n8 
Psyche 
[March-June 
sources of the gut contents of our early spring adults. The congre- 
gating behavior of the adults and the feeding behavior of our lab- 
reared series suggest otherwise, however, and it is likely that an 
analysis of the nutritional content of the honeydew from last-year’s 
leaves would show that, although limited in amount, this is potentially 
an important initial food source for early spring insects. 
By the middle of April the pollen production of a number of 
forest trees begins and this provides focal points of large sources of 
food which are apparently heavily utilized by the adults of C. earned. 
The importance of this early pollen becomes evident when the dietary 
requirements of the females are considered. Males are probably able 
to complete their reproductive maturation on a smaller energy 
budget than females, since spermatogenesis is completed in the pupal 
stage (MacLeod, unpubl.) and, upon adult eclosion, the males have 
only to shift the mature sperm from the testes to the seminal vesicle 
(MacLeod, 1967), secrete spermatophores, and mate. Females, on 
the other hand, have large, continuing nutritional requirements 
associated with the synthesis of yolk. The spring pollen should 
provide an energy source adequate for the males to initiate repro- 
ductive activity, while it conceivably also provides a sufficient source 
of carbohydrate and amino acids for the production of a limited 
number of eggs by the females. When it becomes possible for the 
adults to supplement their pollen diet with a more nearly optimal 
carbohydrate source such as fresh honeydew or, possibly, nectar, our 
experiments indicate that this combination should then constitute an 
excelent diet for maximal reproductive activity. Obviously, as 
noted above, the nutritional adequacy of this early pollen probably 
varies from one plant species to another. 
After their initial, preferential pollen feeding, the adults appear 
to disperse within the woodlands and into other habitats (Sheldon 
and MacLeod, in prep.) where they probably feed opportunistically 
on both honeydew and pollen. Near the middle of the summer, 
in our area of study, there is again a sharp increase in pollen feeding 
at the time of anther anthesis of the field corn. This is followed 
in the late summer by a decreased pollen utilization, which probably 
corresponds to a reduction in the availability of pollen, until by 
late fall only honeydew remains are present in the gut analyses. 
In connection with the suggestion made above that C. carnea is 
probably unable to utilize starch as a carbohydrate source, it is 
perhaps noteworthy that, other than corn pollen, none of the major 
food sources which we have found this species to utilize contain 
much starch. The failure of C. carnea to make use of starch may 
