390 



The larva inhabits an inclosure composed of part of a leaf folded over or of one or 

 more leaves as it becomes larger. 



Pupa. — Resembles in shape a pupa of Eudamus, and is held by a number of trans- 

 verse threads in an inclosing leaf. The eyes are prominent, pilose. A brown ele- 

 vated spot is situated above each, back of the antenna case. Color, dull yellow, cov- 

 ered by a white bloom. The cremaster is iiat and hairy. 



The food plant is Alternanthera flavescens. 



LarvsB from Dade County, Florida. 

 Triptogon imperator Strecker. 



Matwrelarva. — Head rounded triangular, the clypeus laterally indented; green with 

 many rather large whitish elevated spots, the front nearly all pale yellowish white, 

 but with a purplish shade centrally at the sutures and the clypeus pale green. Mouth 

 parts sordid white ; maxillse black inwardly. Cervical shield and anal plates colored 

 like the sides of the head and furnished with whitish granulations, the lateral plates 

 tinged with yellowish posteriorly. They do not quite meet the supraanal plate, 

 leaving some of the skin of the body between. The color is green, with a purplish 

 shade on the dorsum (indicating the. approach of the change to pupa), and seven 

 greenish white oblique lateral lines, interrupted between the segments, the first and 

 sixth fainter than the others and sometimes almost obsolete. The last is broad and 

 distinct and extends from above the base of the foot on joint 10 to the caudal horn, 

 which is short and concolorous with it or tinged with purplish. In many the tip is 

 black. The lines are not well defined at their edges, the outline being somewhat 

 irregular and blended. Spiracles yellow-brown, the center white, but the ones on 

 joint 2 are all white. Thoracic feet white, purplish at the tips, with fine brown hairs 

 internally ; abdominal feet green, purple outwardly above the claspers, then nar- 

 rowly whitish and above this another slight purple shade. Venter centrally slightly 

 and interruptedly paler. Each segment has about six transverse creases or annulets. 



Length of larva, 80-90 millimetres ; of horn, 3-4 millimetres ; width of head, 7 

 millimetres ; height, 8 millimetres ; diameter of body, 15-17 millimetres. 



These larvae occurred to me abundantly in Phoenix, Arizona, in November, being 

 drowned in the irrigating ditches in considerable numbers in their attempts to find a 

 place for pupation after their descent from the cottonwood trees. Of some thirty 

 taken from the water four revived sufficiently to pupate. Three produced female 

 moths and the fourth a crop of Tachina flies. 

 Orgyia definita Packard. 



Mature larva.— Head, pale yellow, shining, minutely mottled with grayish spots ; 

 labrum, antennae, and a spot below the eyes white; ocelli and maxillae black. Body 

 pale yellow, a pale, almost colorless dorsal band, replaced on joint 2 by the pale 

 yellow cervical shield, which is concolorous with the head and contains two yellow 

 tubercles, widening on joints 5 to 8, and inclosing four square brush-like tufts of 

 yellow hairs. It narrows again, inclosing the two retractile concolorous dorsal tuber- 

 cles on joints 10 and 11, respectively. It is absent on joint 13. A narrow subdorsal 

 and fainter stigmatal similarly colored lines. All these lines in different examples 

 vary in color from nearly colorless through pale gray to blue gray, dark brown, or 

 black. There is a velvety black spot between the dorsal tufts on joints 6 to 8, The 

 usual warty tubercles of the body are arranged as in Orgyia leucostigma, and there is 

 a pair of pencils of black plumed hairs on joint 2 and a single dorsal one on joint 12, 

 which is mainly composed of light brown hairs. The warts bear a few thin long 

 white hairs. Spiracles white in a narrow black border. Larvae from Dutchess 

 County, New York. 



The three species of Orgyia that occur in New York can readily be distinguished by 

 the way they deposit their eggs. 0. deHnita covers them with hair from the body of 

 the mother moth ; 0. leucostigma covers them with a white froth without hair, while 

 0. antiqua (=nova) deposits them without any covering. 



