33 
Fig. 29.—Froclenia oniithogaUi: dark form, 
male, above; pale form, female, below— 
somewhat enlarged (original. Division of 
Entomology) . 
food, as with so many other forms of cutworms, consists of wild 
g-rasses of little or no value, and when grasses or weeds are replaced 
by crops these are apt to be attacked, under favoring conditions. 
THE COTTON CUTWORM. 
{Prodenia ornithogalU Guen. ) 
This species, although called a cut- 
worm, has little in common with pre- 
ceding species, being- more distinctly 
marked, more or less diurnal in habit, 
and in having the cutting trait some- 
what feebty developed. In fact, it 
more nearl}" resembles the boll Avorm 
in its habit of boring into the boll,:, 
of cotton and the fruit of tomato. 
It is a very common species, but as a 
rule not especially destructive, as it 
is more solitary than the common 
cutworms. It has been observed 
attacking and doing more or less 
injury to beets, potato, asparagus, 
cabbage, cucumber, peach, and cottonwood. It is also common on 
violet, morning-glory, and other ornamental plants, and on weeds, 
and is frequently found in greenhouses. 
The moth has a wing expanse of a little 
less than 1^ inches, and is quite distinct 
from any which have already been con- 
sidered, the fore-wings having a more 
complicated pattern. There is much varia- 
tion in the colors, which has caused differ- 
ently colored varieties to be described as 
species. Two extreme forms are shown in 
figure 29. That they are mere colorational 
varieties of one species has been proved 
by the writer by rearing both from an Qgg 
mass deposited by a single female (Bui. 27, 
new series, Div. Ent. , pp. 61-73, 114). 
The larva is subject to the same varia- 
tion as the moth. The ground color is 
generally olive or greenish brown, finely 
lined with dark gray and brown, while the 
upper surface is ornamented with a doable 
row of velvety black or greenish spots, which give it a striking appear- 
ance. A pale form of the larva is shown in figure 30 at a and a darker 
form at l. It is a singular fact that in the writer's experiments the 
pale larva produced the dark form of moth and the dark larva the 
10697— No. 13—03 -3 
i 
I 
a b 
Fig. 30. — Prodenia ornithogalU: a, pale 
form of larva; 6, dark form of same; 
c, lateral view of abdominal proleg 
segments of pale form; d, same of 
dark form — all enlarged (original. 
Division of Entomology). 
