176 
on the third and seventh joints, most persistent and conspicuous)— 
all golden yellow; the rest of the body black. The orbits are of a 
somewhat paler yellow, and the face either gray or bluish.”—Riley. 
ZYG^ENIDiE. 
This is a group of moths that in its different genera seems to con¬ 
nect the diurnal with the nocturnal lepidoptera, some of the former 
bringing to mind the butterflies, while others by their form and habit 
resemble the Bombycidas. They are characterized by the following 
points: Antennse either simple or pectinate, somewhat larger in the 
middle than at either end. Palpi small, not projecting more than the 
length of the head in front. Body moderately large ; head distinct, 
rather large; distinct shoulder tufts ; abdomen not projecting much, 
if any, beyond the anal angle when the wings are spread. Wings 
moderately long and narrow; scales powdery, thinly scattered over 
the surface, after leaving bare places. 
The larvae are sixteen-footed, short, cylindrical, obtuse at each end ; 
head small, when at rest drawn partially into the first thoracic seg¬ 
ment ; segments short; more or less wrinkled or tubercled transverse¬ 
ly; hairy or naked. In pupating some species spin a silken cocoon, 
others form one of hair, and others form none. 
Alypia octomaculata, Fabr—The Eight-spotted Forester. 
This is one of the four insects the larva of which, Prof. Riley, in 
his reports, has designated as the Blue Caterpillars of the vine , the other 
three being the Beautiful and the Pearly Wood-nymphs and the 
Grape-vine Epimenis. Though the moths differ so much, the cater¬ 
pillars are near enough alike to be easily mistaken for each other, 
but by careful observation of the differences they are easily distin¬ 
guished. Of the three this is the most common. 
Though very generally distributed over the United States, it seldom 
is found in sufficient numbers to prove a serious injury to the vines. 
Prof. Riley states in 1874 that he had found it on the Concord, Taylor 
and wild riparia kinds of grape, but no other. It occurs in this State 
through the months of May and June, being found earlier in the 
southern part, and may be found as a second brood in September. 
While feeding it generally remains beneath the leaf, and can let 
itself down by a thread if disturbed, or, when full grown, it fre¬ 
quently conceals itself by resting within a folded leaf. 
Prof. Riley describes the larva in the following general terms : “It 
is marked transversely with white and black lines, each segment 
having about eight light and eight dark ones. The bluish appear¬ 
ance of this caterpillar is owing to an optical phenomenon from the 
contrast of these white and black stripes. The head and the shield 
on the first segment are of a shiny, bright, deep orange color, marked 
with black dots, and there is a prominent, transverse, orange red 
