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JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 
LVol. 17 
16 
May 
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Nov. 27 
MULLEN ROSETTES AS WINTER SHELTERS FOR INSECTS 
By W. L. McAtee 
The common mullen (Verbascum thapsus) is a biennial which passes 
the winter in the form of copious rosettes closely applied to the ground. 
The leaves are so densely wooly as to have earned for the plant such 
vernacular names as flannel-leaf and blanket-leaf. Their obvious suita¬ 
bility for sheltering hibernating insects led me to make some investiga¬ 
tion of the matter several years ago. While no further notes have been 
taken, it is hoped that even these scanty data will be of some interest. 
All of the examinations were made in an old field on the Maryland 
shore near Plummers Island, and were conducted at various dates, rang¬ 
ing from November 25 to April 5 in the years 1914 and 1915. An account 
will be given of the largest collection of insects made from a single 
rosette, and also a list of additional species taken on other occasions. 
Insects Taken From a Single Rosette, January 25, 1914 
Heteroptera 
Heraeus plebejus Stal., 1. 
Ptochiomera nodosa Say, 19. 
Nabis sp., 1. 
Lygus pratensis Linnaeus, 3. 
Homoptera 
Erythroneura vulnerata Fitch, 1. 
Coleoptera 
Stenolophus conjunctus Say, 5. 
Astenus sp., 3. 
Conosoma, sp., 2. 
Atheta sp., 2. 
Gymnetron tetrum Fabricius, 4. 
Hymenoptera 
Ant, 1. 
Total 10 species, 42 individuals. 
Other Insects Found Hibernating in Mullen Leaves 
Heteroptera Crophius disconotus Say. 
Thyreocoris ater Amyot et Serville Pselliopus cinctus Fabricius. 
Lygaeus kalmii Stal. Orius insidiosus Say. 
Ischnorihynchus resedae Panzer. Coleoptera. 
Geocoris uliginosus Say. Amara crassispina LeConte. 
