COURTESY CONN. AGR. EXPT. STA. 
FIGURE 122.—Larvae of the 
white-marked tussock moth, 
Hemerocampa leucostigma. 
yellowish hairs on each of the first four abdominal segments and 
reddish dots on the sixth and seventh segments. The sides of the 
body are clothed in white and blackish hairs radiating from rows 
of small yellow tubercles. 
Winter is spent in the egg stage and hatching occurs between 
April and June. Young larvae feed on the surface of the leaves, 
skeletonizing them. Later, they chew holes in other leaves and 
finally consume all but the larger veins. Young larvae often spin 
down on silken threads and are sometimes transported consider- 
able distances by the wind. The larvae become full-grown in 5 or 
6 weeks, then, under branches or in bark crevices, they spin 
grayish cocoons consisting of silk and hairs from the body. The 
pupal stage lasts about 2 weeks, and the number of generations 
per year varies from one in the northern parts of the insect’s 
range to three in the South. 
The white-marked tussock moth is a pest of shade trees, par- 
ticularly American elm, in cities and towns. It also occurs in 
forested areas but usually causes minor damage there. Howard 
(382, 383) discussed the life history, habits, and parasites of the 
species. 
Hemerocampa definita (Pack.), the definite-marked tussock moth, 
occurs in southern Ontario and several of the Eastern States and 
feeds on quite a wide variety of deciduous trees such as willow, 
apple, wild cherry, elm, paper birch, red oak, red maple, and ash. 
The adults and larvae closely resemble those of the white-marked 
tussock moth in form and size, and in the arrangement of the 
tufts of hairs on the larvae. Wingless females are clothed in 
golden-brown hairs. They lay their eggs in masses on the cocoons 
from which they emerge, covering them with hairs from their 
bodies. In the Northeastern States these egg masses are often 
mistaken for those of the gypsy moth. In addition to the con- 
spicuous pencils and tufts of hair, the larva is yellow, with a faint 
dorsal stripe and a black spot behind each of the second and third 
tufts of hair on the abdomen. This species is seldom of economic 
importance. 
The genus Dasychira is represented in eastern forests by a 
number of species, a few of which are economically important. 
Adults of the different species are very similar in appearance and 
are difficult to distinguish. In both sexes, they are winged, and 
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