538 



NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



The recently hatched larva is yellow with a large, black head, the spines 

 forming little black tubercles of nearly uniform size. The head is browner 

 after the first molt and the spines and stripes of the full fed larva more 

 apparent. The third stage is very like the fourth or last, except that the 

 caterpillar is smaller. The full grown larva is an inch and a half long, pale 

 yellowish green, longitudinally striped above alternately with eight very 

 light yellowish green lines and seven of a darker green, inclining to black, 

 with two slender black spines on the second segment behind the head, and 

 two lateral rows of sharper, shorter spines. Head copal yellow ; abdominal 

 segments seven and eight a little dilated and rose-colored at the sides. 



The moth is rose-colored, with the fore wings crossed by a broad, pale 



yellow band. The hind wings are pale yellow. The body is yellow and 



the underside and legs rose-colored. Wing spread about 2 inches. 



Semilooper maple worm 



Homoptera lunata Drury 



A drab colored caterpillar about 1% inches long, and with a large, orange, dorsal 

 spot exposed at the juncture of the first and second abdominal segments when the body 

 bends, feeds on maple, oak, willow and rose. 



The caterpillar of this widely distributed species is seldom abundant 

 enough to cause much injury. The larva is about \ Y / 2 inches long, drab 

 colored, with indistinct markings except for the large, orange, dorsal spot 

 exposed when the body is bent at the juncture of the first and second 

 abdominal segments. On the eighth abdominal segment there is a pair of 

 small, brown-tipped tubercles. The head is quite flat, sloping and irregu- 

 larly marked with brown. The caterpillar when walking loops much as 

 does a measuring worm and displays a marked tendency to remain quiet 

 and rely on its protective color to escape injury. The parent insect is an 

 obscurely brown colored moth having a wing spread of about 2 inches. 

 Both the fore and hind wings are rather prettily ornamented with wavy 

 dark and light brown bands or lines interspersed here and there with 

 indistinct grayish markings. 



The eggs of this insect are deposited the latter part of April and full 

 grown larvae are met with in early June, moths appearing the latter part of 

 the month and in early Jul)'. Larvae also occur in August and September, 



