114 BULLETIN 1476, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
they were borne aloft during their struggles and eventually carried 
over the water. In this experiment the moths were liberated upon a 
strip of ocean beach affording no protection from the wind, whereas 
in a similar experiment where a beach protected by a steep cliff 
approximately 50 feet high was selected, some of the moths suc- 
ceeded in fighting their way back to land and disappeared over the 
edge of the cliff. 
As a continuation of the investigations to determine the effective- 
ness of large bodies of water as barriers to the flight of the moths, 
as well as to determine their flight capabilities, a total of 60,988 
stained moths were liberated at Manomet Point, Plymouth, Mass., 
during the period from June 5 to July 23, 1922. These liberations 
were made only while the wind was blowing offshore (southwest to 
southwest by west) toward the tip of Cape Cod (Provincetown). 
Before liberation the moths were stained with an aqueous solution of 
carbol fuchsin (acid) applied as a fine spray. The majority of the 
moths had recently emerged from a large collection of cornstalks and 
weeds kept in a barn near by, which had been altered to serve the pur- 
pose of an insectary. The sexes were about equally represented. At 
the Provincetown end three crews, comprising a total of 12 men, sys- 
tematically swept all corn and other vegetation likely to be used as a 
shelter by the moths during the day, throughout that portion of 
Cape Cod extending from the tip of the cape to the village of Orleans. 
Especial attention was given to the cultivated fields and waste areas 
in the vicinity of Provincetown and Highland Light. During the 
progress of this sweeping a total of 474 adults were found, but only 
one, a male, showed unmistakeable evidence of the stain. This male 
was collected in corn on Bradford Street, Provincetown, on July 18, 
at an air-line distance of approximately 20 miles (fig. 47) across 
Cape Cod Bay from the point of liberation. From observations made 
at the time of liberation it was noticed that during the prevalence of 
strong offshore winds, reaching at times a velocity of 30 miles per 
hour, the moths attained a height of 50 feet or more, immediately 
after liberation, before being carried beyond the range of vision by 
the wind. Owing to the height attained and the influence of the 
wind, it seems possible that many of them were unable to alight when 
reaching Cape Cod, and were carried out to sea. 
From what has been shown, it is evident that the moths are able to 
make flights to a considerable distance over bodies of water and 
that when necessary they are able to alight upon the surface of the 
water and again take flight. This facility may be an important 
factor in the dispersion of the insect along the Atlantic coast and 
in the Lake Erie region. 
FEEDING HABITS OF ADULTS 
In captivity the moths have been observed sipping the pure water, 
and also the sweetened water, which was sprayed on the plants 
and soil in their cages. Whether they feed under natural condi- 
tions has never been observed, but they have lived as long and de- 
posited as many eggs in the cages where pure water was supplied 
as in the cages where sweetened water was substituted. The moths 
in captivity fed to a slight extent on honey and also upon the 
