;^70 ARCTIA OLL'LATISSIMA 
and sides with orange-yellow; legs white, the ex- 
tremities with black rings. 
The caterpillar feeds on the wild sun-flower 
(Polymnia tetragonotheca ?J, wild cherry, persim- 
mon (Diospyros Virginiana)^ and several other 
plants. When young, it is one-half orange-coloured 
and the other black. At its full growth it becomes 
brownish-black, with an orange-red band along each 
side ; the incisures of the segments and legs likewise 
of that colour. The hairs are placed on tubercles 
alternately nearer the anterior edges of each seg- 
ment, so that they form a pretty broad band, and 
leave the rest of the body naked. When about to 
change to a chrysalis, it spins a thin gummy yellow 
web, something like that constructed on the same 
occasion by our common tiger-moth. Some observed 
by Abbot spun on the 14th March, and came out 
on the 18th of April; others spun on the 15th of 
June, and appeared on the wing July 7th. 
It might be supposed from the general appearance 
of this moth that it w^ould be a Spilosoma, but the 
caterpillar and chrysalis indicate a closer relation to 
Arctia. The species figured by Cramer under the 
name of Cunigunda is closely allied to it ; but the 
latter is of smaller size, has the annular spots tinged 
w^ith brown in the centre, and the abdomen is 
variegated with brown. It is a native of Surinam, 
Cayenne, &c. 
