162 Control of Parasites 
footless, and never leave their bags, depositing the eggs 
within them, and then dropping out to die, the eggs winter- 
ing in the bag. 
This is a dangerous enemy of conifers as well as of decid- 
uous trees, mainly in southern latitudes. 
The collection of the bags is the readiest means of control- 
ling them, besides spraying with arsenate of lead (fifteen 
ounces to forty gallons of water) in May and June. 
Gypsy Moth. This imported insect, in appearance some- 
what like the Tussock-moth, so far almost harmless in its 
native country, Europe, has here become injurious, and 
that extremely so, although only in a very limited locality in 
Massachusetts. It is peculiarly interesting because of the 
fruitless efforts to exterminate it, in which the State of Mas- 
sachusetts has spent so far more than one million dollars. 
The coloration in all stages is of a darker or lighter brown- 
ish or yellowish brown tint, the caterpillar, two to two and 
a half inches long when full grown, dotted with long hair 
tufts on colored blue and red tubercles; the egg masses laid 
anywhere on limbs, fence rails or other objects, are covered 
with buff-colored scales, giving them a sponge-like appear- 
ance. It is in this stage that the insect winters, the cater- 
pillars issuing from the end of April until the middle of June, 
and feeding on the leaves of elm, maple, oak, indeed on 
almost all deciduous trees and shrubs, some continuing until 
the middle of July, doing their work in clusters by night, 
and hiding in crevices by day. The moths emerge from 
the pupz in June and July, and deposit Their eggs, which 
winter. Sometimes two broods occur. 
The most effective remedy is the collecting and burning 
of the conspicuous egg masses, or else crushing and daubing 
them with creosote oil, hot if possible, during the fall, winter, 
and spring. Trees may be banded with burlap or insect 
