96 
were still small and unfolded. As such virgin females can be 
well utilized to attract the corresponding males the moth was 
left upon the black oak tree in which it had spent its early life. 
Returning at 1p. m., the female had disappeared, but a close 
search revealed her, and a male, higher up in the tree. The 
male, which tried to escape, was captured, and the female was 
put under a sieve to attract, if possible, other males. This 
proved useless. At3p.m,, the female commenced to deposit 
egos, and next morning it was found that 7138 eggs had been 
laid. These eggs, large for the size of the moth, were glued to 
the inside of the sieve;some were glued to the wire, and being of 
an almost semi-liquid consistency when fresh, had flowed partly 
around the wires, so that they could not be removed when dry. 
Three days later the eggs hatched, and the little caterpillars 
entered a piece of soft dead wood, which happened to be 
inclosed for another purpose. This piece of wood was per- 
forated in all directions by the active worms. It was tied to 
an isolated tree that had to be removed before long as being in 
the road. The further history of these caterpillars can not be 
given as the tree was cut down soon afterwards. The cater- 
pillars of this insect are much more active than borers of this 
kind usually are, and many times half-grown specimens were 
found running about the ground in places many rods away 
from suitable trees. The short time required to deposit such 
a number of eggs, and the rapid development of the young 
caterpillars in them is very remarkable. It shows that we can 
not depend very much upon the good offices of such birds as 
wood-peckers and creepers, since the eggs hatch so very soon 
after being deposited; besides the female moths possess long 
and flexible ovipositors by means of which the eggs can be 
pushed beneath projecting loose bark and into deep cracks. 
These large lepidopterous borers, producing night-flying 
moths, are attracted to the electric light, and in cities where 
this is used large numbers of these moths are killed. 
Fig. 51, Plate 5, shows still another clear-winged moth, the 
history of which seems to be still unknown. It was captured 
late in May near the school of agriculture. 
