68 Journal New York Entomological Society. [Voi. iv. 
longing to the latter species. Andrector is placed in the same sub-tribe 
as Cerotoma and Diabrotica , which would rather oppose the idea of a 
protective mimicry, though by no means disproving it. We simply need 
more information in regard to the matter as all may be alike inedible. 
Since my paper was published, I have found the larvae of Dia¬ 
brotica vittata so excessively abundant in some greenhouses near Cincin¬ 
nati, as to entirely ruin the cucumber vines being grown therein. The 
date of my observations was December 28, and at that time I found 
adults, and larvae from one-half to two-thirds grown, but mostly the 
former. 
- » - 
ON THE PROBABLE ORIGIN OF THE PERICOP- 
IDJE: COMPOSIA FIDELISSIMA II.-S. 
By Harrison G. Dyar, A. M., Ph.D. 
The Pericopidae are a tropical American family of moths with the 
venation of Noctuidae, most allied in their colors, perhaps, to the Diop- 
tidae. Three genera occur in our fauna, Gnophcela , Composia and 
Daritis. 
In placing the North American families in systematic position on 
their larval characters, I was able to show from the writings of Bruce 
and Cockerell that the abdominal tubercles of Gnophcela were the same 
as in the Arctiidae; but was unable to get further in the absence of ma¬ 
terial and the unfortunate brevity of the published descriptions. Now, 
however, I have obtained many larvae of Composia , and have been 
able to rear them by the kind assistance of Mr. F. Kinzel. They were 
found on the vines of Echites umbellata ( determined by Mr. Kinzel) 
at Palm Beach, Florida, during the Christmas holidays. Composia is 
a moderately specialized Pericopid type, and its larvae may be supposed 
to be characteristic of the family. The following are the larval char¬ 
acters : 
Warts many haired, simple, not tufted, the arrangement as in the 
Arctiidae, but with a distinct tendency to the coalescence of the two 
upper warts on the meso- and post-thoracic segments. Primitive first 
stage present, wart formation not highly specialized, head setae very 
simple, no secondary hair formation. Body long, cylindrical, Noctui- 
dous rather than Arctiiform, joint 12 slightly enlarged. 
