May 5,1923 
Silver-Striped Wehworm 
419 
dated, by their habit of lying closely parallel with the surface on which 
they are at rest, quite in contrast with the moths of ieterrellus, which rest 
with their heads pressed closely to the surface and thdr bodies elevated 
at an angle of 25®. 
The data on hand show that these moths are not especially prolific, at 
least compared with some of the other species of this genus. The average 
number of eggs laid by the 41 females of which the writer has records 
was 118. This includes moths taken in the field and confined in dry 
vials and in tin boxes with water and with honey. The largest number 
laid by a single individual was 533, and only 9 of the entire 41 laid more 
than 200 eggs. The moths evidently mate immediately after issuing 
from the pupa, for not one of those collected in the field, some of them 
very fresh, laid infertile eggs. 
There is nothing to indicate that the adults of either sex ingest anything 
besides water. They do not seem in the least attracted to flowers or 
other possible food sources. One moth excitedly waved her antennae 
when approached with a droplet of honey and when finally induced 
to taste it, rapidly sucked it up. An attempt was made to determine 
if food in the form of dilute honey had any effect on the length of life or 
the egg production. The following table summarizes the results and 
leads to the conclusion that food has no pronounced effect above that of 
plain water, on either longevity or fecundity, but that either water or 
honey appreciably prolongs the life and increases egg production above 
that of moths confined in dry vials. As the majority of these moths 
were taken in the field, the averages as given are rather below than 
above the normal. 
Tabl® I .—Relation of feeding to longevity and fecundity of moths of Cramhus praefectellus 
Male. 
Female. 
longevity. 
Number 
averaged. 
Longevity. 
Number 
averaged. 
Eggs 
produced. 
Number 
averaged. 
Water. 
Days. 
9. 07 
IS 
Days. 
8.9 
8 
138 
8 
Dilute honey. 
7 - 45 
20 
11.25 
12 
134 
12 
Dry. 
7-75 
4 
6. 72 
18 
96 
21 
DESCRIPTION OP MOTH (PiG. 2) 
Wing esqpanse, 18-25 millimeters. Head, palpi, and abdomen cinereous, the abdomen 
lighter. Thorax and forewings golden fuscous, the latter with a silvery white stripe 
bordered with a fine darker line and tapering toward each end, from base to near 
sub terminal line, a tooth near middle of lower side, and a silvery white dash above 
the tip and often fused with it; from this dash a dark shade with a light costal triangle 
above it, a light patch below it, and crossed by the plumbeous subterminal line, runs 
to the apex of the wing. Costal margin wider than in leachellus, being more than 
one-half the width of the white stripe at the middle of the costa. Subterminal space 
witii 5 blacki^ venular dashes. Fringes white or slightly tinged with ochreous. 
Hind wings white or slightly cream-colored, fringes white. (Rewritten from Femald.) 
The male antennae are plainly flattened, each segment bearing a wedge-shaped process, 
which, in the medium segments, is provided with 8 to 10 sensoria (PI. i, E). ^e 
female antennae are filiform and are beautifully banded with narrow alternate rings 
of brown and white (PI. i, F). 
