676 
ANNUAL REPORT OF NEW TORE 
VAPORER MOTH. ITS CATERPILLAR. YOUNG CATERPILLAR. 
be different from that, it may, in contradistinction thereto, appropriately he 
termed the New or Modern Vaporer Moth. 
The caterpillars of this moth begin to be seen on rose bushes and plum 
trees the fore part of June, when they are quite small. They eat large 
irregular notches in the sides of the leaves, sometimes consuming them so that 
little more than the midVein is left. A medium sized leaf of the plum tree 
suffices to feed one of these caterpillars but twenty-four hours. They prefer 
leaves of the Natural Order Rosacea, but feed readily upon various other 
leaves also. They are very similar to the caterpillars of our Common Vaporer 
Moth, but differ in having the head black instead of red, and they also have 
an additional pair of pencils of black hairs, which are placed on each side of 
the body forward of the middle. 
When young these caterpillars are black with two orange yellow spots, 
placed, one back of the neck, the other beyond the middle of the body. They 
lose these spots and become brighter colored as they increase in size, their 
marks changing more or less with each change of their skins. The following 
is a description of their larvae at different stages of their growth: 
The Young Caterpillars, less than half an inch long, are black and thinly clothed with long 
black hairs which radiate from warts symmetrically placed, those low down on each side giving out 
white hairs. The head is black, smooth and shining. The neck is white on its anterior edge, 
and on each side is a large wart-like spot of an orange color, giving out a cluster of black hairs 
with little feathery knobs on their ends, which hairs are held together in a pencil. The third and 
fourth segments have a large orange spot upon their back with a black line along its middle. The 
four following segments have each a dense tuft or brush of short hairs, on the back, the two first 
brushes being black and the other two gray. The top of the ninth segment is occupied by a large 
orange spot, shaded into white along its middle. Following this are two small shining vesicles of 
a bright vermilion red color, protruding from the middle of tho back of the tenth and eleventh 
segments. On the twelfth segment is a tuft of black hairs similar to those on the fore part of tho 
back. On each side of the body are two whifco stripes, tho upper one slender and much inter¬ 
rupted, and between these stripes is a row of large oval dull orange spots. The underside is dull 
greenish white, and the legs palo yellow. 
Upon changing its skin it becomes half an inch long and wholly loses the two bright orange 
spots upon its back. Its skin is now black upon tho fore part of tho body and of a dusky gray 
color posteriorly. Five pencils of black hairs having their ends enlarged into little heads now 
appear, placed, one upon each side of the neck, one on each side of tho body a little forward of 
the middle, and one at the hind end of the back, the three last of these pencils being shorter than, 
the forward ones. Of the four brush-like tufts on the fore part of the back the two first are black, 
the third one smoky yellowish, and the last one palo yellow or white. Another change of its skin 
now brings it to its full size. 
The Mature Caterpillar is a littlo over throe-fourths of an inch long and of a lurid whito 
oolor, having a smoky or bluish tinge. It is thinly covered with light yellow hairs radiating from 
wart-like spots of different colors. On the back is a broad coal black stripe with its hind portion 
margined on each side with white. On each side of tho back are orange red or yellow warts mar-; 
gined with pale yellow, placed on the third, fourth, ninth, tenth and eleventh segments, these warts 
giving out diverging yellow hairs with an occasional longor black ono; and lower down, along tho 
middle of each side is a continuous row of similar warts. Below tkeso is a faint, interrupted 
blackish stripe, in which the breathing pores aro placed; and farther down aro two rows of smaller 
dusky oval warts with pale yellow margins and diverging hairs. The back is surmounted with 
four brushes or dense tufts of short hairs, placed on tho fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth segments, 
these brushes being usually of a sulphur yollow color, but sometimes white. A pencil of long 
black hairs with little heads or knobs on their ends projects obliquely forward and outward from 
each side of the neck. A similar pencil, but shorter, projects horizontally outward on each aide 
of the sixth segment low down. And a fifth pencil, which is thicker than cither of tho others, 
projects upward and backward from the hind eud of the back, being inserted upon the twelfth 
