THE MELON CATERPILLAR. 43 



vine. He described the moths as very shy and difficult of capture. 

 They remain in hiding all day and appear only after dark, when, by 

 aid of a lantern or other light, they may be seen darting among the 

 vines. 



The species was not so destructive this year, owing, it was believed, 

 to the excessively damp weather in that locality. Our correspondent 

 was of opinion that these larvae do not feed on the foliage of melons 

 or cucumbers, but that when fruit is scarce they frequently attack the 

 tip of the vines where these are tender. In this respect this species 

 resembles nitidalis, which, as we have previously observed, will attack 

 buds and ovaries in the event of scarcity of fruit. They leave the 

 vines, our correspondent further states, and go into the fruit whenever 

 they have the opportunity. The vines also are attacked, the larvae 

 boring into them a few inches from the tip and working their way inside 

 the vine to the extreme end. 



Our correspondent expressed the opinion that there may be some 

 chance of attracting the moths to lights. 



September 3 Mr. Deckner again sent specimens of the adult moth, 

 with the information that his cucumber patch was at that time swarm- 

 ing with them. During the rainy season they appeared to be unable to 

 conceal themselves and were easily dislodged. They were moving 

 about then in large numbers. All of the specimens reared from larvae 

 sent by Mr. Deckner proved to be nitidalis, and all those kept by him 

 and reared at Atlanta were the same species, a matter which greatly 

 puzzled our correspondent as well as the writer. 



What was believed to be the immature larva of this insect was 

 received in precisely the same manner and at the same time as was 

 that of the pickle worm. It was found by Messrs. Deckner and Hevey 

 on the foliage of squash, and, as with the immature pickle worm, was 

 not identified nor reared. The supposed immature larva was striped 

 very much like that of the greenhouse leaf-tyer, Phlyctcenia ferrugalis. 

 This striate appearance was observable in the larvae while quite young 

 and until after they had attained a length of an inch. 



Until the past year the writer had not been aware of the presence of 

 this species in the vicinity of the District of Columbia. During the 

 fall the adult was taken on two occasions, late in September and in the 

 early part of October, by Mr. F. 0. Pratt, captures being made in the 

 city of Washington at light. 



The known distribution of this moth includes Cuba and Jamaica, 

 and as it is much more abundant in the most Southern States it is prob- 

 able that it is of tropical origin. Our divisional records of localities 

 include the Atlantic and Gulf States from the District of Columbia 

 southward and westward to and including Texas. It has also been 

 reported from Ames, 111., Manhattan, Kans., Columbus, Ohio, Agricul- 

 tural College, Mich., Buffalo, N. Y., and Hamilton, Canada. The larva 

 has never been detected in the District of Columbia, and some doubt 



