Exp. Sta., 1-729 pp. 

 (Nymphulinae p. 574-581). 

 FROHNE, W. C, 



1938. Contribution to knowledge of the limnological 

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 3oc, 57:256-268. 

 1938a. Biology of Chilo forbesellus Fernald, an hy- 

 grophilous crambine moth. Trans. Amer. Micr. Soc, 

 58:304-326. 

 19396. Observations on the biology of three semiaquatic 

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 GROTE, A. R. 



1880. New species of moths. The North Amer. Ent., 

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1881. New Pyralidae. Papilio, 1:15-19. 



