236 



Described from three males and two females, bred from adults of Bi- 

 abrotica soror Lee., at Los Angeles, Cal. 



Puparium. — Dark brown, cylindrical, the ends rounded; quite thickly covered 

 with black spines of varying lengths, some of the longer ones converging and adher- 

 ing to each other, forming clusters of from 8 to 14 spines ; length 4| mm . 



I have dedicated this interesting species to my friend, Mr. Alexan- 

 der Craw, who first discovered the existence of this parasite and to 

 whom I am indebted for several specimens of the pupa. 



SPILOSOMA FULIGINOSA Linn. 



By O. Lugger, St. Anthony ParJc, Minn. 



Quite a number of insects are common to northern Europe, Asia, and 

 America. The above insect must be added to these circumpolar spe- 

 cies, as it occurs rather abundantly near the experiment station at St. 

 Anthony Park, Minn. Nor is it a recent importation, as I have found 

 it here in some old collections made about twenty years ago. 



This moth is interesting in many re- 

 spects. Although I hunted for its larva 

 quite frequently during the summer of 

 1888 and 1889, I never succeeded in 

 rinding it. But late in the autumn, and 



at a time when the sidewalks are covered 

 every morning with a thick layer of 

 frost, these larvae are rather abundant. 

 They leave their hiding places and crawl 

 over the sidewalks ; at this time they 

 are frequently themselves incrusted 

 & ^>_^ w jth crystals of ice. Some few days 



fig. tf.-spiiosoma fuiiginosa ; a, larva ; ag0 w j tn tne thermometer ranging from 



b, cocoon ; c, moth— slightly enlarged 



(original). 5° to 3° below zero, I found several of 



them crawling slowly through the snow. 

 When the sidewalks, made of boards, become warmed up by the rays of 

 the sun, the caterpillars crawl away to the shady and cooler part. The 

 caterpillar has the usual Arctiid shape, is intensely black, and densely 

 covered with hairs, which are pale yellowish near the anterior and pos- 

 terior ends, but of a dingy pale brown in the central region. The head 

 is polished black. 



As I have at present no larvse, I can not give a closer description, but 

 the illustration will give a good idea of their general appearance. The 

 larvre are most common wherever the sidewalks are laid iu close prox- 

 imity to clover, yet they are also met with in the vicinity of wild grasses 

 and plants. As soon as such a larva is taken in doors and put into a 

 breeding cage, it will crawl for a few days and soon commence to form 



