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PYRE ATS EB
ON SOME OF THE
INSECTS INJURIOUS TO VEGETATION.
~ ne
By THADDEUS WILLIAM HARRIS, M. D.
A New Bovitfon,
ENLARGED AND IMPROVED, WITH ADDITIONS FROM THE AUTHOR’S MANUSCRIPTS
AND ORIGINAL NOTES.
ILLUSTRATED BY ENGRAVINGS DRAWN FROM NATURE UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF
PROFESSOR AGASSIZ.
EDITED BY
CHARLES L. FLINT,
SECRETARY OF THE MASSACHUSETTS STATE BOARD OF
AGRICULTURE. -
~
@
BOSTON:
CROSBY AND NICHOLS, $4438230
NEW YORE: SOLIVER.S. FELT.
1863.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by
CATHARINE He HARRIS;
in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
Fran gt ae 3 ,
7 oe rit &. es CAMBRIDGE:
i WELCH, BIGELOW, AND COMPANY,
PRINTERS TO THE UNIVERSITY-
EDITOR’S PREFACE.
Y a resolve of the Legislature of Massachusetts, 1859, chap.
93, I was directed to issue a new edition of Dr. Harris’s
admirable ‘Treatise on Insects Injurious to Vegetation, with suitable
additions and illustrations.
By a resolve of the Legislature of 1861, chap. 80, I was author-
ized to use the plates prepared for the illustration of the edition
for the Commonwealth, in the publication of one or more editions
designed for a wider circulation than that for the State could be
expected to have.
It was thought best to insert the additions contemplated in
the resolve, in the form of foot-notes. No alterations have been
made in the author’s language, and the additional notes are en-
closed in brackets to distinguish them from those in the former
editions. Large additions have been made to the text, however,
from the author’s own manuscripts. These will be found exclu-
sively in the chapter upon the butterflies. In giving a somewhat
wider significance to the title, I have but carried out the plan
adopted by the author in his last revision of the work.
Professor Louis Agassiz very kindly offered to supervise the
drawings, comparing them with the original specimens before en-
graving. It is believed that very great scientific accuracy has
thus been secured in the illustrations. Special acknowledgments
are due to Professor Agassiz for this valuable service, and also for
assistance rendered by way of suggestion and advice throughout.
Acknowledgments are also due to the following gentlemen, who
have contributed notes on the subjects named: — Dr. John L.
Leconte, of Philadelphia, on the Coleoptera; Philip R. Uhler,
iV EDITOR’S PREFACE.
Esq.,/of Baltimore, on the Orthoptera and Hemiptera; Dr. John
G. Morris, of Baltimore, on the Lepidoptera ; Edward Norton,
Esq., of Farmington, Connecticut, on the Hymenoptera; and Baron
R. Osten Sacken, Secretary of the Russian Legation at Washing-
ton, on the Diptera. These distinguished entomologists have made
specialties of the orders on which they have had the kindness to
furnish notes, and their contributions have added much to the
completeness of the work. I am greatly indebted, also, to Mr.
Alex. E. R. Agassiz for very valuable services, and to Mr. Fran-
cis G. Sanborn, whose enthusiasm in making collections, and oth-
erwise promoting the progress of the work, has continued unabated
from the first. Also to Messrs. James M. Barnard and Edward
S. Rand, Jr., who have devoted much time and thought to the
details of the work. Many individuals have aided by presenting
or lending specimens for illustration, or otherwise, and among them
should be mentioned, in addition to the above, Messrs. S. H. Seud-
der, of Boston, and J. H. Treat and J. O. Treat, of Lawrence.
To prevent any misconception, it should be stated that, in the
specimens from which figures 109, 111, 112, 113, 115, 116,
117, 126, 127, 128, 129, and 130 were drawn, the second pair
of feet were displayed instead of the jirst, and that in figure
114 the fore foot should have been omitted.
The drawings for the steel plates were made by Mr. Antoine
Sonrel; those for the wood-cuts by the Messrs. Sonrel and J.
Burckhardt. The engraving as well as coloring of the steel
plates is the work of Mr. John H. Richard; the engraving on
wood, that of Mr. Henry Marsh. The work of these artists
needs no comment. The printing has been done by Messrs.
Welch, Bigelow, & Co., of the University Press, Cambridge.
This also speaks for itself.
No labor has been spared to secure the utmost accuracy and
perfection in every respect, and it is hoped and believed that the
objects of the Legislature in ordering a new edition of this valu-
able treatise have been fully accomplished.
CHARLES L. FLINT,
Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture.
Boston, January, 1862.
AUT Oh.s PREACH.
HE first edition of this work was printed in the year 1841.
It formed one of the scientific Reports, which were pre-
pared and published by the Commissioners on the Zodlogical and
Botanical Survey of Massachusetts, agreeably to an order of the
General Court, and at the expense of the State. The Commis-
sion for this Survey bore the date of June 10th, 1837; and the
following instructions from his Excellency, Governor Everett, ac-
companied it : —
“It is presumed to have been a leading object of the Legisla-
ture, in authorizing this Survey, to promote the agricultural benefit
of the Commonwealth, and you will keep carefully in view the
economical relations of every subject of your inquiry. By this,
however, it is not intended that scientific order, method, or com-
prehension should be departed from. At the same time, that
which is practically useful will receive a proportionally greater
share of attention, than that which is merely curious ; the promo-
tion of comfort and happiness being the great human end of all
science.” ’
Upon a division of duties among the Commissioners, the depart-
ment of Insects was assigned to me. Some idea of the extent
of this department may be formed by an examination of my Cata-
logues of the Insects of Massachusetts, appended to the first and
second editions of Professor Hitchcock’s Report, in which above
2,300 species were enumerated ; and these doubtless fall very far
short of the actual number to be found within this Commonwealth.
: a *
Vil AUTHOR’S PREFACE.
In entering upon my duty, I was deterred from attempting to
describe all these insects by the magnitude of the undertaking,
and by the consideration that such a work, much as it might pro-
mote the cause of science, if well done, could not be expected to
prove either interesting or particularly useful to the great body of
the people. The subject and the plan of my Report were sug-
gested by the instructions of the Governor, and by the want of a_
work, combining scientific and practical details on the natural his-
tory of our noxious insects. From among such of the latter as
are injurious to plants, I selected for description chiefly those that
were remarkable for their size, for the peculiarity of their struc-
ture and habits, or for the extent of their ravages; and these
alone will be seen to constitute a formidable host. As they are
found not only in Massachusetts, but throughout New England, and
indeed in most parts of the United States, the propriety of giving
to the work a more comprehensive title than it first bore, becomes
apparent. This was accordingly done in the small impression
that was printed at my own charge, while the original Report was
passing through the press, and in which some other alterations
were made to fit it for a wider circulation.
In the course of eight years, all the copies of the Report, and
of the other impression, were entirely disposed of. Meanwhile,
some materials for a new edition were collected, and these have
been embodied in the present work, which I have been called
upon to prepare and carry through the press.
Believing that the aid of science tends greatly to improve the
condition of any people engaged in agriculture and horticulture,
and that these pursuits form the basis of our prosperity, and are
the safeguards of our liberty and independence, I have felt it to be
my duty, in treating the subject assigned to me, to endeavor to
make it useful and acceptable to those persons whose honorable
employment is the cultivation of the soil.
Tis Weoke
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 15, 1852.
CONTENTS.
CHGACEMIy Bik, Ii,
INTRODUCTION.
INSECTS DEFINED. — BRAIN AND NERVES. — AIR-PIPES AND BREATH-
ING-HOLES. — HEART AND B Loop. — INSECTS ARE PRODUCED FROM
Eees. — METAMORPHOSES, OR TRANSFORMATIONS. — EXAMPLES OF
COMPLETE TRANSFORMATION. — PARTIAL TRANSFORMATION. — LAR-
VA, OR INFANT STATE.—PuPA, OR INTERMEDIATE STATE.— ADULT,
orn WINGED STATE.— HEAD, EvrEs, ANTENN2, AND Mourn. — THO-
RAX OR CHEST, WinGs, AND LEGs. — ABDOMEN OR HIND-BoDy,
PIERCER, AND STING.— NUMBER OF INSECTS COMPARED WITH PLANTS.
— CLASSIFICATION; ORDERS; COLEOPTERA; ORTHOPTERA ; HEMIPTE-
RA; NEUROPTERA; LEPIDOPTERA; HYMENOPTERA; DIPTERA; OTHER
ORDERS AND GROUPS. — REMARKS ON SCIENTIFIC NAMES. : a=
bo
Lo
CHAPTER II.
COLEOPTERA.
BEETLES. — SCARABXIANS. — GROUND-BEETLES. — TREE-BEETLES. —
COCKCHAFERS OR MaAy-BEETLES. — FLOWER-BEETLES. — STAG-BEE-
TLES. — BUPRESTIANS, OR SAW-HORNED BoRERS. — SPRING-BEETLEs.
TIMBER-BEETLES. — WEEVILS. — CYLINDRICAL BARK-BEETLES. —
CAPRICORN-BEETLES, OR LONG-HORNED BorERS. — LEAF-BEETLES. —
CRIOCERIANS. — LEAF-MINING BEETLES. — TORTOISE-BEETLES. —
CHRYSOMELIANS, — CANTHARIDES. : : F ; : . 23-140
CoA TE Ry
OR THORTE RA.
EARWIGS. — CocKROACHES. — MANTES, OR SOOTHSAYERS. — WALKING-
LEAVES. — WALKING-STICKS, OR SPECTRES. — MouLe-CrIckEeT. —
FIELD CRICKETS. — CLIMBING CRICKET. — WINGLESS CRICKET. —
GRASSHOPPERS. — KAty-pip. — Locusts. ‘ , : : . 141-191
Vill CONTENTS.
C BAG? a Re Ve
ELIDA IB IR AN
Bues. — SquasH-Buc. — CHINCH-BuG. — PLANT-BuGs. — HARVEST-F LIES.
— TrEE-Hoprrers. — LEAF-HoprEers. — VINE-HOPEER. — BEAN-Hop-
PER. — THRIPS. — PLANT-LICE. — AMERICAN BLIGHT. — ENEMIES OF
PuaAnt-Lice. — BARK-LICE. 3 § B 3 s A . » 192-256
CH APT
LEPIDOP TERA.
CATERPILLARS. — BUTTERFLIES. — SKIPPERS. — HAWK-MorTus. — GERI-
ANS OR BorinG-CATERPILLARS. — GLAUCOPIDIANS. — Morus. — SPry- _
NERS. — LITHOSIANs. — T1IGER-MotTus. — ERMINE-MoTus. — Tussock-
Morus. — LAcKEy-Motus. — LAprEtT-Motus. — SATURNIANS. — CERA-
TOCAMPIANS. — CARPENTER-MOTHS. — PSYCHIANS. — NOTODONTIANS. —
Ow.-Mortus. — Cur-WormMs. — GEOMETERS, OR SPAN-WoORMS, AND
CANKER-WoRMs. — DELTA-Morus. — LEAF-ROLLERS — Bup-MorTHs. —
Fruit-Mornus. — BEE-Motrus. — Corn-Motus. — CLOTHES-MorTus. —
FEATHER-WINGED MOTHS. 4 : : 5 : 5 : . 257-511
CHAPTER WF.
HYMENOPTERA.
STINGERS AND PIERCERS.— HABITS OF SOME OF THE HYMENOPTERA.
—SAw-F Lies AND SLuGs.—Eutm SAw-Fiy.— Fir SAw-F iy. — VINE
Saw-Fiy. — RosE-BusH SLuc. — PEAR-TREE S Luc. — HORN-TAILED
Woop-W Asps. — GALL-FLIES. — CHALCIDIANS. — BARLEY INSECT AND
JOINT-WoORM. : 5 : ‘ : é ; : : A . 512-561
CBA PT ByRen No Re
Die RRA
NATS AND FLIES. — MAGGOTS, AND THEIR TRANSFORMATIONS. — GALL-
G AND F MAGGoTs, AND TRA G
Gnats. — Hessian Fuiy. —- WHEAT-FLY. — REMARKS UPON AND DE-
SCRIPTIONS OF SOME OTHER DiprERous INsEctTs. — RapIsH-FLY. —
Two-WINGED GALL-FLIES, AND FRuIT-F LIES. — CONCLUSION. - 562-626
?
APPENDIX. — Tur Army-WorM : : : ; 3 . 627-630
if TN DES 7: : - : : : A é 2 ‘ us : . 631-640
a
SS COS Soe Oia Choe
Por hANATLON OF; PLATES.
PLATE I. (FRONTISPIECE.)
Nepa apiculata :
Agrion basalis :
Mutilla coccinea
Asilus (Erax) zstuans, oe :
Cassida ( Coptocycla) ane chaleea: Hee
Locusta ((Edipoda) sulphurea, Fall
Nymphalis Arthemis, Drur. . 5
PLATE II. (Pace 23.)
Eumolpus auratus, Fab. . : : .
Chrysobothris (Trachypteris) Harrisii, Hents
Galemea vittata, Fab. :
Coccinella novemnotata
Haltica chalybea, Jllig. .
Attelabus bipustulatus, Fab.
Dicerca (Stenurus) divaricata, Say
Sitophilus Oryzz, Linn.
Chrysomela, trimaculata, Fab.
Clytus flexuosus, Fab.
Callidium antennatum, Newm.
Hylotrupes bajulus, Linn. .
Saperda (Compsidea) tridentata, Oliv. :
Omaloplia (Serica) vespertina, an
Clytus speciosus, Say
Saperda candida, Fab.
AS Larva .
Desmocerus cyane\s, ub. - heeled
Saperda vestita, Say . : : : : :
Areoda (Cotalpa) lanigera, Linn.
Saperda (Anaerea) calcarata, Say .
PLAY Halll, (Pace 141)
Locusta (Chloealtis) curtipennis :
Locusta (Tragocephala) \iridi- fasciata, De Geer
b
Ra tee ee ee
SOD SS SNA SPIRO tt
a
prs
eS
OOM DO Po»
EXPLANATION OF PLATES.
Locusta (CEdipoda) Carolina, Linn.
Aphis mali : ;
Tettigonia (Haythronsara vitis We
Clastoptera proteus
Cicada septendecim, Linn. .
Chr y pope euryptera, Burm. :
ee Larva and cocoon
PLATE IV. Pace 257.)
Vanessa (Grapta) comma, Harr.
be Re a Vacant chrysalis
Thecla Humuli, Harr. : a : 4
Papilio Asterias, Fab. &
66 6 Q
G Larva
* Chrysalis
PLATE V. (PAGE 3818.)
Eudamus (Goniloba) Tityrus, Smith .
Philampelus Satellitia, Lan. .
Philampelus Achemon, Drury . 3
Choerocampa (Darapsa) pampinatrix, Smith
fEgeria (Trochilium) Pyri, Harr.
4 KS exitiosa, Say ¢ . :
oe ci ‘4 Vacant chrysalis
Cucurbite, Harr.
PLATE VI. (Pace 340.)
Lophocampa (Halesidota) Carye, Harr. Larva
ce sf a Cocoon
Deiopeia bella, Drury : : ;
Perophora Melsheimerii, Harr. Larva Case
66 66
?
Pygera (Datana) ministra, Drury .
aude cue Fab. Larva
Imago .
Arctia (Spilosoma) acrea, Drury ¢
74 6c (73
Notodonta (Pygzra) concinna, Smith
Clostera Americana, Harr.
PLATE VII. (PacE 876.)
Orgyia leucostigma, Smith. Larva. . . -
a a Q after depositing eggs
74 73 (79 (73 6c 66
a3 “ S
é
Cocoon and eggs .
415, 417
° 367
366
367
367, 368
367
© WMD
10.
ine
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
ive
18.
19
py pe
NS rt S {© 90
ST OT gD PO pe
EXPLANATION OF PLATES.
Tinea granella. Larva .
Wheat attacked by
Pyralis farinalis, Harr. . : : ii
Gortyna Zee, Harr. eee:
Hyphantria (Spilosoma) bei Cocoon
66 9 66 Pupa
Young larva
Clisiocampa Americana, Harr. Larva
(GPs 3 é
: Vacant cocoon
Cluster of eggs
bb b6 Q
Clisiocampa silvatica, Harr. . . : 4
% Larva . “|
66 66
66 66 (fe
PLATE VIII. (Pacz 512.)
Tachina vivida, Harr.
Gasterophilus (Gastrus) Equi, Linn. -
Lophyrus ae Harr.
6 INTRODUCTION.
the use of its legs; as it grows larger it is soon obliged to
cast off its skin, and, after one or two moultings, its body
not only increases in size, but becomes proportionally longer
than before, while little stump-like wings begin to make their
appearance on the top of the back. After this, the grass-
hopper continues to eat voraciously, grows larger and larger,
and hops about without any aid from its short and motion-
less wings, repeatedly casts off its outgrown skin, appearing
each time with still longer wings, and more perfectly formed
limbs, till at length it ceases to grow, and, shedding its skin
for the last time, it comes forth a perfectly formed and ma-
ture grasshopper, with the power of spreading its ample
wings, and of using them in flight.
Hence there are three periods in the life of an insect, more
or less distinctly marked by corresponding changes in the
form, powers, and habits. In the first, or period of infancy,
an insect is technically called a larva, a word signifying a
mask, because therein its future form is more or less masked
or concealed. ‘This name is not only applied to grubs, cat-
-erpillars, and maggots, and to other insects that undergo a
complete transformation, but also to young and wingless
grasshoppers, and bugs, and indeed to all young insects be-
fore the wings begin to appear. In this first period, which
is generally much the longest, insects are always wingless,
pass most of their time in eating, grow rapidly, and usually
east off their skins repeatedly.
The second period — wherein those insects that undergo a
partial transformation retain their activity and their appe-
tites for food, continue to grow, and acquire the rudiments
of wings, while others, at this age, entirely lose their larva
form, take no food, and remain at rest in a deathlike sleep—
is called the pupa state, from a slight resemblance that some
of the latter present to an infant trussed in: bandages, as was
the fashion among the Romans. The pupe from caterpillars,
however, are more commonly called chrysalids, because some
of them, as the name implies, are gilt or adorned with golden
ORGANS OF INSECTS DESCRIBED. i
spots; and grubs, after their first transformation, are often
named nymphs, for what reason does not appear. At the
end of the second period, insects again shed their skins, and
come forth fully grown, and (with few exceptions) provided
with wings. Thus they enter upon their last or adult state,
wherein they no longer imcrease im size, and during which
they provide for a continuation of their kind. This period
usually lasts only a short time, for most insects die imme-
diately after their eggs are laid. Bees, wasps, and ants,
however, which live in society, and labor together for the
common good of their communities, contmue much longer
in the adult state.
In winged or adult insects, two of the transverse incisions
with which they are marked are deeper than the rest, so that
the body seems to consist of three principal portions, the first
whereof is the head, the second or middle portion the thorax,
or chest, and the third or hindmost the abdomen, or hind-
body. In some wingless insects these three portions are also
to be seen; but in most young insects, or larvee, the body
consists of the head and a series of twelve rings or segments,
the thorax not being distinctly separated from the hinder part
of the body, as may be perceived in caterpillars, grubs, and
maggots.
The eyes of adult insects, though apparently two in num-
ber, are compound, each consisting of a great number of
single eyes closely united together, and incapable of being
rolled in their sockets. Such also are the eyes of the larva,
and of the active pupz of those insects that undergo an
imperfect transformation. Moreover, many winged insects
have one, two, or three little single eyes, placed near each
other on the crown of the head, and called ocelli, or eyelets.
The eyes of grubs, caterpillars, and of other completely trans-
forming larvee, are not compound, but consist of five or six
eyelets clustered together, without touching, on each side of
the head; some, however, such as maggots, are totally blind.
Near to the eyes are two jointed members, named antenne,
8 INTRODUCTION.
corresponding, for the most part, in situation, with the ears
of other animals, and supposed to be connected with the
sense of hearing, of touch, or of both united. The antennze
are very short in larvee, and of various sizes and forms in
other insects.
The mouth of some insects is made for biting or chewing,
that of others for taking the food only by suction. The
biting-insects have the parts of the mouth variously modified
to suit the nature of the food ; and these parts are, an upper
and an under lip, two nippers or jaws on each side, moving
sidewise, and not up and down, and four or six little jomted
members, called palpi or feelers, whereof two belong to the
lower lip, and one or two to each of the lower jaws. The
mouth of sucking-insects consists essentially of these same
parts, but so different in their shape and in the purposes for
which they are designed, that the resemblance between them
and those of biting-insects is not easily recognized. Thus —
the jaws of caterpillars are transformed to a spiral sucking-
tube in butterflies and moths, and those of maggots to a
hard proboscis, fitted for piercing, as in the mosquito and
horse-fly, or to one of softer consistence, and ending with
fleshy lips for lapping, as in common flies ; while in bugs,
plant-lice, and some other insects resembling them, the
parts of the mouth undergo no essential change from infancy
to the adult state, but are formed into a long, hard, and
jointed beak, bent under the breast when not in use, and
designed only for making punctures and drawing in liquid
nourishment.
The parts belonging to the thorax are the wings and the
legs. ‘The former are two or four in number, and vary
greatly in form and consistence, in the situation of the wing-
bones or veins, as they are generally called, and in their posi-
tion or the manner in which they are closed or folded when
at rest. ‘The under-side of the thorax is the breast, and to
this are fixed the legs, which are six in number in adult
insects, and in the larvee and pupz of those that are subject
BASIS OF CLASSIFICATION. g
only to a partial transformation. The parts of the legs are the
hip-joit, by which the leg is fastened to the body, the thigh,
the shank (tia), and the foot, the latter consisting some-
times of one joint only, more often of two, three, four, or five
pieces (tarsz), connected end to end, like the joints of the
finger, and armed at the extremity with one or two claws.
Of the larve that undergo a complete transformation, mag-
gots and some others are destitute of legs ; many grubs have
six, namely, a pair beneath the under-side of the first three
segments, and sometimes an additional fleshy prop-leg under
the hindmost extremity; caterpillars and false caterpillars
have, besides the six true legs attached to the first three
rings, several fleshy prop-like legs, amounting sometimes to
ten or. sixteen in number, placed in pairs beneath the other
segments.
The abdomen, or hindmost, and, as to size, the principal
part of the body, contains the organs of digestion, and other
internal parts, and to it also belong the piercer and the sting
with which many winged or adult imsects are provided. The |
piercer is sometimes only a flexible or a jomted tube, capable
of being thrust out of the end of the body, and is used for
conducting the eggs into the crevices or holes where they are
to be laid. In some other insects it consists of a kind of scab-
bard, containing a central borer, or instruments like saws, de-
signed for making holes wherein the eggs are to be inserted.
The sting, in like manner, consists of a sheath enclosing a
sharp instrument for inflicting wounds, connected wherewith
m the inside of the body is a bag of venom or poison. ‘The
parts belonging to the abdomen of larve are various, but are
mostly designed to aid them in their motions, or to provide
for their respiration.
An English entomologist has stated, that, on an average,
there are six distinct insects to one plant. This proportion
is probably too great for our country, where vast tracts are
covered with forests, and the other original vegetable races
still hold possession of the soil. There are above 1,200
2
10 INTRODUCTION.
flowering plants in Massachusetts, and it will be within
botinds to estimate the species of insects at 4,800, or in the
proportion of four to one plant. ‘To facilitate the study of
such an immense number, some kind of classification is neces-
sary; it will be useful to adopt one, even in describing the
few species now before us. The basis of this classification is
founded upon the structure of the mouth, in the adult state,
the number and nature of the wings, and the transformations.
The first great divisions are called orders, of which the fol-
lowing seven are very generally adopted by naturalists.
1. CorzorrEra (Beetles). Insects with jaws, two thick
wing-covers meeting in a straight line on the top of the back,
and two filmy wings, which are folded transversely. ‘Trans-
formation complete. Larvz, called grubs, generally provided
with six true legs, and sometimes also with a terminal prop-
leg ; more rarely without legs. . Pupa with the wings and the
legs distinct and unconfined.
Many of these insects, particularly in the larva state, are very
injurious to vegetation. The tiger-beetles (Cicindelade*), the
predaceous ground-beetles (Carabide), the diving-beetles (Dytis-
cide), the lady-birds (Coccinellade), and some others, are emi-
Fig. 1, nently serviceable by preying upon caterpillars,
plant-lice, and other noxious or destructive insects.
The water-lovers (Hydrophilide), rove-beetles (Sta-
phylinide), carrion-beetles (Silphade), skin-beetles
(Dermestade, Byrrhide, and Trogide), bone-beetles
(some of the Mitidulade and Cleride), and vyari-
ous kinds of dung-beetles (Spheridiade, Histeride,
Tenebrio molitor, CCotrupide,t Copridide,t and Aphodiadet), and
(Meal-worm.) Clocks (Pimeliade and Dlaptide), act the useful
Larya.
part of scavengers, by removing carrion, dung, and
other filth, upon which alone they and their larve subsist. Many
* See the Catalogue of Insects appended to Professor Hitchcock’s Report on
the Geology, Mineralogy, Botany, and Zovlogy of Massachusetts. 2d edit. 8yo.
Amherst. 1835.
+ All the Scarabeide of my Catalogue, from Ateuchus to Geotrupes inclusive,
to which may be added many included in the genus Scarabeus.
GOLEOPTERA.—ORTHOPTERA.— HEMIPTERA. If
Coleoptera (some Staphylinide and Mitidulade, Dia-
peridide, some Serropalpide, Mycetophagide, Kroty-
lide, and Hndomychide) live altogether on agarics,
mushrooms, and toadstools, plants of very little use to
man, many of them poisonous, and in a state of decay
often offensive ; these fungus-eaters are therefore to be
reckoned among our friends. There are others, such as
the stag-beetles (Zucanide), some spring-beetles (Hlateride), dark-
ling-beetles (Zenebrionide), (Figs. 1— 38,) and many gig. 3.
bark-beetles (Helopide, Cistelade, Serropalpide, Gle-
merade, Oucujade, and some Trogositade), which, liv-
ing under the bark and in the trunks and roots of old
Pupa.
trees, though they may occasionally prove injurious, must
on the whole be considered as serviceable, by contribut-
ing to destroy and reduce to dust plants that have passed
their prime and are fast going to decay. And, lastly,
the blistering-beetles (Cantharrdide) have, for a long time, been
employed with great benefit in the healing art.
2. OrtuoprTera ( Cockroaches, Crickets, Grasshoppers, ¢c.).
Insects with jaws, two rather thick and opaque upper wings,
overlapping a little on the back, and two larger, thin wings,
which are folded in plaits, like a fan. Transformation par-
tial. Larvee and pupz active, but wanting wings.
All of the insects of this order, except the camel-crickets (J/an-
tide), which prey on other insects, are injurious to our household
possessions, or destructive to vegetation.
3. Hemiprera (Bugs, Locusts, Plant-lice, ¢c.). Insects
with a horny beak for suction, four wings, whereof the
uppermost are generally thick at the base, with thinner
extremities, which lie flat, and cross each other on the top
of the back, or are of uniform thickness throughout, and
slope at the sides like a roof. Transformation partial. Larve
and pupze nearly like the adult insect, but wanting wings.
The various kinds of field and house bugs give out a strong and
disagreeable smell. Many of them (some Pentatomade and Ly-
12 INTRODUCTION.
geide, Cimicide, Reduwiade, Hydrometrade, Nepade { Plate I.
Fig. 1, Nepa apiculata], and Votonectade) live entirely on the
juices of animals, and by this means destroy great numbers of
noxious insects; some are of much service in the arts, affording us
the costly cochineal, scarlet grain, lac, and manna; but the benefits
derived from these are more than counterbalanced by the injuries
committed by the domestic kinds, and by the numerous tribes of
plant-bugs, locusts or cicada, tree-hoppers, plant-lice, bark-lice,
mealy bugs, and the like, that suck the juices of plants, and re-
quire the greatest care and watchfulness on our part to keep them
in check. i
4, NeuroprerRA (Dragon-flies, Lace-winged fies ; May-
flies, Ant-lion, Day-fly, White Ants, ¢c.). Insects with jaws,
four netted wings, of which the hinder ones are the largest,
and no sting or piercer. Transformation complete, or partial.
Larva and pupa various.
The white ants, wood-lice, and wood-ticks, (Zermitide and
Psocide,) the latter including also the little ominous death-watch,
are almost the only noxious insects in the order, and even these
do not injure living plants. The dragon-flies, or, as they are com-
monly called in this country, devil’s-needles (Libellulade), (Figs.
4, 5,) (Plate I. Fig. 2, Agrion basalis,) prey upon gnats and
mosquitoes ; and their larvee and pup, as well as those of the
day-flies (Hphemerade), semblians (Semblidide), and those of
some of the May-flies, called caddis-worms (Phryganeade), (Fig.
6,) all of which live in the water, devour aquatic insects. The
predaceous habits of the ant-lions (Myrmeleontide), (Fig. 7,)
have been often described. The lace-winged flies (Hemerobi-
ade), (Fig. 8,) in the larva state, live wholly on plant-lice, great
numbers of which they destroy. The mantispians (Jantispa-
de), and the scorpion-flies (Panorpade), are also predaceous
insects.
5. Leprpoptera (Butterflies and Moths). Mouth with a
spiral sucking-tube ; wings four, covered with branny scales.
Transformation complete. The larvze are caterpillars, and
have six true legs, and from four to ten fleshy prop-legs.
Fig. 6. — Neuronia semifasciata, Say.
aA
Sn al ee pete
Wy ANN, Y a Me
BSUS. ’ ~ “4 Pal {fepaaee
E= Spans - a SY By Ace pas: J —
= Sp = j i
== Pes o.,
=
NEUROPTERA.
N
MK ASS
Fig. 8. — Polystoechotes punctatus, Fab.
Fig. 7. — Myrmeleon obsoletus, Say.
14 INTRODUCTION.
Pupa with the cases of the wings and of the legs indistinct,
and soldered to the breast.
Some kinds of caterpillars are domestic pests, and devour cloth,
wool, furs, feathers, wax, lard, flour, and the like; but by far the
greatest number live wholly on vegetable food, certain kinds being
exclusively leaf-eaters, while others attack the buds, fruit, seeds,
bark, pith, stems, and roots of plants.
6. Hymernoprera (Sau-flies, Ants, Wasps, Bees, &c.).
Insects with jaws, four veined wings, in most species, the
hinder pair being the smallest, and a piercer or sting at
the extremity of the abdomen. ‘Transformation complete.
Larve mostly maggot-like, or slug-like ; of some, caterpillar-
like. Pupze with the legs and wings unconfined.
In the adult state these insects live chiefly on the honey and
pollen of flowers, and the juices of fruits. The larve of the
saw-flies (Zenthredinide), under the form of false-caterpillars and
slugs, are leaf-eaters, and are oftentimes productive of much injury
to plants. The larve of the xiphydrians (Xiphydriade), and of
the horn-tails (Urocertde), are borers and wood-eaters, and con-
sequently injurious to the plants mhabited by them. Pines and
firs suffer most from their attacks. Some of the warty excres-
cences on the leaves and stems of plants, such as oak-apples, gall-
nuts, and the like, arise from the punctures of four-winged gall-flies
(Diplolepidide), and the irritation produced by their larvz, which
reside in these swellings. The injury caused by them is, com-
paratively, of very little importance, while, on the other hand,
we are greatly indebted to these insects for the gall-nuts that are
extensively used in coloring and in medicine, and form the chief
ingredient in ink. We may, therefore, write down these insects
among the benefactors of the human race. Immense numbers of
caterpillars and other noxious insects are preyed upon by in-
ternal enemies, the larve of the ichneumon-flies (Hvaniade, Ichneu-
monide, and Chalcidide), which live upon the fat of their victims,
and finally destroy them. Some of these ichneumon-flies (Jchneuw-
mones ovulorum*) are extremely small, and confine their attacks
* Now placed among the Proctotrupide.
HABITS OF SOME HYMENOPTERA. 135
to the eggs of other insects, which they puncture, and the little
creatures produced from the latter find a sufficient quantity of food
to supply all their wants within the larger eggs they occupy. The
ruby-tails (Chrysidide) and the cuckoo-bees (Hyleus, Sphecodes,
Nomada, Melecta, Epeolus, Celioxys, and Stelis) lay their eggs in
the provisioned nests of other insects, whose young are robbed
of their food by the earlier-hatched intruders, and are conse-
quently starved to death. The wood-wasps (Crabronide), and
numerous kinds of sand-wasps (Larrade, Bembicide, Sphegide,
Pompilide, and Scoliade), mud-wasps (Pelopeus), the stinging
velvet-ants (Mutillade), (Plate I. Fig. 3, Mutilla coccinea,) and the
solitary wasps (Odynerus and Humenes), are predaceous in their
habits, and provision their nests with other insects, which serve for
food to their young.
The food of ants consists of animal and vegetable juices; and
though these industrious little animals sometimes prove troublesome
by their fondness for sweets, yet, as they seize and destroy many
insects also, their occasional trespasses may well be forgiven. Even
the proverbially irritable paper-making wasps and hornets (Polistes
and Vespa) are not without their use in the economy of nature;
for they feed their tender offspring not only with vegetable juices,
but with the softer parts of other insects, great numbers of which
they seize and destroy for this purpose. The solitary and social
bees (Andrenade and Apide) live wholly on the honey and pollen
of flowers, and feed their young with a mixture of the same, called
bee-bread. |
Various kinds of bees are domesticated for the sake of their
stores of wax and honey, and are thus made to contribute directly
to the comfort and convenience of man, in return for the care and
attention afforded them. Honey and wax are also obtained
from several species of wild bees (Melipona, Trigona, and Tetra-
gona), essentially different from the domesticated kinds. While
bees and other hymenopterous insects seek only the gratification of
their own inclinations, in their frequent visits to flowers, they carry
on their bodies the yellow dust or pollen from one blossom to
another, and scatter it over the parts prepared to receive and be
fertilized by it, whereby they render an important service to
vegetation.
16 INTRODUCTION.
7. Dretera (Mosquitoes, Gnats, Flies, ¢c.). Insects
with a horny or fleshy proboscis, two wings only, and two
knobbed threads, called balancers or poisers, behind the
wings. ‘Transformation complete. The larve are maggots,
without feet, and with the breathing-holes generally in the
hinder extremity of the body. Pupz mostly incased in the
dried skin of the larve, sometimes, however, naked, in which
case the wings and the legs are visible, and are found to be
more or less free or unconfined.
The two-winged insects, though mostly of moderate or small
size, are not only very numerous in kinds or species, but also ex-
tremely abundant in individuals of the same kind, often appearing
in swarms of countless multitudes. Flies are destined to live
wholly on liquid food, and are therefore provided with a proboscis,
enclosing hard and sharp-pointed darts, instead of jaws, and fitted
for piercing and sucking, or ending with soft and fleshy lips for
lapping. In our own persons we suffer much from the sharp
suckers and bloodthirsty propensities of gnats and mosquitoes
(Culicide), and also from those of certain midges ( Ceratopogon
and Simulium), including the tormenting black-flies (Simulium
molestum) of this country. The larve of these insects live in
stagnant water, and subsist on minute aquatic animals. Horse-
flies and the golden-eyed forest-flies (Zabanide), whose larve
live in the ground, and the stinging stable-flies (Stomozxys), which
closely resemble common house-flies, and in the larve state live
in dung, attack both man and animals, goading the latter some-
times almost to madness by their severe and incessant punctures.
The winged horse-ticks (Hippobosce), the bird-flies ( Ornithomyie),
the wingless sheep-ticks (Melophagi), and the spider-flies (WVycte-
ribie), and bee-lice (Braule), which are also destitute of wings,
are truly parasitical in their habits, and pass their whole lives
upon the skin of animals. Bot-flies, or gad-flies (@stride), as
they are sometimes called, appear to take no food while in the
winged state, and are destitute of a proboscis; the nourishment
obtained by their larvae, which, as is well known, live in the bodies
of horses, cattle, sheep, and other animals, being sufficient to last
these insects during the rest of their lives. Some flies, though
TWO-WINGED INSECTS. i
apparently harmless in the winged state, deposit their eggs on
plants, on the juices of which their young subsist, and are often-
times productive of immense injury to vegetation ; among these
the most notorious for their depredations are the gall-gnats
(Cecidomyte), including the wheat-fly and Hessian fly, the root-
eating maggots of some of the long-legged gnats (Tipule), those
of the flower-flies (Anthomyie), and the two-winged gall-flies and
fruit-flies (Ortalides). To this list of noxious flies are to be added
the common house-flies (dusce), which pass through the maggot
state in dung and other filth, the blue-bottle or blow-flies, and
meat-flies (Lucilie and Calliphore), together with the maggot-
producing or viviparous flesh-flies (Sarcophage and Oynomyie),
whose maggots live in flesh, the cheese-fly (Prophila), the parent
of the well-known skippers, and a few others that in the larva state
attack our household stores.
Some flies are harmless in all their states, and many are emi-
nently useful in various ways. Even the common house-flies, and
flesh-flies, together with others for which no names exist in our
language, render important services by feeding while larve upon
dung, carrion, and all kinds of filth, by which means, and by
similar services rendered by various tribes of scavenger-beetles,
these offensive matters speedily disappear, instead of remaining
to decay slowly, thereby tainting the air and rendering it unwhole-
some. ‘Those whose larve live in stagnant water, such as gnats
(Culicide), feather-horned gnats (Chironomus, &c.), the soldier-
flies (Stratiomyade), the rat-tailed flies (Helophilus), &c., &c., tend
to prevent the water from becoming putrid, by devouring the de-
eayed animal and vegetable matter it contains. The maggots of
some flies (Mycetophile and various Muscade) live in mush-
rooms, toadstools, and similar excrescences growing on trees ;
those of others (Sargi, Xylophagide, Asilide, Thereve, Milesie,
Xylote, Borbori, &c., &e.), in rotten wood and bark, thereby join-
ing with the grubs of certain beetles to hasten the’ removal of
these dead and useless substances, and make room for new and
more vigorous vegetation. Some of these wood-eating insects, with
others, when transformed to flies, (Aside [Plate I. Fig. 4, Asilus
estuans|, Khagionide, Dolichopide, and Xylophagide,) prey on
other insects. Some (Syrphide), though not predaceous them-
3
18 INTRODUCTION.
selves in the winged state, deposit their eggs among plant-lice,
upon the blood of which their young afterwards subsist. Many
( Conopide, exclading Stomoxys, Tachine, Ocyptere, Phore, &c.)
lay their eggs on caterpillars, and on various other larve, within
the bodies of which the maggots hatched from these eggs live till
they destroy their victims. And finally others (Anthracide and
Volucelle) drop their eggs in the nests of insects, whose gffspring
are starved to death, by being robbed of their food by the off-
spring of these cuckoo-flies. Besides performing their various
appointed tasks in the economy of nature, flies, and other insects,
subserve another highly important purpose, for which an all-wise
Providence has designed them, namely, that of furnishing food
to numerous other animals. Not to mention the various kinds of
insect-eating quadrupeds, such as bats, moles, and the like, many
birds live partly or entirely on insects. The finest song-birds,
nightingales and thrushes, feast with the highest relish on maggots
of all kinds, as well as on flies and other insects, while the warblers,
vireos, and especially the fly-catchers and swallows, devour these
two-winged insects in great numbers.
The seven foregoing orders constitute very natural groups,
relatively of nearly equal importance, and sufficiently distinct
from each other, but connected at different points by various
resemblances. It is impossible to show the mutual relations
of these orders, when they are arranged in a continuous se-
ries, but these can be better expressed and understood by
grouping the orders together in a cluster, so that each order
shall come in contact with several others.
Besides these seven orders, there are several smaller
groups, which some naturalists have thought proper to raise
to the rank of independent orders. Upon the principal of
these a few remarks will now be made.
The little order Srrepstprera of Kirby, or Rurprerera of
Latreille, consists of certain minute insects, which undergo
their transformations within the bodies of bees and wasps.
One of them, the Xenos Peckii, was discovered by Professor
Peck in the common brown wasp (Polistes fuscata) of this
DIFFICULTIES IN ARRANGEMENT. 19
country. The larva is maggot-like, and lives between the
rings of the back of the wasp; the pupa resembles that of
some flies, and is cased in the dried skin of the larva. The
females never acquire wings, and never leave the bodies of
the bees or wasps into which they penetrate while young.
The males, in the adult state, have a pair of short, narrow,
and twisted members, instead of fore-wings, and two very
large hind-wings, folded lengthwise like a fan. The mouth
is provided with a pair of slender, sharp-pointed jaws, better
adapted for piercing than for biting. It is very difficult to
determine the proper place of these insects in a natural ar-
rangement. Latreille puts them between the Lepidoptera and
Diptera, but thinks them most nearly allied to some of the
Hymenoptera.!
The flea tribe (Pulicide) was placed among the bugs, or
Hemiptera, by Fabricius. It constitutes the order Arrera
of Leach, StpHonAPTERA of Latreille, and ApHANIPTERA of
Kirby. Fleas are destitute of wings, in the place whereof
there are four little scales, pressed closely to the sides of
their bodies ; their mouth is fitted for suction, and provided
with several lancet-like pieces for making punctures; they
undergo a complete transformation ; their larve are worm-
like and without feet; and their pupz have the legs free.
‘These insects, of which there are many different kinds, are
intermediate in their characteristics between the Hemiptera
and the Diptera, and seem to connect more closely these
two orders.
The earwigs (Forficuladce), of which also there are many
kinds, were placed by Linnzus in the order Coleoptera, but
most naturalists now include them among the Orthoptera ;
indeed, they seem to be related to both orders, but most
[! Systematic authors now consider the order of Strepsiptera as simply a fam-
ily, though a very aberrant one, of Coleoptera. It is placed after the Rhipipho-
rid, under the name Stylopide, from its principal genus, Stylops, which is par-
asitic in certain genera of bees; a species of this genus has been discovered in
Nova Scotia, and will probably be found hereafter in New England. — LEc.]
20 INTRODUCTION.
closely to the Orthoptera, with which they agree in their
partial transformations, and active pupxe. They form the
little order DERMAPTERA of Leach, or EvpLexoprera of
Westwood.
The spider-flies, bird-flies, sheep-tick, &c. (Alippoboscade),
which, with Latreille and others, I have retained among the
Diptera, form the order HomaLoprera of Leach, and the
English entomologists.
The May-flies, or case-flies (Phryganeade), have been —
separated from the Neuroptera; and constitute the order
TricHoprera of Kirby. Latreille and most of the natu-
ralists of the continent of Europe still retain them in
Neuroptera, to which they seem properly to belong.
The Thrips tribe consists of mmute insects more closely
allied to Hemiptera than to any other order, but resembling
in some respects the Orthoptera also. It forms the little
order THysanoprera of Haliday ; but I propose to leave it,
as Latreille has done, among the Hemiptera.
The English entomologists separate from Hemiptera the
cicadas or harvest-flies, lantern-flies, frog-hoppers, plant-lice,
bark-lice, &c., under the name of Homoptera; but these
insects seem too nearly to resemble the true Hemiptera to
warrant the separation.
Burmeister, a Prussian naturalist, has subdivided the Neu-
roptera into the orders NEvroprera and DicryoTorrera,
the latter to include the species which undergo only a partial
transformation. If Hemiptera is to be subdivided, as above
mentioned, then this division of Neuroptera will be justifiable
also.
Objections have often been raised against the study of
natural history, and many persons have been discouraged
from attempting it, on account of the formidable array of
scientific names and terms which it presents to the beginner ;
and some men of mean and contracted minds have made
themselves merry at the expense of naturalists, and have
sought to bring the writings of the latter into contempt, be-
ADVANTAGE OF TECHNICAL NAMES. 2A
cause of the scientific language and names they were obliged
to employ. Entomology, or the science that treats of msects,
abounds in such names more than any other branch of natu-
ral history; for the different kinds of insects very far out-
number the species in every class of the animal, vegetable,
and mineral kingdoms. It is owing to this excessive number
of species, and to the small size and unobtrusive character
of many insects, that comparatively very few have received
any common names, either in our own, or in other modern
tongues ; and hence most of those that have been described
in works of natural history are known only by their scientific
names. ‘The latter have the advantage over other names in
being intelligible to all well-educated persons in all parts of
the world; while the cgmmon names of animals and plants
in our own and other modern languages are very limited in
their application, and moreover are often misapplied.
For example, the name weevil is given, in this country, to
at least six different kinds of insects, two of which are moths,
two are flies, and two are beetles. Moreover, since nearly
four thousand species of weevils have actually been scientifi-
cally named and described, when mention is made of ‘ the
weevil,” it may well be a subject of doubt to which of these
four thousand species the speaker or writer intends to refer ;
whereas, if the scientific name of the species in question were
made known, this doubt would at once be removed. To give
each of these weevils a short, appropriate, significant, and
purely English name, would be very difficult, if not impos-
sible, and there would be great danger of overburdening the
memory with such a number of names ; but, by means of the
ingenious and simple method of nomenclature invented by
Linnzeus, these weevils are all arranged under three hundred
and fifty-five generical, or surnames, requiring in addition
only a small number of different words, like christian names,
to indicate the various species or kinds. There is oftentimes
a great convenience in the use of single collective terms for
groups of anmals and plants, whereby the necessity for enu-
92. INTRODUCTION.
merating all the individual contents or the characteristics of
these groups is avoided. Thus the single word Ruminantia
stands for camels, lamas, giraffes, deer, antelopes, goats, sheep,
and kine, or for all the hoofed quadrupeds which ruminate
or chew the cud, and have no front teeth in the upper jaw;
Lepidoptera includes all the various kinds of butterflies, hawk-
moths, and millers or moths, or insects having wings. covered
with branny scales, and a spiral tongue instead of jaws, and
whose young appear in the form of caterpillars. It would be
difficult to find or invent any single English words which
would be at once so convenient and so expressive. This,
therefore, is an additional reason why scientific names ought
to be preferred to all others, at least in works of natural his-
tory, where it is highly important that the objects described
should have names that are short, significant in themselves,
and not liable to be mistaken or misapplied.
There is no art, profession, trade, or occupation, which can
be taught or learned without the use of technical words or
phrases belonging to each, and which, to the inexperienced
and untaught, are as unintelligible as the terms of science.
It is not at all more difficult to learn and remember the latter
than the former, when the attention has been properly given
to the subject. The seaman, the farmer, and the mechanic
soon become familiar with the names and phrases peculiar to
their several callings, uncouth, and without apparent signifi-
cation, as many of them are. So, too, the terms of science
lose their forbidding and mysterious appearance and sound
by the frequency of their recurrence, and finally become as
harmonious to the ear, as they are clear and definite in their
application.
PLATE if
Sonrel del
CHAPTER g®k.
COLEOPTERA.
BEETLES. — SCARABIANS. — GROUND-BEETLES. — TREE-BEETLES. — COCK-
CHAFERS OR MaAy-BEETLES. — FLOWER-BEETLES. — STAG-BEETLES. — Bu-
PRESTIANS, OR SAW-HORNED BORERS. — SPRING-BEETLES. —TIMBER-BEEFTLES.
— WEEVILS. — CYLINDRICAL BARK-BEETLES. — CAPRICORN-BEETLES, OR
LONG-HORNED Borrrs. — LEAF-BEETLES. — CRIOCERIANS. — LEAF-MINING
BEETLES. — TORTOISE-BEETLES. — CHRYSOMELIANS. — CANTHARIDES.
HE wings of beetles are covered and concealed by a pair
of horny cases or shells, meeting in a straight line on
the top of the back, and usually having a little triangular or
semicircular piece, called the scutel, wedged between their
bases. Hence the order to which these insects belong is
called CoLEorpTERA, a word signifymg wings in a sheath.
Beetles * are biting-insects, and are provided with two pairs
of jaws moving sidewise. Their young are grubs, and un-
dergo a complete transformation in coming to maturity.
At the head of this order Linnzeus placed a group of
Insects, to which he gave the name of ScaraBzus. It
includes the largest and most robust animals of the beetle
kind, many of them remarkable for the singularity of their
shape, and the formidable horn-like prominences with which
they are* furnished, — together with others, which, though
they do not present the same imposing appearance, require
to be noticed, on account of the injury sustained by vegeta-
tion from their attacks. An immense number of Scarab-
lans (SCARABHIDA), as they may be called, are now known,
differmeg greatly from each other, not only in structure, but
* Beetle, in old English, det, bytl, or bitel, means a biter, or insect that bites.
YA COLEOPTERA.
in their habits in the larva and adult states. They are all
easily distinguished by their short movable horns, or anten-
nee, ending with a knob, composed of three or more leaf-like
pieces, which open like the petals of a flower-bud. Another
feature that they possess in common is the projecting ridge
(clypeus) of the forehead, which extends more or less ‘over
the face, like the visor or brim of a cap, and beneath the
sides of this visor the antennz are implanted. Moreover,
the legs of these beetles, particularly the first pair, are fitted
for digging, being deeply notched or furnished with several
strong teeth on the outer edges; and the feet are five-jointed.
This very extensive family of insects is subdivided into sey-
eral smaller groups, each composed of beetles distinguished
by various peculiarities of structure and habits. - Some live
mostly upon or beneath the surface of the earth, and were,
therefore, called ground-beetles by De Geer; some, in their
winged state, are found on trees, the leaves of which they
devour, —they are the tree-beetles of the same author; and
others, during the same period of their lives, frequent flowers,
and are called flower-beetles. The ground-beetles, including
the earth-borers ( Geotrupide), and dung-beetles ( Copridide
and Aphodiade), which, in all their states, are found in excre-
ment, the skin-beetles ( Zrogide), which inhabit dried animal
substances, and the gigantic Hercules-beetles (Dynastide),
which live in rotten wood or beneath old dung-heaps, must
be passed over without further comment. The other groups
contain insects that are very injurious to’ vegetation, and
therefore require to be more particularly noticed.
One of the most common, and the most beautifal of the
tree-beetles of this country, is the Aveoda lanigera,? or woolly
Areoda, sometimes also called the goldsmith-beetle (Plate
II. Fig. 20). It is about nine tenths of an inch in length,
broad oval in shape, of a lemon-yellow color above, glittering
[? Areoda lanigera, now called Cotalpa lanigera; the genus Cotalpa, established
by Burmeister, differs from the true Areoda by not having the last joint of the
tarsi armed beneath with an angular projection. — LEc.]
THE GOLDSMITH AND GRAPE-VINE BEETLES. 25
like burnished gold on the top of the head and thorax ; the
under-side of the body is copper-colored, and thickly coy-
ered with whitish wool; and the legs are brownish yellow,
or brassy, shaded with green. ‘These fine beetles begin to
appear in Massachusetts about the middle of May, and con-
tinue generally till the twentieth of June. In the morning
and evening twilight they come forth from their retreats,
and fly about with a humming and rustling sound among
the branches of trees, the tender leaves of which they de-
vour. Pear-trees are particularly subject to their attacks,
but the elm, hickory, poplar, oak, and probably also other
kinds of trees, are frequented and injured by them. During
the middle of the day they remain at rest upon the trees,
clnging to the under-sides of the leaves, and endeavor to
conceal themselves by drawing two or three leaves together,
and holding them in this position with their long unequal
claws. In some seasons they occur in profusion, and then
may be obtained in great quantities by shaking the young
trees on which they are lodged in the daytime, as they do not
| attempt to fly when thus disturbed, but fall at once to the
ground. ‘The larve of these insects are not known ; prob-
ably they live in the ground upon the roots of plants. The
group to which the goldsmith-beetle belongs may be called
Rutilians (Rutz), from Rutela, or more correctly Rutila,
signifying shining, the name of the principal genus included
in it. The Rutilians connect the ground-beetles with the tree-
beetles of the following group, having the short and robust
legs of the former, with the leaf-eating habits of the latter.
The spotted Pelidnota, Pelidnota pune- Fie. 9.
tata (Fig. 9), is also arranged among the
Rutilians. This large beetle is found’ on
the cultivated and wild grape-vine, some-
times in great abundance, during the
months of July and August. It is of an
oblong oval shape, and about an inch
long. The wing-covers are tile-colored,
4
ET LE LI LLL AOL LLL LO LL LLL LLL LLL
26 COLEOPTERA.
or dull brownish-yellow, with three distinct black dots on
each ; the thorax is darker and slightly bronzed, with a black
dot on each side; the body beneath, and the legs, are of a
deep bronzed green color. These beetles fly by day; but
may also be seen at the same time on the leaves of the grape,
which are their only food. ‘They sometimes prove very mju-
rious to the vine. The only method of destroying them is
to pick them off by hand and crush them under foot. The
larvee live in rotten wood, such as the stumps and roots of
dead trees, and do not differ. essentially from those of other
Scarabeeians.
Among the tree-beetles, those commonly called dors, chaf-
ers, May-bugs, and rose-bugs, are the most teresting to the
farmer and gardener, on account of their extensive ravages,
both in the winged and larva states. They were included by
Fabricius in the genus Melolontha, a word used by the ancient
Greeks to distinguish the same kind of insects, which were
supposed by them to be produced from or with the flowers
of apple-trees, as the name itself implies. These beetles,
together with many others, for which no common names exist
in our language, are now united in one family called Mzno-
LONTHAD#, or Melolonthians. The following are the general
characters of these insects. The body is oblong oval, con-
vex, and generally of a brownish color ; the antennze are nine
or more commonly ten jointed, the knob is much longer in
the males than in the females, and consists generally of three
leat-like pieces, sometimes of a greater number, which open
and shut like the leaves of a book; the visor is short and
wide ; the upper jaws are furnished at the base on the inner
side with an oval space, crossed by ridges, like a millstone,
for grinding ; the thorax is transversely square, or nearly so;
the wing-cases do not cover the whole of the body, the hinder
extremity of which is exposed; the legs are rather long, the
first pair armed externally with two or three teeth; and the
claws are notched beneath, or are split at the end like the
nib of a pen. The powerful and horny jaws are admirably
HABITS OF THE COCKCHAFER. 2a
fitted for cutting and grinding the leaves of plants, upon
which these beetles subsist; their notched or double claws
support them securely on the foliage; and their strong and
jagged fore-legs, being formed for digging in the ground,
point out the place of their transformations.
The habits and transformations of the common cockchafer
of Europe have been carefully observed, and will serve to
exemplify those of the other msects of this family, which, as
far as they are known, seem to be nearly the same. This
insect devours the leaves of trees and shrubs. Its duration
in the perfect state is very short, each individual living only
about a week, and the species entirely disappearing in the
course of a month. After the sexes have paired, the males
perish, and the females enter the earth to the depth of six
inches or more, making their way by means of the strong
teeth which arm the fore-legs; here they deposit their eggs,
amounting, according to some writers, to nearly one hundred,
or, as others assert, to two hundred from each female, which
are abandoned by the parent, who generally ascends again to
the surface, and perishes in a short time.
From the eggs are hatched, in the space of fourteen days,
little whitish grubs, each provided with six legs near the
head, and a mouth furnished with strong jaws. _When in a
state of rest, these grubs usually curl themselves in the shape
of a crescent. They subsist on the tender roots .of various
plants, committing ravages among these vegetable substances,
on some occasions of the most deplorable kind, so as totally
to disappoint the best-founded hopes of the husbandman.
During the summer they live under the thin coat of vegeta-
ble mould near the surface, but, as winter approaches, they
descend below the reach of frost, and remain torpid until the
succeeding spring, at which time they change their skins, and
reascend to the surface for food. At the close of their third
summer (or, as some say, of the fourth or fifth) they cease
eating, and penetrate about two feet deep into the earth;
there, by its motions from side to side, each grub forms an
28 COLEOPTERA.
oval cavity, which is lined by some glutinous substance
thrown from its mouth. In this cavity it is changed to a
pupa by casting off its skin. In this state, the legs, antenne,
and wing-cases of the future beetle are visible through the
transparent skin which envelops them, but appear of a yel-
lowish-white color; and thus it remains until the month of
February, when the thin film which encloses the body is rent,
and three months afterwards the perfected beetle digs its way
to the surface, from which it finally emerges during the night.
According to Kirby and Spence, the grubs of the cockchafer
sometimes destroy whole acres of grass by feeding on its
roots. ‘They undermine the richest meadows, and so loosen
the turf that it will roll up as if cut by a turfing spade. They
do not confine themselves to grass, but eat the roots of wheat,
of other grains, and also those of young trees. About seventy
years ago, a farmer near Norwich, in England, suffered much
by them, and, with his man, gathered eighty bushels of the
beetles. In the year 1785 many provinces in France were
so ravaged by them, that a premium was offered by govern-
ment for the best mode of destroying them. The Society of
Arts in London, during many years, held forth a premium
for the best account of this insect, and the means of check-
ing its ravages, but without having produced one successful
claimant.
In their winged state, these beetles, with several other
species, act as conspicuous a part in injuring the trees as
the grubs do in destroying the herbage. During the month
of May they come forth from the ground, whence they have
received the name of May-bugs, or May-beetles. They pass
the greater part of the day upon trees, clinging to the under-
sides of the leaves, in a state of repose. As soon as evening
approaches, they begin to buzz about among the branches,
and continue on the wing till towards midnight. In their
droning flight they move very irregularly, darting hither and
thither with an uncertain aim, hitting against objects in their
way with a force that often causes them to fall to the ground.
FOOD OF ANIMALS AND BIRDS. 29
They frequently enter houses in the night, apparently attract-
ed, as well as dazzled and bewildered, by the lights. Their
vagaries, in which, without having the power to harm, they
seem to threaten an attack, have caused them to be called
dors, —that is, darers; while their seeming blindness and
stupidity have become proverbial, in the expressions, ‘ blind
as a beetle,”’ and ‘ beetle-headed.”’
Besides the leaves of fruit-trees, they devour those of
various forest-trees and shrubs, with an avidity not much
less than that of the locust, so that, in certain seasons, and
in particular districts, they become an oppressive scourge,
and the source of much misery to the inhabitants. Mouffet
relates that, in the year 1574, such a number of them fell
into the river Severn as to stop the wheels of the water-mills ;
and, in the Philosophical Transactions, it is stated, that in
the year 1688 they filled the hedges and trees of Galway,
in such infinite numbers as to cling to each other like bees
when swarming; and; when on the wing, darkened the air,
annoyed travellers, and produced a sound like distant drums.
In a short time the leaves of all the trees, for some miles
round, were so totally consumed by them, that at midsummer
the country wore the aspect of the depth of winter.
Another chafer, Anomala vitis F. is sometimes exceedingly
injurious to the vine. It prevails in certain provinces of
France, where it strips the vines of their leaves, and also
devours those of the willow, poplar, and fruit-trees.
The animals and birds appointed to check the ravages of
these insects are, according to Latreille, the badger, weasel,
marten, bats, rats, the common dung-hill fowl, and the goat-
sucker or night-hawk. To this list may be added the com-
mon crow, which devours not only the perfect insects, but
their larvee, for which purpose it is often observed to follow
the plough. In “ Anderson’s Recreations” it is stated, that
“a cautious observer, having found a nest of five young jays,
remarked that each of these birds, while yet very young,
consumed at least fifteen of these full-sized grubs in one day,
30 COLEOPTERA.
and of course would require many more of a smaller size.
Say that, on an average of sizes, they consumed twenty
apiece, these for the fo make one hundred. Each of the
parents consume say fifty ; so that the pair ‘and family devour
two hundred every day. ‘This, in three months, amounts to
twenty thousand in one season. But as the grub continues
in that state four seasons, this single pair, with their family
alone, without reckoning their descendants after the first
year, would destroy eighty thousand grubs. Let us suppose
that the half, namely, forty thousand, are females, and it is
known that they usually lay about two hundred eggs each,
it will appear, that no less than eight millions have been
destroyed, or prevented from being hatched, by the labors of
a single family of jays. It is by reasoning in this way, that
we learn to know of what importance it is to attend to the
economy of nature, and to be cautious how we derange It by
our short-sighted and futile operations.” Our own country
abounds with insect-eating beasts and birds, and without
doubt the more than abundant Melolonthe form a portion
of their nourishment.
We have several Melolonthians whose injuries in the perfect
and grub state approach to those of the Eu-
ropean cockchafer.. Phyllophaga* quercina of
Knoch, the May-beetle, as it is generally
called here, is our common species. (Fig.
10.) It is of a chestnut-brown color, smooth,
but finely punctured, that is, covered with
little impressed dots, as if pricked with the
point of a needle; each wing-case has two or
Fig. 10.
* A genus proposed by me in 1826. It signifies leaf-eater. Dejean subse-
quently called this genus Ancylonycha.8
[8 The genus Phyllophaga was indeed proposed by Dr. Harris, but was not
accompanied by any description; it must therefore yield to the name Lachnosterna
of Hope, described in 1887. Burmeister has improperly adopted for the genus the
name given by Dejean, but which was not sanctioned by a description until 1845.
It is a very numerous genus, and many of the species resemble each other very
closely. — LEc.]
DESTRUCTION Of THE MAY-BEETLE. 31
three slightly elevated longitudinal lines ; the breast is clothed
with yellowish down. ‘The knob of its antennz contains
only three leaf-like joints. Its average length is nine tenths
of an inch. In its perfect state it feeds on the leaves of trees,
particularly on those of the cherry-tree. It flies with a hum-
ming noise in the night, from the middle of May to the end
of June, and frequently enters houses, attracted by the light.
In the course of the spring, these beetles are often thrown
from the earth by the spade and plough, in various states of
maturity, some being soft and nearly white, their supera-
bundant juices not having evaporated, while others exhibit the
true color and texture of the perfect insect. The grubs de-
vour the roots of grass and of other plants, and in many
places the turf may be turned up like a carpet in consequence
of the destruction of the roots. The grub* is a white worm
with a brownish head, and, when fully grown, is nearly as
thick as the little finger. It is eaten greedily by crows and
fowls. ‘The beetles are devoured by the skunk, whose bene-
ficial foraging is detected in our gardens by its abundant ex-
crement filled with the wing-cases of these insects.
A writer in the “ New York Evening Post” says, that the
beetles, which frequently commit serious ravages on fruit-
trees, may be effectually exterminated by shaking them from
the trees every evening. In this way two pailfuls of beetles
were collected on the first experiment; the number caught
reoularly decreased until the fifth evening, when only two
beetles were to be found. The best time, however, for shak-
ing trees on which the May-beetles are lodged, is in the
morning, when the insects do not attempt to fly. They are
most easily collected in a cloth spread under the trees to re-
ceive them when they fall, after which they should be thrown
into boiling water to kill them, and may then be given as
food to swine.
* There is a grub, somewhat resembling this, which is frequently found under
old manure-heaps, and is commonly called muck-worm. It differs, however, in
some respects, from that of the May-beetle, or dor-bug, and is transformed to a
dung-beetle called Scarabeus relictus by Mr. Say.
SE —
32 COLEOPTERA.
There is an undescribed kind of Phyllophaga, or leaf-eater,
called, in my Catalogue of the Insects of Massachusetts,* fra-
terna, because it is nearly akin to the quercina, in general
appearance. It differs from the latter, however, in being
smaller, and more slender; the punctures on its thorax and
wing-covers are not so distinct, and the three elevated lines
on the latter are hardly visible. It measures thirteen
twentieths of an inch in length. This beetle may be seen
in the latter part of June and the beginning of July. Its
habits are similar to those of the more abundant May-beetle
or dor-bug.
Another common Phyllophaga has been described by Knoch
and Say, under the name of hirticula (Fig.
11), meaning a little hairy. It is of a bay-
brown color, the punctures on the thorax
are larger and more distinct than in the
quercina, and on each wing-cover are three
longitudinal rows of short, yellowish hairs.
It measures about seven tenths of an mch
in length. Its time of appearance is in
June and July.
In some parts of Massachusetts the Phyl
Fig 12. lophaga Georgicana (Fig. 12) of Gyllenhal,
‘~ or Georgian leaf-eater, takes the place of the
guercina. It is extremely common, during
May and June, in Cambridge, where the
other species is rarely seen. It is of a bay-
brown color, entirely covered on the upper
side with very short, yellowish gray hairs,
and measures seven tenths of an inch, or
Fig. 11.
more, in length.
* In order to save unnecessary repetitions, it may be well to state, that the
Catalogue above named, to which frequent reference will be made in the course
of this treatise, was drawn up by me, and was published in Professor Hitchcock’s
Report on the Geology, Mineralogy, Botany, and Zotlogy of Massachusetts, and
that two editions of it appeared with the Report, the first in 1888, and the sec-
ond, with numerous additions, in 1835.
POLYPHYLLA) VARIOLOSA. 33
Phyllophaga pilosicollis (Fig. 13) of Knoch, or the hairy-
necked leaf-eater, is a small chafer, of an Vig. 13.
ochre-yellow color, with a very hairy tho-
rax. It is often thrown out of the ground
by the spade, early in the spring; but it
does not voluntarily come forth till the
middle of May. It measures half an inch
in length.
Hentz’s Melolontha variolosa* (Fig. 14),
or scarred Melolontha, differs essentially
from the foregoing beetles in the structure
of its antennee, the knob of which consists
of seven narrow, strap-shaped ochre-yellow
leaves, which are excessively long in the
males. ‘This fine insect is of a light brown
color, with irregular whitish blotches, like
scars, on the thorax and wing-covers. It
measures nine tenths of an inch, or more,
in length. It occurs abundantly, in the month of July, at
Martha’s Vineyard, and in some other places near the coast ;
but is rare in other parts of Massachusetts.
The foregoing Melolonthians are found in gardens, nur-
series, and orchards, where they are more or less injurious
to the fruit-trees, in proportion to their numbers in different
seasons. They also devour the leaves of various forest-trees,
such as the elm, maple, and oak.
Omaloplia® vespertina (Plate I. Fig. 14) of Gyllenhal, and
sericea of Illiger, attack the leaves of the sweetbrier, or sweet-
leaved rose, on which they may be found in profusion in the
evening, about the last of June.. They somewhat resemble
the May-beetles in form, but are proportionally shorter and
[4 Melolontha variolosa. This insect belongs to the genus Polyphylla, proposed
by Dr. Harris, and now adopted by all entomologists. — Lrc.]
[> Omaloplia. The species here mentioned, with all the other allied American
species, belong rather to Serica of M’Leay, than to true Omaloplia, which is thus
far confined to the other continent. — Lrc.]
, 5
a5 COLEOPTERA.
thicker, and much smaller in size. The first of them, the
vespertine or evening Omaloplia, is bay-brown; the wing-
covers are marked with many longitudinal shallow furrows,
whith, with the thorax, are thickly punctured. This beetle
varies in length from three to four tenths of an inch. Oma-
loplia sericea, the silky Omaloplia, closely resembles the pre-
ceding in everything but its color, which is a very deep
chestnut-brown, iridescent or changeable like satin, and re-
flecting the colors of the rainbow.
All these Melolonthians are nocturnal insects, never ap-
pearing, except by accident, in the day, during which they
remain under shelter of the foliage of trees and shrubs, or
concealed in the grass. Others are truly day-fliers, commit-
ting their ravages by the light of the sun, and are conse-
quently exposed to observation.
One of our diurnal Melolonthians is supposed by many nat-
Fig. 16. uralists to be the Anomala varians (Fig. 15)
of Fabricius ; and it agrees very well with
this writer’s description of the lucicola ; but
Professor Germar thinks it to be an unde-
scribed species, and proposes to name it ca@-
lebs. It resembles the vine-chafer of Europe
in its habits, and is found in the months of
June and July on the cultivated and wild
grape-vines, the leaves of which it devours. During the same
period, these chafers may be seen in still greater numbers on _
various kinds of sumach, which they often completely despoil
of their leaves. They are of a broad oval shape, and very
variable in color. The head and thorax of the male are
greenish black, margined with dull ochre or tile-red, and
thickly punctured ; the wing-covers are clay-yellow, irregu-
larly furrowed, and punctured in the furrows; the legs are
pale red, brown, or black. The thorax of the female is clay-
yellow, or tile-red, sometimes with two oblique blackish spots
on the top, and sometimes almost entirely black; the wing-
covers resemble those of the male; the legs are clay-yellow,
THE COMMON ROSE-CHAFER. 35
or light red. The males are sometimes entirely black, and
this variety seems to be the beetle called atrata, by Fabricius.
The males measure nearly, and the females rather more than
seven twentieths of an inch in length. In the year 1825,
these insects appeared on the grape-vines in a garden in this
vicinity ;. they have since established themselves on the spot,
and have so much multiplied in subsequent years as to prove
exceedingly hurtful to the vines. In many other gardens
they have also appeared, having probably found the leaves of
the cultivated grape-vine more to their taste than their natu-
ral food. Should these beetles increase in numbers, they will
be found as difficult to check and extirpate as the destructive
vine-chafers of Europe.
The rose-chafer, or rose-bug, as it is more commonly and
incorrectly called, is also a diurnal insect. It is the jy, 46.
Melolontha subspinosa (Fig. 16) of Fabricius, by
whom it was first described, and belongs to the
modern genus Macrodactylus of Latreille. Common
as this insect is in the vicinity of Boston, it is, or
was a few years ago, unknown in the northern and
western parts of Massachusetts, in New Hampshire, and in
Maine. It may, therefore, be well to give a brief description
of it. This beetle measures seven twentieths of an inch in
length. Its body is slender, tapers before and behind, and
is entirely covered with very short and close ashen-yellow
down; the thorax is long and narrow, angularly widened in
the middle of each side, which suggested the name subspi-
nosa, or somewhat spined; the legs are slender, and of a
pale red color; the joints of the feet are tipped with black,
and are very long, which caused Latreille to call the genus
Macrodactylus, that is, long toe, or long foot.
The natural history of the rose-chafer, one of the greatest
scourges with which our gardens and nurseries have been
afflicted, was for a long time involved in mystery, but 1s at
last fully cleared up.* The prevalence of this insect on the
* See my Essay in the Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal,
36 COLEOPTERA.
rose, and its annual appearance coinciding with the blossom-
ing of that flower, have gained for it the popular name by
which it is here known. For some time after they were first
noticed, rose-bugs appeared to be confined to their favorite,
the blossoms of the rose; but within forty years they have
prodigiously increased in number, have attacked at random
various kinds of plants in swarms, and have become notorious
for their extensive and deplorable ravages. ‘The grape-vine
in particular, the cherry, plum, and apple trees, have annu-
ally suffered by their depredations; many other fruit-trees
and shrubs, garden vegetables and corn, and even the trees
of the forest and the grass of the fields, have been laid under
contribution by these indiscriminate feeders, by whom leaves,
flowers, and fruits are alike consumed. ‘The unexpected
arrival of these insects In swarms, at their first coming, and
their sudden disappearance at the close of thew career, are
remarkable facts in their history. They come forth from
the ground during the second week in June, or about the
time of the blossoming of the damask rose, and remain from
thirty to forty days. At the end of this period the males
become exhausted, fall to the ground and perish, while the
females enter the earth, lay their eges, return to the surface,
and, after lingering a few days, die also.
The eggs laid by each female are about thirty in number,
and are deposited from one to four inches beneath the sur-
face of the soil; they are nearly globular, whitish, and about
one thirtieth of an inch in diameter, and are hatched twenty
days after they are laid. The young larve begin to feed on
such tender roots as are within their reach. Like other
grubs of the Scarabeians, when not eating they lie upon
the side, with the body curved, so that the head and tail
Vol. X. p. 8, reprinted in the New England Farmer, Vol. VI. p. 18, &c.; my Dis-
course before the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, p. 81, 8vo, Cambridge,
1832; Dr. Green’s communication on this insect in the New England Farmer,
Vol. VL pp. 41, 49, &c.; my Report on Insects Injurious to Vegetation, in Massa-
chusetts House Document, No. 72, April, 1838, p.70; and a communication in the
New England Farmer, Vol. IX. p. 1.
THE COMMON ROSE-CHAFER. 37
are nearly in contact; they move with difficulty on a level
surface, and are continually fallg over on one side or the
other. ‘They attain their full size in the autumn, being then
nearly three quarters of an inch long, and about an eighth
of an inch in diameter. They are of a yellowish-white
color, with a tinge of blue towards the hinder extremity,
which is thick, and obtuse or rounded; a few short hairs are
scattered on the surface of the body; there are six short legs,
namely, a pair to each of the first three rings behind the
head, and the latter is covered with a horny shell of a pale
rust color. In October they descend below the reach of frost,
and pass the winter in a torpid state. In the spring they
approach towards the surface, and each one forms for itself
a little cell of an oval shape, by turning round a great many
times, so as to compress the earth and render the inside of
the cavity hard and smooth. Within this cell the grub is
transformed to a pupa, during the month of May, by casting
off its skin, which is pushed downwards in folds from the head
to the tail. The pupa has somewhat the form of the per-
fected beetle; but it is of a yellowish-white color, and its
short stump-like wings, its antennze, and its legs are folded
upon the breast; and its whole body is enclosed in a thin
film, that wraps each part separately. During the month of
June this filmy skin is rent, the included beetle withdraws
from its body and its limbs, bursts open its earthen cell, and
digs its way to the surface of the ground. Thus the various
changes, from the egg to the full development of the per-
fected beetle, are completed within the space of one year.
Such being the metamorphoses and habits of these insects,
it is evident that we cannot attack them in the egg, the grub,
or the pupa state; the enemy in these stages is beyond our
reach, and is subject to the control only of the natural but
unknown means appointed by the Author of Nature to keep
the insect tribes in check. When they have issued from
their subterranean retreats, and have congregated upon our
vines, trees, and other vegetable productions, in the complete
38 COLEOPTERA.
enjoyment of their propensities, we must unite our efforts to
seize and crush the invaders. ‘They must indeed be crushed,
scalded, or burned, to deprive them of life, for they are not
affected by any of the applications usually found destructive
to other msects. Experience has proved the utility of gather-
ing them by hand, or of shaking them or brushing them from
the plants into tin vessels containing a little water. They
should be collected daily during the period of their visitation,
and should be committed to the flames or killed by scalding
water. The late John Lowell, Esq., states,* that in 1823 he
discovered, on a solitary apple-tree, the rose-bugs “in vast
numbers, such as could not be described, and would not be
believed if they were described, or, at least, none but an
ocular witness could conceive of their numbers. Destruction
by hand was out of the question,” im this case. He put
sheets under the tree, and shook them down, and burned
them.
Dr. Green, of Mansfield, whose investigations have thrown
much light on the history of this insect, proposes protecting
plants with millinet, and says that in this way only did he
succeed in securing his grape-vines from depredation. His
remarks also show the utility of gathermg them. ‘ Eighty-
six of these spoilers,” says he, “were known to infest a
single rose-bud, and were crushed with one grasp of the
hand.’’ Suppose, as was probably the case, that one half
of them were females; by this destruction, eight hundred
egos, at least, were prevented from becoming matured.
During the time of their prevalence, rose-bugs are some-
times found in immense numbers on the flowers of the com-
mon white-weed, or ox-eye daisy ( Chrysanthemum leucanthe-
mum), a worthless plant, which has come to us from Europe,
and has been suffered to overrun our pastures and encroach
on our mowing-lands. In certain cases it may become expe-
dient rapidly to mow down the infested white-weed in dry
* Massachusetts Agricultural Repository, Vol. IX. p. 145.
THE FUOWER-BEETLES. 39
pastures, ‘and consume it, with the sluggish rose-buds, on
the spot.
Our insect-eating birds undoubtedly devour many of these
insects, and deserve to be cherished and protected for their
services. Rose-bugs are also eaten greedily by domesticated
fowls; and when they become exhausted and fall to the
ground, or when they are about to lay their eggs, they are
destroyed by moles, insects, and other animals, which he in
wait to seize them. Dr. Green informs us, that a species of
dragon-fly, or devil’s-needle, devours them. He also says
that an insect, which he calls the enemy of the cut-worm,
probably the larva of a Carabus or predaceous ground-beetle,
preys on the grubs of the common dor-bug. In France the
golden ground-beetle ( Carabus auratus) devours the female
dor or chafer at the moment when she is about to deposit her
egos. Ihave taken one specimen of this fine ground-beetle
in Massachusetts, and we have several other kinds, equally
predaceous, which probably contribute to check the increase
of our native Melolonthians.
Very few of the flower-beetles are decidedly injurious to
vegetation. Some of them are said to eat leaves; but the
greater number live on the pollen and the honey of flowers,
or upon the sap that oozes from the wounds of plants. In
the infant or grub state, most of them eat only the crumbled
substance of decayed roots and stumps; a few live in the
wounds of trees, and by their depredations prevent them
from healing, and accelerate the decay of the trunk.
The flower-beetles belong chiefly to a group called Crro-
NIAD#, or Cetonians. They are easily distinguished from the
other Scarabzeians by their lower jaws, which are generally
_ soft on the inside, and are often provided with a flat brush of
hairs, that serves to collect the pollen and juices on which
they subsist. Their upper jaws have no grinding plate on
the inside. Their antennz consist of ten joints, the last three
of which form a three-leaved oval knob. The head is often
square, with a large and wide visor, overhanging and entirely
40 COLEOPTERA.
concealing the upper lip. The thorax is either rounded, some-
what square, or triangular. The wing-cases do not cover
the end of the body. The fore legs are deeply notched on
the outer edge ; and the claws are equal and entire. These
beetles are generally of an oblong oval form, somewhat flat-
tened above, and often brilliantly colored and highly polished,
sometimes also covered with hairs. Most of the bright-
colored kinds are day-fliers; those of dark and plain tints
are generally nocturnal beetles. Some of them are of im-
mense size, and have been styled the princes of the beetle
tribes ; such are the Incas of South America, and the Goliah
beetle (Hegemon Goliatus) of Guinea, the latter beg more
than four inches long, two inches broad, and thick and heavy
in proportion.
Two American Cetonians must suffice as examples in this
Fig. 17. group. The first is the Indian Cetonia, Cetonia
Inda* (Fig. 17), one of our earliest visitors in
the spring, making its appearance towards the end
of April or the beginning of May, when it may
sometimes be seen in considerable numbers around
the borders of woods, and in dry, open fields, fly-
ing just above the grass with a loud humming sound, like a
humble-bee, for which perhaps it might at first sight be mis-
taken. Like other insects of the same genus, it has a broad
body, very obtuse behind, with a triangular thorax, and a
little wedge-shaped piece on each side between the hinder
angles of the thorax and the shoulders of the wing-covers ;
the latter, taken together, form an oblong square, but are
somewhat notched or widely scalloped on the middle of the
outer edges. ‘The head and thorax of this beetle are dark
copper-brown, or almost black, and thickly covered with short
greenish-yellow hairs; the wing-cases are light yellowish-
* Scarabeus Indus of Linnzeus, Cetonia barbata of Say.®
[& Cetonia Inda. The old genus Cetonia has been divided recently into many
genera, some of which have again been merged together by later investigators;
our species belong to the one called Euryomia, as enlarged by Lacordaire. — LEc.]
¥
THE AMERICAN CETONIANS. 41
brown, but changeable, with pearly and metallic tints, and
spattered with numerous irregular black spots; the under-
side of the body, which is very hairy, is of a black color, with
the edges of the rings and the legs dull red. It measures
about six tenths of an inch in length. During the summer
months the Indian Cetonia is not seen; but about the middle
of September a new brood comes forth, the beetles appearing
fresh and bright, as though they had just completed their last
transformation. At this time they may be found on the
flowers of the golden-rod, eating the pollen, and also in great
numbers on corn-stalks, and on the trunks of the locust-tree,
feeding upon the sweet sap of these plants. Fortunate would
it be for us if they fed on these only; but their love of sweets
leads them to attack our finest peaches, which, as soon as
ripe, they begin to devour, and in a very few hours entirely
spoil. I have taken a dozen of them from a single peach,
into which they had burrowed so that nothing but the naked
tips of their hind-body could be seen; and not a ripe peach
remained unbitten by them on the tree. When touched, they
leave a’strong and disagreeable scent upon the fingers. On
the approach of cold weather they disappear, but I have not
been able to ascertain what becomes of them at this time, and
only conjecture that they get into some warm and sheltered
spot, where they pass the winter in a torpid state, and in the
spring issue from their retreats, and finish their career by
depositing their eggs for another brood. ‘Those that are seen
in the spring want the freshness of the autumnal beetles, a
circumstance that favors my conjecture. ‘Their hovering over
and occasionally dropping upon the surface of the ground, is
probably for the purpose of selecting a suitable place to enter
the earth and lay their eggs. Hence I suppose that their
larvee or grubs may live on the roots of herbaceous plants.
The other Cetonian beetle to be described is the Osmo-
derma scaber,* or rough Osmoderma (Fig. 18). It is a large
* Trichius scaber, Palisot de Beauvois; Gymnodus scaber, Kirby.
6
42 COLEOPTERA.
insect, with a broad, oval, and flattened body ; the thorax is
nearly round, but wider than long;
there are no wedge-shaped pieces _be-
Fig. 18.
tween the corners of the thorax and
the shoulders of the wing-cases, and
the outer edges of the latter are en-
tire. It is of a purplish-black color,
with a coppery lustre ; the head is
punctured, concave or hollowed on
the top, with the edge of the broad
visor turned up in the males; nearly
flat, and with the edge of the visor not raised in the females ;
the wing-cases are so thickly and deeply and irregularly
punctured as to appear almost as rough as shagreen; the
under-side of the body is smooth and without hairs; and
the legs are short and stout. In addition to the differences
between the sexes above described, it may be mentioned that
the females are generally much larger than the males, and
often want the coppery polish of ans latter. They measure
from eight tenths of an inch to one inch and one tenth in
length. They are nocturnal insects, and conceal themselves
during the day in the crevices and hollows of trees, where
they feed upon the sap that flows from the bark. They have
the odor of Russia leather, and give this out so powerfully
that their presence can be detected, by the scent alone, at the
distance of two or three yards from the place of their retreat.
This strong smell suggested the name Osmoderma, that is,
scented dln: given to eee beetles by the French naturalists.
They seem particularly fond of the juices of cherry and apple
trees, in the hollows of which I have often discovered them.
Their larvee live in the hollows of these same trees, feeding
upon the diseased wood, and causing it more rapidly to de-
cay. They are whitish fleshy aril with a reddish hard-
shelled head, and closely resemble the grubs of the common
dor-beetle. In the autumn each one makes an oval cell or
pod, of fragments of wood, strongly cemented with a kind
THE LUCANTAN BEETLES. 43
of glue ; it goes through its transformation within this cell,
and comes forth in the beetle form in the month of July.
We have another scented beetle, equal in size to the pre-
ceding, of a deep mahogany-brown color,
perfectly smooth, and highly polished, and
the male has a deep pit before the middle
of the thorax. This species of Osmoderma
is called eremicola* (Fig. 19), a name
that cannot be rendered literally into Eng-
lish by any single word ; it signifies wil-
derness-inhabitant, for which might be
substituted hermit. I believe that this in-
sect lives in forest-trees, but the larva is
Fig. 19.
unknown to me.
The family Lucanipa, or Lucanians, so named from the
Linnean genus Lucanus, must be placed next to the Scara-
bzians in a natural arrangement. ‘This family includes the
insects called stag-beetles, horn-bugs, and flying-bulls, names
that they have obtained from the great size and peculiar form
of their upper jaws, which are sometimes curved like the
horns of cattle, and sometimes branched like the antlers of a
stag. In these beetles the body is hard, oblong, rounded
behind, and slightly convex; the head is large and broad,
especially in the males ; the thorax is short, and as wide as
the abdomen; the antennz are rather long, elbowed or bent
in the middle, and composed of ten joints, the last three or
four of which are broad, leaf-like, and project on the inside,
giving to this part of the antennz a resemblance to the end
of a key; the upper jaws are usually much longer in the
males than in the females, but even those of the latter ex-
tend considerably beyond the mouth; each of the under jaws
is provided with a long hairy pencil or brush, which can be
seen projecting beyond the mouth between the feelers; and
-the under lip has two shorter pencils of the same kind; the
* Cetonia eremicola of Knoch.
44 COLEOPTERA
fore legs are oftentimes longer than the others, with the outer
edge of the shanks notched into teeth; the feet are five-
jomted, and the nails are entire and equal. These beetles
fly abroad during the night, and frequently enter houses at
that time, somewhat to the alarm of the occupants; but they
are not venomous, and never attempt to bite without provo-
cation. ‘They pass the day on the trunks of trees, and live
upon the sap, for procuring which the brushes of their jaws
and lip seem to be designed. ‘They are said also occasionally
to bite and seize caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects, for
the purpose of sucking out their juices. They lay their eggs
in crevices of the bark of trees, especially near the roots,
where they may sometimes be seen thus employed. The
larvee hatched from these eggs resemble the grubs of the
Scarabeians in color and form, but they are smoother, or
not so much wrinkled. The grubs of the large kinds are
said to be six years in coming to their growth, living all
this time in the trunks and roots of trees, boring into the
solid wood, and reducing it to a substance resembling very
coarse sawdust; and the injury thus caused by them is
frequently very considerable. When they have arrived at
their full size, they enclose themselves in egg-shaped pods,
composed of gnawed particles of wood and bark stuck to-
gether and lined with a kind of glue; within these pods they
are transformed to pups, of a yellowish-white color, having
the body and all the limbs of the future beetle encased in a
whitish film, which being thrown off in due time, the insects
appear in the beetle form, burst the walls of their prison,
crawl through the passages the larvee had gnawed, and come ©
forth on the outside of the trees.
The largest of these beetles in the New England States
was first described by Linnzeus, under the name of Lucanus
Capreolus * (Fig. 20), signifying the young roebuck ; but
here it is called the horn-bug. Its color is a deep mahogany-
* Lucanus Dama of Fabricius.
THE SERRICORN BEETLES. 45
brown ; the surface is smooth and polished ; the upper jaws
of the male are long, curved like
a sickle, and furnished internally
beyond the middle with a little
tooth; those of the female are
much shorter, and also toothed ;
the head of the male is broad and
smooth, that of the other sex nar-
rower and rough with punctures.
The body of this beetle measures
from one inch to one inch and
a quarter, exclusive of the jaws.
The time of its appearance is in
July and the beginning of Au-
oust. ‘The grubs live in the trunks and roots of various
kinds of trees, but particularly in those of old apple-trees,
willows, and oaks. All the foregoing beetles have, by some
naturalists, been gathered into a single tribe, called lamelli-
corn or leaf-horned beetles, on account of the leaf-like joints
wherewith the end of their antenne is provided.
The beetles next to be described have been brought to-
gether into one great tribe, named serricorn or saw-horned
beetles, because the tips of the joints of their antennze usually
project more or less on the inside, somewhat like the teeth
of a saw. ‘The beetles belonging to the family BuprEstipa,
or the Buprestians, have antennz of this kind. The Bupres-
tts of the ancients, as its name signifies in Greek, was a poi-
sonous insect, which, being swallowed with grass by grazing
cattle, produced a violent inflammation, and such a degree
of swelling as to cause the cattle to burst. Linnzus, how-
ever, unfortunately applied this name to the insects of the
above-mentioned family, none of which are poisonous to ani-
mals, and are rarely, if ever, found upon the grass. It is in
allusion to the original signification of the word Buprestis,
that popular English writers on natural history sometimes
give the name of burncow to the harmless Buprestians ; while
Fig. 20.
46 COLEOPTERA.
the French, with greater propriety, call them richards, on
account of the rich and brilliant colors wherewith many of
them are adorned. ‘The Buprestians, then, according to the
Linnean application, or rather misapplication, of the name,
are hard-shelled beetles, often brilliantly colored, of an ellip-
tical or oblong oval form, obtuse before, tapering behind, and
broader than thick, so that, when cut in two transversely, the
section is oval. The head is sunk to the eyes in the fore part
of the thorax ; and the antennz are rather short, and notched
on one side like the teeth of a saw. ‘The thorax is broadest
behind, and usually fits very closely to the shoulders of the
wing-covers. ‘The legs are rather short, and the feet are
formed for standing firmly, rather than for rapid motion; the
soles being composed of four rather wide joints, covered with
little spongy cushions beneath, and terminated by a fifth joint,
which is armed with two claws. Most beetles, as already
stated, have a little triangular piece, called the scutel, wedged
between the bases of the wing-covers and the hinder part of
the thorax, commonly of a triangular or semicircular form, and
in the greater number of coleopterous insects quite conspicu-
ous; in the Buprestians, however, the scutel is generally '
very small, and sometimes hardly perceptible. These beetles
are frequently seen on the trunks and limbs of trees basking
in the sun. They walk slowly, and, at the approach of
danger, fold up their legs and antenne and fall to the ground.
Being furnished with ample wings, their flight is swift, and
attended with a whizzing noise. ‘They keep concealed in
the night, and are in motion only during the day.
The larve are wood-eaters or borers. Our forests and
orchards are more or less subject to their attacks, especially
after the trees have passed their prime. The transforma-
tions of these insects take place in the trunks and limbs of
trees. The larve that are known to me have a close
resemblance to each other; a general idea of them can be
formed from a description of that which attacks the pig-nut
hickory (Fig. 21). It is of a yellowish-white color, very
FORESE-TREE(BORERS. 47
long, narrow, and depressed in form, but abruptly widened
near the anterior extremity. The head is brownish,
small, and sunk in the fore part of the first segment ;
the upper jaws are provided with three teeth, and
are of a black color; and the antennz are very
short. ‘The segment which receives the head is
short and transverse ; next to it is a large oval seg-
ment, broader than long, and depressed or flattened sid cas
above and beneath. Behind this, the segments are Buprestis.
very much narrowed, and become gradually longer; but are
still flattened, to the last, which is terminated by a rounded
tubercle or wart. There are no legs, nor any apparatus which
can serve as such, except two small warts on the under-side
of the second segment from the thorax. The motion of the
grub appears to be effected by the alternate contractions and
elongations of the segments, aided, perhaps, by the tubercu-
lar extremity of the body, and by its jaws, with which it takes
hold of the sides of its burrow, and thus draws itself along.
These grubs are found under the bark and in the solid wood
of trees, and sometimes in great numbers. They frequently
rest with the body bent sidewise, so that the head and tail
approach each other. This posture those found under bark
usually assume. They appear to pass several years in the
larva state. The pupa bears a near resemblance to the per-
fect insect, but is entirely white, until near the time of its last
transformation. Its situation is immediately under the bark,
the head being directed outwards, so that, when the pupa-coat
is cast off, the beetle has merely a thin covering of bark to
perforate, before making its escape from the tree. The form
of this perforation is oval, as is also a transverse section of the
burrow, that shape being best adapted to the form, motions,
and egress of the insect.
Some of these beetles are known to eat leaves and flowers,
and of this nature is probably the food of all of them. The
injury they may thus commit is not very apparent, and can-
not bear any comparison with the extensive ravages of their
48 COLEOPTERA.
larve. The solid trunks and limbs of sound and vigorous
trees are often bored through in various directions by these
insects, which, during a long-continued life, derive their only
nourishment from the woody fragments they devour. Pines
and firs seem particularly subject to their attacks, but other
forest-trees do not escape, and even fruit-trees are frequently
injured by these borers. The means to be used for destroy-
ing them are similar to those employed against other borers,
and will be explained in a subsequent part of this essay. It
may not be amiss, however, here to remark, that woodpeckers
are much more successful in discovering the retreats of these
borers, and in dragging out the defenceless culprits from their
burrows, than the most skilful gardener or nurseryman.
The largest of these beetles in this part of the United
States is the Buprestis (Chalcophora) Vir-
gmica (Fig. 22) of Drury, or Virginian
Buprestis. It is of an oblong oval form,
brassy, or copper-colored ; sometimes almost
black, with hardly any metallic reflections.
The upper side of the body is roughly punc-
tured; the top of the head is deeply in-
dented ; on the thorax there are three pol-
ished black elevated lines ; on each wing-cover are two small
square impressed spots, a long elevated smooth black line
near the outer, and another near the inner margin, with sey-
eral short lines of the same kind between them; the under-
side of the body is sparingly covered with short whitish down.
It measures from eight tenths of an inch to one inch or more
in length. This beetle appears towards the end of May, and
through the month of June, on pine-trees and on fences. In
the larva state it bores into the trunks of the different kinds
of pines, and is oftentimes very injurious to these trees.
The wild cherry-tree (Prunus serotina), and also the
garden cherry and peach trees, suffer severely from the at-
tacks of borers, which are transformed to the beetles called
Buprestis (Dicerca) divaricata by Mr. Say, because the wing- —
Fig. 22.
‘
THE BUPRESTIANS. 49
covers divaricate or spread apart a little at the tips. (Plate
II. Fig. 7.) These beetles are copper-colored, sometimes
brassy above, and thickly covered with little punctures ; the
thorax is slightly furrowed in the middle; the wing-covers
are marked with numerous fine irregular impressed lines and
small oblong square elevated black spots ; they taper very
much behind, and the long and narrow tips are blunt-pointed ;
the middle of the breast is furrowed; and the males have
a little tooth on the under-side of the shanks of the inter-
mediate legs. ‘They measure from seven to nine tenths of
an inch. These beetles may be found sunning themselves
upon the limbs of cherry and peach trees during the months
of June, July, and August.
The borer of the hickory has already been described. It
is transformed to a beetle which appears to be gig, 93,
the Buprestis (Dicerca) lurida* (Fig. 23) of 4
Fabricius. It is of a.lurid or dull brassy color
above, bright copper beneath, and thickly punc-
tured all over; there are numerous irregular
impressed lines, and several narrow elevated
black spots on the wing-covers, the tip of each of which ends
with two little points. It measures from about six to eight
tenths of an inch in length. This kind of Buprestis appears
during the greater part of the summer on the trunks and
limbs of the hickory.
Buprestis (Chrysobothris) dentipes + (Fig. 24) of Germar,
so named from the little tooth on the under-side Fig, 24.
of the thick fore legs, inhabits the trunks of oak-
trees. It completes its transformations and comes
out of the trees between the end of May and the
first of July. It is oblong, oval, and flattened,
of a bronzed brownish or purplish-black color
above, copper-colored beneath, and rough like shagreen with
* Buprestis obscura, F., found in the Middle and Southern States, closely resem-
bles the durida.
{ Buprestis characteristica, Harris. N. E. Farmer, Vol. VII. p. 2,
7
50 COLEOPTERA.
numerous punctures ; the thorax is not so wide as the hinder
part of the body, its hinder margin is hollowed on both sides
to receive the rounded base of each wing-cover, and there
are two smooth elevated lines on the middle; on each wing-
cover there are three irregular smooth elevated lines, which
are divided and interrupted by large thickly punctured im-
pressed spots, two of which are oblique; the tips are round-
ed. Length from one half to six tenths of an inch.
Buprestis (Chrysobothris) femorata (Fig. 25) of Fabricius
Fie.95. aas the first pair of thighs toothed beneath, like
the preceding, which it resembles also in its form
and general appearance. It is of a greenish-black
color above, with a brassy polish, which is very
distinct in the two large transverse impressed spots
on each wing-cover ; and the thorax has no smooth elevated
lines on it. It measures from four tenths to above half of an
inch in length. Its time of appearance is from the end of
May to the middle of July, during which it may often be
seen, in the middle of the day, resting upon or flying round
‘the trunks of white-oak trees, and recently cut timber of the
same kind of wood. I have repeatedly taken it upon and
under the bark of peach-trees also. The grubs or larve
bore into the trunks of these trees.
The Buprestis (Chrysobothris) fulvoguttata* (Fig. 26), or
Fig 26. tawny-spotted Buprestis, first described by me in
the eighth volume of the ‘“ New England Farm-
er,’ is proportionally shorter and more convex
than the two foregoing species. It is black and
bronzed above, and brassy beneath ; the thorax is
covered with very fine wavy transverse lines, and is some-
* Mr. Kirby has re-described and figured this insect under the name of Buprestis
(Trachypteris) Drummondi, in the fourth volume of the “Fauna Boreali-Ameri-
cana.” 7
[7 Buprestis ( Chrysobothris) fulvoguttata does not belong to Chrysobothris but to
Melanophila, Esch. The anterior thighs are not armed with a tooth, and the base
of the thorax is truncate. — LEc.]
in SP RENG BEE. LES, 5
times copper-colored ; the wing-covers are thickly punctured ;
and on each there are three small tawny yellow spots, with
sometimes an additional one by the side of the first spot;
the tips are rounded, and the fore legs are not toothed. It
varies very much in size, measuring from about three to
four tenths of an inch in length. JI have taken this insect
from the trunks of the white pine in the month of June, and
have seen others that were found in the Oregon Territory.
Professor Hentz has described a small and broad beetle
having the form of the above, under the name of Buprestis
(Chrysobothris) Harrisu. (Plate II. Fig. 2.) It is entirely of
a brilliant blue-green color, except the sides of the thorax, and
the thighs, which in the male are copper-colored. It meas-
ures a little more than three tenths of an inch in length.
~The larve of this species inhabit the small limbs of the white
pine, and young.sapling trees of the same kind, upon which
I have repeatedly captured the beetles about the middle of
June.
These seven species form but a very small part of the Bu-
prestians inhabiting Massachusetts and the other New Eng-
land States. My knowledge of the habits of the others is not
sufficiently perfect to render it worth while to insert descrip-
tions of them here. ‘The concealed situation of the grubs of
these beetles, in the trunks and limbs of trees, renders it
very difficult to discover and dislodge them. When trees
are found to be very much infested by them, and are going
to decay in consequence of the ravages of these borers, it will
be better to cut them down, and burn them immediately,
rather than to suffer them to stand until the borers have
completed their transformations and made their escape.
Closely related to the Buprestians are the Elaters, or
spring-beetles, (ELATERID#,) which are well known by the
faculty they have of throwimg themselves upwards with a
jerk, when laid on their backs. On the under-side of the
breast, between the bases of the first pair of legs, there is a
short, blunt spine, the point of which is usually concealed in
59 COLEOPTERA.
a corresponding cavity behind it. When the insect, by any
accident, falls upon its back, its legs are so short, and its
back is so convex, that it is unable to turn itself over. It
then folds its legs close to its body, bends back the head and
thorax, and thus unsheathes its breast-spine ; then, by suddenly
straightening its body,.the point of the spine is made to strike
with force upon the edge of the sheath, which gives it the
power of a spring, and reacts on the body of the insect, so
as to throw it perpendicularly into the air. When it again
falls, if it does not come down upon its feet, it repeats its ex-
ertions until its object is effected. In these beetles the body
is of a hard consistence, and is usually rather narrow and
tapering behind. The head is sunk to the eyes in the fore
part of the thorax; the antenne are of moderate length, and
more or less notched on the inside like a saw. The thorax
is as broad at the base as the wing-covers; it is usually
rounded before, and the hinder angles are sharp and promi-
nent. The scutel is of moderate size. The legs are rather
short and slender, and the feet are five-jointed.
The larve or grubs of the Elaters live upon wood and
roots, and are often very injurious to vegetation. Some
are confined to old or decaying trees, others devour the
roots of herbaceous plants. In England they are called
wire-worms, from their slenderness and uncommon hard-
ness. They are not to be confounded with the American
wire-worm, a species of Julus, which is not a true insect,
but belongs to the class Myrtapopa, a name derived from
the great number of feet with which most of the animals
included in it are furnished ; whereas the English wire-worm
has only six feet. The European wire-worm is said to live,
in its feeding or larva state, not less than five years; during
the greater part of which time it is supported by devouring
the roots of wheat, rye, oats, and grass, annually causing a
large diminution of the produce, and sometimes destroying
whole crops. It is said to be particularly injurious in gar-
dens recently converted from pasture lands. We have
THE SPRING-BEETLES. ey
several grubs allied to this destructive insect, which are
quite common in land newly broken up; but fortunately,
as yet, their ravages are inconsiderable. We may expect
these to increase in proportion as we disturb them and de-
prive them of their usual articles of food, while we continue
also to persecute and destroy their natural enemies, the birds,
and may then be obliged to resort tothe ingenious method
adopted by European farmers and gardeners for alluring
and capturing these grubs. This method consists in strew-
ing sliced potatoes or turnips in rows through the garden or
field; women and. boys are employed to examine the slices
every morning, and collect the insects which readily come to
feed upon the bait. Some of these destructive insects, which
I have found in the ground among the roots of plants, were
long, slender, worm-like grubs, closely resembling the com-
mon meal-worm; they were nearly cylindrical, with a hard
and smooth skin, of a buff or brownish-yellow color, the
head and tail only being a little darker; each of the first
three rings was provided with a pair of short legs ; the hind-
most ring was longer than the preceding one, was pointed at
the end, and had a little pit on each side of the extremity ;
beneath this part there was a short retractile wart, or prop-
leg, serving to support the extremity of the body, and prevent
it from trailing on the ground. Other grubs of Elaters differ
from the foregoing in being proportionally broader, not cy-
lindrical, but somewhat flattened, with a deep notch at the
extremity of the last ring, the sides of which are beset with
little teeth. Such grubs are mostly wood-eaters, devouring
the woody parts of roots, or living under the bark and in the
trunks of old trees.
After their last transformation, Elaters or spring-beetles
make their appearance upon trees and fences, and some are
found on flowers. They creep slowly, and generally fall to
the ground on being touched. They fly both by day and
night. Their food, in the beetle state, appears to be chietly
derived from flowers; but some devour the tender leaves
of plants.
54 COLEOPTERA.
The largest of our spring-beetles is the later (Alaus)
oculatus of Linnzeus (Fig. 27). It is
of a black color ; the thorax is oblong-
square, and nearly one third the length
of the whole body, covered above with a
whitish powder, and with a large oval
velvet-black spot, ike an eye, on each.
side of the middle, from which the in-
sect derives its name, oculatus, or eyed ;
the wing-covers are marked with slen-
der longitudinal impressed lines, and are
sprinkled with numerous white dots ;
: the under-side of the body, and the
legs, are covered with a white mealy powder. This large
beetle measures from one inch and a quarter to one inch and
three quarters in length. It is found on trees, fences, and
Fig. 27.
the sides of buildings, in June and July. It undergoes its
transformations in the trunks of trees. I have found many
of them in old apple-trees, together with their larvee, which
eat the wood, and from which I subsequently obtained the
insects in the beetle state. These larve are reddish-yellow
grubs, proportionally much broader than the other kinds,
and very much flattened. One of them, which was found
fully grown early in April, measured two inches and a half
in length, and nearly four tenths of an inch across the mid-
dle of the body, and was not much narrowed at either ex-
tremity. The head was broad, brownish, and rough above ;
the upper jaws or nippers were very strong, curved, and
pointed ; the eyes were small and two in number, one being —
placed at the base of each of the short antennz; the last
segment of the body was blackish, rough with little sharp-
pointed warts, with a deep semicircular notch at the end,
and furnished around the sides with little teeth, the two
hindmost of which were long, forked, and curved upwards
like hooks ; under this segment was a large retractile fleshy
prop-foot, armed behind with little claws, and around the
Lin SENG BEETLES. We
sides with short spines; the true legs were six, a pair to
each of the first three rmgs; and were tipped with a single
claw. Soon after this grub was found, it cast its skin and
became a pupa, and in due time the latter was transformed
to a beetle.
Elater (Pyrophorus) noctilucus, the night-shining Elater,
is the celebrated cucwio or fire-beetle of the West Indies,
from whence it is frequently brought alive to this country.
It resembles the preceding insect somewhat in form, and is
an inch or more in length. It gives out a strong hight from
two transparent eye-like spots on the thorax, and from the
seoments of its body beneath. It eats the pulpy substance
of the sugar-cane, and its grub is said to be very injurious
to this plant, by devouring its roots.
The next two common Elaters, together with several other
species, are distinguished by their claws, which resemble hit-
tle combs, being furnished with a row of fine teeth along the
under-side. The thorax is short and rounded before, and
the body tapers behind. They are found under the bark of
trees, where they pass the winter, having completed their
transformations in the previous autumn. ‘Their
erubs live in wood. The first of these beetles is
the ash-colored Elater, Hlater (Melanotus) cine-
reus of Weber (Fig. 28). It is about six tenths
of an inch long, and is dark brown, but covered
with short gray hairs, which give it an ashen
hue; the thorax is convex, and the wing-covers
are marked with lines of punctures, resembling stitches. It
is found on fences, the trunks of trees, and in paths, in
April and May.
Hater (Melanotus) communis of Schénherr, is, as its name
imples, an exceedingly common and abundant species. It
closely resembles the preceding, but is smaller, seldom ex-
ceeding half an inch in length; it is also rather lighter
colored ; the thorax is proportionally a little longer, not so
convex, and has a slender longitudinal furrow in the middle.
Fig. 28.
—
56 COLEOPTERA.
This Elater appears in the same piaces as the cimereus in
April, May, and June; and the recently transformed beetles
can also be found in the autumn under the bark of trees,
where they pass the winter.
Another kind of spring-beetle, which absolutely swarms in
paths and among the grass during the warmest and brightest
days in April and May, is the Hlater (Ludius) appressifrons
of Say. Its specific name probably refers to the front of
the head or visor being pressed downwards over the lip. The
body is slender and almost cylindrical, of a deep chestnut-
brown color, rendered gray, however, by the numerous short
yellowish hairs with which it is covered.; the thorax is of
moderate length, not much narrowed before, convex above,
with very long and sharp-pointed hinder angles, and in cer-
tain lights has a brassy hue; the wing-covers are finely punc-
tured, and have very slender impressed longitudinal lines
upon them; the claws are not toothed beneath. This beetle
usually measures from four to five tenths of an inch in
length ; but the females frequently greatly exceed these di-
mensions, and, being much more robust, with a more convex
thorax, were supposed by Mr. Say to belong to a different
species, named by him brevicornis, the short-horned. The
larvee are not yet known to me; but I have strong reasons
for thinking that they live in the ground, upon the roots of
the perennial grasses and other herbaceous plants.
Although above sixty different kinds of spring-beetles are
Fig. 29. now known to inhabit Massachusetts, I shall
add to the foregoing a description of only one
more species. This is the later (Agriotes)
obesus® of Say (Fig. 29). It is a short and
thick beetle, as the specific name implies ; its
real color is a dark brown, but it is covered with
dirty yellowish-gray hairs, which on the wing-
covers are arranged in longitudinal stripes; the head and
[8 Elater ( Agriotes) obesus. I am inclined to believe this species to be the Ela-
ter mancus, Say, and not his £. obesus, which is now entirely unknown. — LEc.]
THRE TPEMBER-BEET LES. Si
thorax are thickly punctured, and the wing-covers are punc-
tured in rows. Its length is about three tenths of an inch.
This beetle closely resembles one of the kinds which, in
the grub state, is called the wire-worm in Europe, and pos-
sibly it may be the same. ‘This circumstance should put us
on our guard against its depredations. It is found in April,
May, and J une, among the roots of grass, on the under-side
of boards and rails on the ground, and sometimes also on
fences.
The utility of a knowledge of the natural history of in-
sects in the practical arts of life was never more strikingly
and triumphantly proved than by Linnzus himself, who,
while giving to natural science its language and its laws,
neglected no opportunity to point out its economical advan-
tages.* On one occasion this great naturalist was consulted
by the King of Sweden upon the cause of the decay and
destruction of the ship-timber in the royal dock-yards, and,
having traced it to the depredations of insects, and ascer-
tamed the history of the depredators, by directing the timber
to be sunk under water during the season when these insects
made their appearance in the winged state, and were busied
im laying their eggs, he effectually secured it from future
attacks. ‘The name of these insects is Lymezxylon navale, the
naval timber-destroyer. ‘They have since increased to an
alarming extent in some of the dock-yards of France, and in
one of them, at least, have become very injurious, wholly in
consequence of the neglect of seasonable advice given by a
naval officer, who was also an entomologist, and pointed out
the source of the injury, together with the remedy to be
applied.
* See the Preface to Smith’s “Introduction to Botany,’ and Pulteney’s “ View
of the Writings of Linnzeus,” for several examples, one of which it may not be
amiss to mention here. Linnzeus was the first to point out the advantages to
be derived from employing the Arundo arenaria, or beach-grass, in fixing the
sands of the shore, and thereby preventing the encroachments of the sea. The
Dutch have long availed themselves of his suggestion, and its utility has been
tested to some extent in Massachusetts.
8
|
|
58 COLEOPTERA.
These destructive insects belong to a family called Ly-
MEXYLIDH, which may be rendered timber-beetles. They
cannot be far removed from the Buprestians and the spring-
beetles in a natural arrangement. From the latter, however,
the insects of this small group are distinguished by having
the head broad before, narrowed behind, and not sunk into
the thorax; they have not the breast-spine of the Elaters,
and their legs are close together, and not separated from
each other by a broad breast-bone as in the Buprestians ;
and the hip-joints are long, and not sunk into the breast.
In the principal insects of this family the antennze are short,
and, from the third joint, flattened, widened, and saw-toothed
on the inside; and the jaw-feelers of the males have a singu-
lar fringed piece attached to them. ‘The body is long, nar-
row, nearly cylindrical, and not so firm and hard as in the
Elaters. The feet are five-jointed, long, and slender.
The larve of Lymexylon and Hylecetus are very odd-
looking, long, and slender grubs. ‘The head is small; the
first ring is very much hunched; and on the top of the last
ring there is a fleshy appendage, resembling a leaf in Ly-
mexylon, and like a straight horn in Hylecetus. ‘They have
six short legs near the head. These grubs inhabit oak-trees,
and make long cylindrical burrows in the solid wood. They
are also found in some other kinds of trees.
Only a few native insects of this family are known to me,
and these fortunately seem to be rare in New
England. I shall describe only two of them.
The first was obtained by beating the limbs of
some forest-tree. It may be called Lymexylon
sericeum (Fig. 30), the silky timber-beetle. It
is of a chestnut-brown color above, and covered
with very short shining yellowish hairs, which
give it a silky lustre. The head is bowed down beneath
the fore part of the thorax; the eyes are very large, and
almost meet above and below; the antennz are brownish
red, widened and compressed from the fourth to the last
Fig. 30.
THE WHEVILS. 59
joint inclusive ; the thorax is longer than wide, rounded be-
fore, convex above, and deeply indented on each side of the
base ; the wing-covers are convex, gradually taper behind,
and do not cover the tip of the abdomen ; the under-side of
the body, and the legs, are brownish red. Its length is from
four to six tenths of an inch. This insect was unknown to
Mr. Say, and does not seem to have been described before.
The generical name Hylecetus, given to some insects of
this family, means a sleeper in the woods, or one who makes
his bed in the forest. We have one hitherto undescribed
species, which may be called Hylecwtus Americanus, the
American timber-beetle. Its head, thorax, abdomen, and
legs are light brownish red; the wing-covers, except at the
base, where they are also red, and the breast, between the
middle and hindmost legs, are black. ‘The head is not bowed
down under the fore part of the thorax; the eyes are small
and black, and on the middle of the forehead there is one
small reddish eyelet, a character unusual among beetles, very
few of which have eyelets; the antennze resemble those of
Lymexylon sericewum, but are shorter; the thorax is nearly
square, but wider than long; and on each wing-cover there
are three slightly elevated longitudinal lines or ribs. This
beetle is about four tenths of an inch long. It appears on
the wing in July.
The foregoing beetles, though differing much in form and
habits, possess one character in common ; namely, their feet
are five-jointed. Those that follow have four-jointed feet.
In this great section of Coleopterous insects are arranged
the Weevil tribe, the Capricorn beetles or long-horned bor-
ers, and various kinds of leaf-eating beetles, all of which are
exceedingly injurious to vegetation.
So great is the extent of the Weevil tribe,* and so imper-
fectly known is the history of a large part of our native
* See page 21.
60 COLEOPTERA.
species, that I shall be obliged to confine myself to an ac-
count of a few only of the most remarkable weevils, and
principally those that have become most known for their
depredations. Mr. Kollar’s excellent ‘‘ Treatise on Insects
injurious to Gardeners, Foresters, and Farmers,’ contains
an account of several kinds of weevils that are unknown
in this country ; and indeed but few resembling them have
hitherto been discovered here. Should future observations
lead to the detection in our gardens and orchards of any
hike those which in Europe attack the vine, the plum, the
apple, the pear, and the leaves and stems of fruit-trees, the
work of Mr. Kollar may be consulted with great advantage.
Weevils, in the winged state, are hard-shelled beetles, and
are distinguished from other insects by having the fore part
of the head prolonged into a broad muzzle or a longer and
more slender snout, in the end of which the opening of the
mouth and the small horny jaws are placed. ‘The flies and
moths produced from certain young insects, called weevils
by mistake, do not possess these characters, and their larvee
or young differ essentially from those of the true weevils.
The latter belong to a group called RuyncHoPHoripa, Ilit-
erally, snout-bearers. These beetles are mostly of small size.
Their antennz are usually knobbed at the end, and are
situated on the muzzle or snout, on each side of which there
is generally a short groove to receive the base of the antennz
when the latter are turned backwards. Their feelers are
very small, and, in most kinds, are concealed within the
mouth. ‘The abdomen is often of an oval form, and wider
than the thorax. The legs are short, not fitted for run-
ning or digging, and the soles of the feet are short and
flattened. These beetles are often very hurtful to plants,
by boring into the leaves, bark, buds, fruit, and seeds, and
feeding upon the soft substance therein contained. They
are diurnal insects, and love to come out of their retreats
and enjoy the sunshine. Some of them fly well; but others
have no wings, or only very short ones, under the wing-
Tse DI AS a8 eae 61
cases, and are therefore unable to fly. They walk slowly,
and being of a timid nature, and without the means of de-
fence, when alarmed they turn back their antenne under
the snout, fold up their legs, and fall from the plants on
which they live. They make use of their snouts not only
in feeding, but in boring holes, into which they afterwards
drop their eggs.
The young of these snout-beetles are mostly short fleshy
grubs, of a whitish color, and without legs. The covering of
their heads is a hard shell, and the rings of their bodies are
very convex or hunched, by both of which characters they
are easily distinguished from the maggots of flies. Their
jaws are strong and horny, and with them they gnaw those
parts of plants which serve for their food. It is in the grub
state that weevils are most injurious to vegetation. Some
of them bore into and spoil fruits, grain, and seeds; some
attack the leaves and stems of plants, causing them to swell
and become cankered; while others penetrate into the solid
wood, interrupt the course of the sap, and occasion the
branch above the seat of attack to wither and die. Most
of these grubs are transformed within the vegetable sub-
stances upon which they have lived; some, however, when
fully grown, go into the ground, where they are changed
to pupe, and afterwards to beetles.
In the spring of the year, we often find among seed-
peas many that have holes in them; and, if the peas have
not been exposed to the light and air, we see a little m-
sect peeping out of each of these holes, and waiting appar-
ently for an opportunity to come forth and make its escape.
If we turn out the creature from its cell, we perceive it to
be a small oval beetle, rather more than one tenth of an
inch long, of a rusty black color, with a white spot on the
hinder part of the thorax, four or five white dots behind
the middle of each wing-cover, and a white spot shaped like
the letter T on the exposed extremity of the body. This
little insect is the Bruchus Pisi of Linneus (Fig. 31), the
62 COLEOPTERA.
pea-Bruchus, or pea-weevil, but is better known in America
by the incorrect name of pea-bug. The original
meaning of the word Bruchus is a devourer, and
the insects to which it is applied well deserve this
name, for, in the larva state, they devour the in-
terior of seeds, often leaving but little more than
the hull untouched. They belong to a family of
the great weevil tribe called Brucuip#, and are distin-
guished from other weevils by the following characters. The
body is oval, and slightly convex; the head is bent down-
wards, so that the broad muzzle, when the insects are not
eating, rests upon the breast ; the antenne are short, straight,
and saw-toothed within, and are inserted close to a deep
notch in each of the eyes; the feelers, though very small,
are visible; the wing-cases do not cover the end of the ab-
domen; and the hindmost thighs are very thick, and often
notched or toothed on the under-side, as is the case in the
pea-weevil. The habits of the Bruchians and their larve
are similar to those of the pea-weevil, which remain to be
described. It may be well, however, to state here, that these
beetles frequent the leguminous or pod-bearing plants, such
as the pea, Gleditschia, Robinia, Mimosa, Cassia, &c., during
and immediately after the flowering season ; they wound the
skin of the tender pods of these plants, and lay their eggs
singly in the wounds. Each of the little maggot-like grubs
hatched therefrom perforates the pod and enters a seed, the
pulp of which suffices for its food till fully grown.
Few persons while indulging in the luxury of early green
peas are aware how many insects they unconsciously swal-
low. When the pods are carefully examined, small discol-
ored spots may be seen within them, each one corresponding
to a similar spot on the opposite pea. If this spot in the
pea be opened, a minute whitish grub, destitute of feet, will
be found therein. It is the weevil in its larva form, which
lives upon the marrow of the pea, and arrives at its full
size by the time that the pea becomes dry. ‘This larva or
Fig. 31.
THE PEE A=W Ee WL. 63
grub then bores a round hole from the hollow in the centre
of the pea quite to the hull, but leaves the latter, and gen-
erally the germ of the future sprout, untouched. Hence
these buggy peas, as they are called by seedsmen and gar-
deners, will frequently sprout and grow when planted. The
grub is changed to a pupa within its hole in the pea in the
autumn, and before the spring casts its skin again, becomes
-a beetle, and gnaws a hole through the thin hull in order to
make its escape into the air, which frequently does not hap-
pen before the peas are planted for an early crop. After
the pea-vines have flowered, and while the pods are young
and tender, and the peas within them are just beginning to
swell, the beetles gather upon them, and deposit their tiny
egos singly in the punctures or wounds which they make
upon the surface of the pods. This is done mostly during
the night, or in cloudy weather. The grubs, as soon as
they are hatched, penetrate the pod and bury themselves
in the opposite peas; and the holes through which they
pass into the seeds are so fine as hardly to be perceived,
and are soon closed. Sometimes every pea in a pod will
be found to contain a weevil-grub; and so great has been
the injury to the crop, in some parts of the country, that
the inhabitants have been obliged to give up the cultivation
of this vegetable.* These insects diminish the weight of the
peas in which they lodge nearly one half, and their leavings
are fit only for the food of swine. ‘This occasions a great
loss where peas are raised for feeding stock or for family
use, as they are in many places. Those persons who eat
whole peas in the winter after they are raised, run the risk
of eating the weevils also; but if the peas are kept till they
are a year old, the insects will entirely leave them.
The pea-weevil is supposed to be a native of the United
States. It seems to have been first noticed in Pennsylvania,
* See Kalm’s Travels, (8vo, Warrington, 1770,) Vol. I. p. 178.
t See the “ Boston Cultivator’ for July 1, 1848, for an interesting account of
the habits of these insects, by Mr. S. Deane.
64 COLEOPTERA.
many years ago, and has gradually spread from thence to
New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and
Massachusetts. It is yet rare in New Hampshire, and I
believe has not appeared in the eastern parts of Maine. It
is unknown in the North of Europe, as we learn from the
interesting account given of it by Kalm, the Swedish tray-
eller, who tells us of the fear with which he was filled on
finding some of these weevils in a parcel of peas which he
had carried home from America, having in view the whole
damage which his beloved country would have suffered, if
only two or three of these noxious insects had escaped him.
They are now common in the South of Europe and in Eng-
land, whither they may have been carried from this country.
As the cultivated pea was not originally a native of Amer-
ica, it would be interesting to ascertain what plants the pea-
weevil formerly inhabited. That it should have preferred
the prolific exotic pea to any of our indigenous and less
productive pulse, is not a matter of surprise, analogous facts
being of common occurrence ; but that, for so many years, a
rational method for checking its ravages should not have been
practised, is somewhat remarkable. An exceedingly simple
one is recommended by Deane, but to be successful it should
be universally adopted. It consists merely in keeping seed-
peas in tight vessels over one year before planting them.
Latreille and others recommend putting them, just before
they are to be planted, into hot water for a minute or two,
by which means the weevils will be killed, and the sprouting
of the peas will be quickened. The insect is limited to a
certain period for depositing its eggs ; late-sown peas there-
fore escape its attacks. The late Colonel Pickering observed
that those sown in Pennsylvania as late as the 20th of May
were entirely free from weevils ; and Colonel Worthington,
of Rensselaer County, New York, who sowed his peas on
the 10th of June, six years in succession, never found an
insect in them during that period.
The crow black-bird is said to devour great numbers of
PEE GMT IAC CA NS 65
the beetles in the spring ; and the Baltimore oriole or hang-
bird splits open the green pods for the sake of the grubs con-
tamed in the peas, thereby contributing greatly to prevent
the increase of these noxious insects. ‘The instinct that en-
ables this beautiful bird to detect the lurking grub, concealed,
as the latter is, within the pod and the hull of the pea, is
worthy our highest admiration ; and the goodness of Provi-
dence, which has endowed it with this faculty, is still further
shown in the economy of the insects also, which, through
His prospective care, are not only limited in the season of
their depredations, but are instinctively taught to spare the
germs of the peas, thereby securing a succession of crops
for our benefit and that of their own progeny.
The Attelabians (ATTELABID#£) are distinguished from the
Bruchians by the form and greater length of the head, which
is a little inclined, and ends with a snout, sometimes short
and thick, and sometimes long, slender, and curved. The
eyes also are round and entire, and the antennz are usually
implanted near the middle of the snout. The larve re-
semble those of most of the snout-beetles, being short, thick,
whitish grubs, with horny heads, the rings of the body very
much hunched, and deprived of legs, the place of which is
supplied by fleshy warts along the under-side of the body.
Some of the European insects of this family are known to be
very injurious to the leaves, fruits, and seeds of plants.
The different kinds of Attelabus are said to roll up the
edges of leaves, thereby forming little nests, of the shape and
size of thimbles, to contain their eggs, and to shelter their
young, which afterwards devour the leaves. Fig. 82.
The larve and habits of our native species
are unknown tome. The most common one
here is the Attelabus analis of Weber (Ig.
32), or the red-tailed Attelabus. It 1s one
quarter of an inch long from the tip of the
thick snout to the end of the body. The
head, which is nearly cylindrical, the antenne, legs, and
9
66 COLEOP TER A.
middle of the breast, are deep blue-black ; the thorax, wing-
covers, and abdomen are dull red; the wing-covers, taken
together, are nearly square, and are punctured in rows.
This beetle is found on the leaves of oak-trees in June and
July.
The two-spotted Attelabus, Attelabus bipustulatus of Fabri-
cius, (Plate II. Fig. 6,) is also found on oak-leaves during the
same season as the preceding. It is of a deep blue-black
color, with a square dull red spot on the shoulders of each
wing-cover. It measures rather more than one eighth of an
inch in length.
Two or three beetles of this family are very hurtful to the
vine, in Europe, by nibbling the midrib of the leaves, so that
the latter may be rolled up to form a retreat for their young.
They also puncture the buds and the tender fruit of this and
of other plants. In consequence of the damage caused by
them and by their larvae, whole vineyards are sometimes
stripped of their leaves, and fruit-trees are despoiled of their
foliage and fruits. These insects belong to the genus Ryn-
chites, a name given to them in allusion to their snouts. I
have not seen any of them on vines or fruit-trees in this
country. The largest one found here is the Rynchites bicolor
of Fabricius, or two-colored Rynchites. This insect is met
with in June, July, and August, on cultivated and wild
rose-bushes, sometimes in considerable numbers. That they
injure these plants is highly probable, but the nature and
extent of the injury is not certainly known. The whole
of the upper side of this beetle is red, except the rather
long and slender snout, which, together with the antenna,
legs, and under-side of the body, is black; it is thickly
covered with small punctures, and is slightly downy, and
there are rows of larger punctures on the wing-covers. It
measures one fifth of an inch from the eyes to the tip of —
the abdomen.
The grubs of many kinds of Apion destroy the seeds of
plants. In Europe they do much mischief to clover in this
THE BRENTHIANS. 67
way. ‘They receive the above name from the shape of the
beetles, which resembles that of a pear. Say’s Apion, Apion
Sayi * of Schonherr (Fig. 33), is a minute black
species, not more than one tenth of an inch long,
exclusive of the slender, sharp-pointed snout. Its
grubs live in the pods of the common wild-indigo
bush, Baptisia tinctoria, devouring the seeds. A
smaller kind, somewhat like it, mhabits the pods
and eats the seeds of the locust-tree, or Robinia
pseudacacia.
Naturalists place here a little group of snout-beetles, called
BreNTHID#, or Brenthians, which differ entirely in their
forms from the other weevils, both in the beetle and grub
state. They have a long, narrow, and cylindrical body.
The snout projects from the head in a straight line with
the body, and varies in shape according to the sex of the
insect, and even in individuals of the same sex. In the
males it is broad and flat, sometimes as long as the thorax,
sometimes much shorter, and it is widened at the tip, where
are situated two strong nippers or upper jaws; in the females
it is long, very slender, and not enlarged at the extremity,
and the nippers are not visible to the naked eye. The
feelers are too small to be seen. The antennz are short,
straight, slightly thickened towards the tip, and implanted
before the prominent eyes, on the middle of the snout in
the males, and at the base of it in the females. The legs
are short, the first pair being the largest, and the hindmost
unusually distant from the middle pair. These insects live
under the bark and in the trunks of trees, but very little
has been published respecting their habits ; and the only
description of their larve that has hitherto appeared is con-
tained in my first Report on the Insects of Massachusetts,
printed in the year 1838, in the seventy-second number of
the ** Documents of the House of Representatives.”
The only beetle of this family known in the New England
Vig 33.
* Apion rostrum, Say.
68 COLEOPTERA.
States is the Brenthus (Arrhenodes) septemtrionis* of Herbst
(Fig. 34), the Northern Brenthus, so named because most
Fig. 34, of the other species are tropical insects. It
; is of a mahogany-brown color ; the wing-cases
are somewhat darker, ornamented with nar-
row tawny-yellow spots, and marked with deep
furrows, the sides of which are punctured ; the
thorax is nearly egg-shaped, broadest behind
the middle, and highly polished. The com-
mon length of this insect, including the snout, is six tenths
of an inch; but much larger as well as smaller specimens
frequently occur. The Northern Brenthus inhabits the white
oak, on the trunks and under the bark of which it may be
found in June and July, having then completed its trans-
formations. The female, when about to lay her eggs, punc-
tures the bark with her slender snout, and drops an egg in
each hole thus made. ‘The grub, as soon as it is hatched,
bores into the solid wood, forming a cylindrical passage,
which it keeps clear by pushing its castings out of the orifice
of the hole, as fast as they accumulate. These castings or
chips are like very fine sawdust; and the holes made by
the insects are easily discovered by the dust around them.
When fully grown, the grub measures rather more than an
ich in length, and not quite one tenth of an inch in thick-
ness. It is nearly cylindrical, being only a little flattened
on the under-side, and is of a whitish color, except the last
segment, which is dark chestnut-brown. Each of the first
three segments is provided with a pair of legs, and there
is a fleshy prop-leg under the hinder extremity of the body.
The last segment is of a horny consistence, and is obliquely
hollowed at the end, so as to form a kind of gouge or scoop,
the edges of which are furnished with little notches or teeth.
It is by means of this singular scoop that the grub shovels
the minute grains of the wood out of its burrow. The pupa
* A mistake undoubtedly for septemtrionalis. It is the Brenthus mazillosus of
Olivier and Schonherr.
THE CURCULIONIANS. 69
is met with in the burrow formed by the larva. It is of
a yellowish-white color; the head is bent under the thorax,
and the snout rests on the breast between the folded legs
and wings; the back is furnished with transverse rows of
little thorns or sharp teeth, and there are two larger thorns
at the extremity of the body. These minute thorns probably
enable the pupa to move towards the mouth of its burrow
when it is about to be transformed, and may serve also to
keep its body steady during its exertions in casting off its
pupa skin. ‘These insects are most abundant in trees that
have been cut down for timber or fuel, which are generally
attacked during the first summer after they are felled ; it
has also been ascertained that living trees do not always
escape, but those that are in full vigor are rarely perforated
by grubs of this kind. The credit of discovering the habits
and transformations of the Northern Brenthus is due to the
Rev. L. W. Leonard, of Dublin, New Hampshire, who has
favored me with specimens in all their forms. This insect
is now known to inhabit nearly all the States in the Union.
I am inclined to think that the Brenthians ought to be placed
at the end of the weevil tribe; but I have not ventured to
alter the arrangement generally adopted.
The rest of the weevils are short and thick beetles, differ-
ing from all the preceding in their antennz, which are bent
or elbowed near the middle, the first joint being much longer
than the rest. Their feelers are not perceptible. They be-
long to the family Curcutton1pa, so called from the princi-
pal genus, Curculio, a name given by the Romans to the corn-
weevil. The Curculionians vary in the form, length, and
direction of their snouts. Those belonging to the old genus
Curculio have short and thick snouts, at the extremity of
which, and near to the sides of the mouth, the antennz are
implanted ; those to which the name of Rhynchenus was for-
merly applied have longer and more slender snouts, usually
bearmg the antennze on or just behind the middle ; and the
third great genus, called Calandra, contains Jone-snouted
4
70 COLEOPTERA.
beetles, whose antennz are fixed just before the eyes at the
base of the snout.
Curculio (Pandeleteius) hilaris of Herbst (Fig. 35), which
we may call the gray-sided Curculio, is a little pale-brown
beetle, variegated with gray upon the sides. Its
snout is short, broad, and shghtly furrowed in
the middie ; there are three blackish stripes on
the thorax, between which are two of a light
Fig 38.
gray color ; the wing-covers have a broad stripe
of light gray on the outer side, edged within by
a slender blackish line, and sending two short
oblique branches almost across each wing-cover ;
and the fore-legs are much larger than the others. The
length of this beetle varies from one eighth to one fifth of
an inch. ‘The larva lives in the trunks of the white oak, on
which the beetles may be found about the last of May and
the beginning of June.
The Pales weevil, Curculio (Hylobius) Pales of Herbst
(Fig. 36), is a beetle of a deep chestnut-brown
color, having a line and a few dots of a yellow-
Fig. 36.
ish-white color on the thorax, and many small
yellowish-white spots sprinkled over the wing-
covers. All the thighs are toothed beneath,
-and the snout is slender, cylindrical, clined,
and nearly as long as the thorax. On account
of the length of the snout this insect has been
placed in the genus Rhynchenus by some nat-
uralists ; but the antennz are implanted before the middle of
the snout, and not far from the sides of the mouth. This
beetle measures from two to three eighths of an inch in
length, exclusive of the snout. It may be found in great
abundance, in May and June, on board-fences, the sides
of new wooden buildings, and on the trunks of pine-trees.
I have discovered them, in considerable numbers, under
the bark of the pitch-pine. The larva, which do not mate-
rially differ from those of other weevils, inhabit these and
THE PALES WEEVIL. 71
probably other kinds of pines, doing sometimes immense
injury to them. Wilson, the ornithologist, describes the
depredations of these insects, in his account * of the ivory-
billed woodpecker, in the following words: ‘“ Would it be
believed that the larve of an insect, or fly, no larger than
a grain of rice, should silently, and in one season, destroy
some thousand acres of pine-trees, many of them from two
to three feet in diameter and a hundred and fifty feet
high! Yet whoever passes along the high road from George-
town to Charleston, in South Carolina, about twenty miles
from the former place, can have striking and melancholy
proofs of the fact. In some places the whole woods, as far
as you can see around you, are dead, stripped of the bark,
their wintry-looking arms and bare trunks bleaching in the
sun, and tumbling in ruins before every blast, presenting a
frightful picture of desolation. Until some effectual prevent-
ive or more complete remedy can be devised against these
insects, and their larvee, I would humbly suggest the pro-
priety of protecting, and receiving with proper feelings of
gratitude, the services of this and the whole tribe of wood-
peckers, letting the odium of guilt fall to its proper owners.”
Some years ago Mr. Nuttall kindly procured for me, near
the place above mentioned, specimens of the destructive in-
sects referred to by Wilson. They were of three kinds.
Those in greatest abundance were the Pales weevil. One
of the others was a larger, darker-colored weevil, without
white spots on it, and named Hylobius picivorus by Ger-
mar and Schonherr, or the pitch-eating weevil; it is sel-
~ dom found in Massachusetts. The third was the white-pine
weevil, to be next described. It is said that these beetles
puncture the buds and the tender bark of the small branches,
and feed upon the juice, and that the young shoots are often
so much injured by them as to die and break off at the
wounded part. But it is im the larva state that they are
found to be most hurtful to the pines. The lary live under
* American Ornithology, Vol. IY. p. 21.
72 COLEOPTERA.
the bark, devouring its soft inner surface, and the tender,
newly formed wood. When they abound, as they do in
some of our pine forests, they separate large pieces of bark
from the wood beneath, im consequence of which the part
perishes, and the tree itself soon languishes and dies.
The white-pine weevil, Fhynchenus (Pissodes) Strobi*
of Professor Peck (Fig. 37), unites with
the two preceding insects in destroying
Fig 37.
the pines of this country, as above de-
scribed. But it employs also another
mode of attack on the white pine, of
which an interesting account is given by
the late Professor Peck, the first describer
of the insect, in the fourth volume of the
‘“¢ Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal,” ac-
companied by figures of the msect. The lofty stature of the
white pine, and the straightness of its trunk, depend, as Pro-
fessor Peck has remarked, upon the constant health of its
leading shoot, for a long succession of years ; and if this shoot
be destroyed, the tree becomes stunted and deformed in its
subsequent growth. This accident is not uncommon, and is
caused by the ravages of the white-pine weevil.
This beetle is oblong oval, rather slender, of a brownish
color, thickly punctured, and variegated with small brown,
rust-colored, and whitish scales. There are two white dots
on the thorax; the scutel is white; and on the wing-covers,
which are punctured in rows, there is a whitish transverse
band behind the middle. The snout is longer than the
thorax, slender, and a very little inclined. The length of
this insect, exclusive of its snout, varies from one fifth to
three tenths of an inch. Its eggs are deposited on the lead-
ing shoot of the pine, probably immediately under the outer
bark. The larvee, hatched therefrom, bore into the shoot in
various directions, and probably remain in the wood more
than one year. When the feeding state is passed, but before
* Pissodes nemerensis of Germar.
THE WHITE-PINE WEEVIL. 73
the msect is changed to a pupa, it gnaws a passage from
the inside quite to the bark, which, however, remaining un-
touched, serves to shelter the little borers from the weather.
After they have changed to beetles, they have only to cut
away the outer bark to make their escape. They begin to
come out early in September, and continue to leave the wood
through that month and a part of October. The shoot at
this time will be found pierced with small round holes on
all sides ; sometimes thirty or forty may be counted on one
shoot. Professor Peck has observed that an unlimited in-
crease is not permitted to this destructive insect; and that
if it were, our forests would not produce a:single mast. One
of the means appointed to restrain the increase of the white-
pine weevil is a species of ichneumon-fly, endued with sa-
gacity to discover the retreat of the larva, the body of which
it stings, and therein deposits an egg. From the latter a grub
is hatched, which devours the larva of the weevil, and is
subsequently transformed to a four-winged fly, in the habita-
tion prepared for it. The most effectual remedy against the
increase of these weevils is to cut off the shoot in August,
or as soon as it is perceived to be dead, and commit it, with
its inhabitants, to the fire.
Such is the substance of Professor Peck’s history of this
insect ; to which may be added, that the beetles are found in
great numbers, in April and May, on fences, buildings, and
pine-trees ; that they probably secrete themselves during the
winter in the crevices of the bark, or about the roots of the
trees, and deposit their eggs in the spring; or they may not
usually leave the trees before spring.
Perhaps the method used for decoying the pine-eating bee-
tles in Europe may be practised here with advantage. It
consists in sticking some newly-cut branches of pine-trees in
the ground, in an open place, during the season when the
insects are about to lay their eggs. In a few hours these
branches will be covered with the beetles, which may be
shaken into a cloth and burned.
10
14 COLEOPTERA.
There are some of the long-snouted weevils which inhabit
nuts of various kinds. - Hence they are called nut-weevils,
and belong chiefly to the modern genus balaninus, a name
that signifies livmg or bemg in a nut. The common nut-
weevil of Europe lays her eggs in the hazelnut and filbert,
having previously bored a hole for that purpose with her
long and slender snout, while the fruitis young and tender,
and dropping only one egg in each nut thus pricked. A
little grub is soon hatched from the egg, and begins immedi-
ately to devour the soft kernel. Notwithstanding this, the
nut continues to increase in size, and, by the time that it is
ripe and ready to fall, its little inhabitant also comes to its
growth, gnaws a round hole in the shell, through which it
afterwards makes its escape, and burrows in the ground.
Here it remains unchanged through the winter, and in the
following summer, having completed its transformations, it
comes out of the ground a beetle.
In this country weevil-grubs are very common in hazel-
nuts, chestnuts, and acorns; but I have not hitherto been
able to rear any of them to the beetle
state. The most common of the nut-wee-
vils known to me appears to be the Rhyn-
chenus (Balaninus) nasicus of Say (Fig.
38), the long-snouted nut-weevil. Its form
is oval, and its ground color dark brown ;
but it is clothed with very short rust-yellow
flattened hairs, which more or less conceal
its original color, and are disposed in spots
on its wing-covers. The snout is brown
and polished, longer than the whole body, as slender as a
bristle, of equal thickness from one to the other, and slightly
curved; it bears the long elbowed antennz, which are as
fine as a hair, just behind the middle. This beetle measures
nearly three tenths of an inch in length, exclusive of the
snout. Specimens have been found paired upon the hazel-
nut-tree in July, at which time probably the eggs are laid.
Fig. 38.
THE CURCULIO, OR PLUM-WEEVIL. To
Others appear in September and October, and must pass the
winter concealed in some secure place. From its size and
resemblance to the nut-weevil of Europe, this is supposed
to be the species which attacks the hazelnut here.
It is now well known that the falling of unripe plums is
caused by little whitish grubs, which bore into the fruit.
The loss occasioned by insects of this kind is frequently
very great; and in some of our gardens and orchards the
crop of plums is often entirely ruined by the dzpredations
of the grubs, which have been ascertained to be the larve or
young of a small beetle of the weevil
tribe, called Rhynchenus ( Conotrache-
lus) Nenuphar,* (Figs. 39 and 40,) the
Nenuphar or plum-weevil. This wee-
vil, or curculio, as it is often called, is
a little rough, dark-brown, or blackish
beetle, looking like a dried bud when it
is shaken from the trees, which resem-
blance is increased by its habit of drawing up its legs and
bending its snout close to the lower side of its body, and
remaining for a time without motion, and seemingly lifeless.
It is from three twentieths to one fifth of an inch long, ex-
clusive of the curved snout, which is rather longer than the
thorax, and is bent under the breast, between the fore legs,
when at rest. Its color is a dark brown, variegated with
spots of white, ochre-yellow, and black. The thorax is un-
even ; the wing-covers have several short ridges upon them,
those on the middle of the back forming two considerable
humps, of a black color, behind which there is a wide band
of ochre-yellow and white. Each of the thighs has two
little teeth on the under-side. I have found these beetles as
early as the 30th of March, and as late as the 10th of June,
and at various intermediate times, according with the for-
Fig. 39. Fig. 40.
* First described by Herbst, in 1797, under the name of Curculio Nenuphar ;
Fabricius redescribed it under that of Rhynchenus Argula; and Dejean has named
it Conotrachelus variegatus.
76 COLEOPTERA.
wardness or backwardness of vegetation in the spring, and
have frequently caught them flying in the middle of the day.
They begin to sting the plums as soon as the fruit is set,
and continue their operations to the middle of July, or, as
some say, till the first of August. In doing this, the beetle
first makes a small crescent-shaped incision, with its snout,
in the skin of the plum, and then, turning round, inserts
an egg in the wound. From one plum it goes to another,
until its store of eggs is exhausted; so that, where these
beetles abound, not a plum will escape bemg stung. Very
rarely is there more than one incision made in the same
fruit ; and the weevil lays only a single egg there. The
insect hatched from this egg is a little whitish grub, desti-
tute of feet, and very much like a maggot in appearance,
except that it has a distinct, rounded, light-brown head. It
immediately burrows obliquely into the fruit, and finally pene-
trates to the stone. The irritation, arising from the wounds
and from the gnawings of the’ grubs, causes the young fruit
to become gummy, diseased, and finally to drop before it
is ripe. Meanwhile, the grub comes to its growth, and, im-
mediately after the falling of the fruit, quits the latter and
burrows in the ground. This may occur at various times
between the middle of June and of August; and, in about
three weeks afterwards, the imsect completes its transforma-
tions, and comes out of the ground in the beetle form.
The earliest account of the habits of the plum weevil, that
I have seen, was written by Dr. James Tilton, of Wilming-
ton, Delaware. It will be found, under the article Fruzt, in
Dr. James Mease’s edition of Willich’s “ Domestic Encyclo-
pedia,’’ published at Philadelphia in 1803. The same ac-
count has been reprinted in the ‘“* Georgic Papers for 1809”
of the Massachusetts Agricultural Society, and in other
works. According to Dr. Tilton, this insect attacks not only
nectarines, plums, apricots, and cherries, but also peaches,
apples, pears, and quinces, the truth of which has been abun-
dantly confirmed by later writers. I have myself ascertained
THE CURCULIO, OR PLUM-WEEVIL. ql
that the cherry-worm, so called, which is very common in this
fruit when gathered from the tree, produces, at maturity, the
same curculio as that of the plum; but, unlike the latter,
it rarely causes the stung cherry to drop prematurely to the
eround. The late Dr. Joel Burnett, of Southborough, the
author of two interesting articles on the plum-weeyvil,* sent
to me, in the summer of 1839, some specimens of the in-
sect, in the chrysalis state, which were raised from the small
grubs in apples ; and, since that time, I have seen the same
grubs in apples, pears, and quinces, in this vicinity. They
are not to be mistaken for the more common apple-worms,
from which they are easily distinguished by their inferior
size, and by their want of feet. In 1831, Mr. Thomas Say,
in a note on the plum-weevil, stated that it ‘ depredates on
the plum and peach and other stone-fruits;”’ and that his
‘‘ kinsman, the late excellent William Bartram, informed him
it also destroys the English walnut in this country.”
Observers do not agree concerning some points in the
economy of this insect, such as the time required for it to
complete its transformations, the condition and place wherein
it passes the winter, and the agency of the curculio in pro-
ducing the warts or excrescences on plum and cherry trees.
The average time passed by the insect in the ground, during
the summer, has appeared to me to be about three weeks ;
but the transformation may be accelerated or retarded by
temperature and situation. It has also been my impression
that the late broods remained in the ground all winter, and
that from them are produced the beetles which sting the fruit
in the following spring. Dr. Burnett’s observations coincide
with this opinion. According to him, the insect ‘ under-
goes transformation in about fifteen or twenty days, in the
month of June or fore part of July ; but all the larve, (as
* New England Farmer, Vol. XVIII. p. 804, March 11, 1840; and Hovey’s Mag-
azine of Horticulture, Vol. IX. p. 281, August, 1848, reprinted in the New England
Farmer, Vol. XXII. p. 49, August 16, 1848, and in the Transactions of the Massa-
chusetts Horticultural Society, for 1843-1846, p. 18.
t Descriptions of Curculionites, p. 19 (8vo, New Harmony, 1831).
173 COLEOPTERA.
far as he had observed,) that go into the earth as late as the
20th of July, do not ascend that season, but remain there in
the pupa stage until next spring.” Dr. Tilton, in his account
of the curculio, stated that ‘‘it remains in the earth, m the
form of a grub, during the winter, ready to be metamorphosed
into a beetle as the spring advances.” According to M. H.
Simpson, Esq., of Saxonville, the larvee, or grubs, *‘ go through
their chrysalis state in three weeks after going into the ground,
and remain in a torpid state through the season, unless the
earth is disturbed.”’* Dr. E. Sanborn, of Andover, has come
to entirely different conclusions, from a series of experiments
made upon these insects. It is his opinion that they do not
remain in the ground, during the winter, either in the grub
or in the beetle state ; but that, under all conditions of place
and temperature, ‘in about six weeks ” after they have en-
tered the earth ‘“‘ they return to the surface perfectly finished,
winged, and equipped for the work of destruction”’; and that,
‘¢as neither the curculio nor its grub burrows in the ground
during the winter, the common practice of guarding against
its ravages, by various operations in the soil, rests upon a
false theory, and is productive of no valuable results.”+ If
these conclusions be correct, these insects must pass the win-
ter above ground, in the beetle state, and the place of their
concealment, during this season, remains to be discovered. -
In July, 1818, Professor W. D. Peck obtained, from the
warty excrescences of the cherry-tree, the same insects that
he ‘* had long known to occasion the fall of peaches, apricots,
and plums, before they had acquired half their growth”;
and, not aware that this species had already received a scien-
tific name, he called it Rhynchenus Cerasi, the cherry-weevil.
His account of it, with a figure, may be seen in the fifth
volume of the “ Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and
* Hovey’s Magazine, Vol. XVI. p. 257, June, 1850.
t See Dr. Sanborn’s interesting communications on the Plum Curculio, in the
Boston Cultivator, for May 19, 1849, and July 13, 1850, and in the Puritan Re-
corder for May 2, and the Cambridge Chronicle for May 30, 1850.
rola ’
ESS oe oe eee ——
CURCULIO FOUND IN WARTS. 79
Journal.” ‘The grubs,‘found by Professor Peck in the tumors
of the cherry-tree, went into the ground on the 6th of July,
and on the 30th of the same month, or twenty-four days
from their leaving the bark, the perfect insects began to rise,
and were soon ready to deposit their eggs.
The plum, still more than the cherry tree, is subject to a
disease of the small limbs, that shows itself in the form of large
irregular warts, of a black color. Professor Peck referred
this disease, as well as that of the cherry-tree, to the agency
of insects, but was uncertain whether to attribute it to his
cherry-weevil ‘or to another species of the same genus.”
It was his opinion, that ‘‘the seat of the disease is in the bark.
The sap is diverted from its regular course, and is absorbed
entirely by the bark, which is very much increased in thick-
ness ; the cuticle bursts, the swelling becomes irregular, and
is formed into black lumps, with a cracked, uneven, granu-
lated surface. The wood, besides being deprived of its nutri-
ment, is very much compressed, and the branch above the
“tumor perishes.” Dr. Burnett rejected the idea of the insect
origin of this disease, which he considered as a kind of fungus,
arising in the alburnum, from an obstruction of the vessels,
and bursting through the bark, which became involved in the
disease. These tumors appear to me to begin between the
bark and wood. They are at first soft, cellular, and full of
sap, but finally become hard and woody. But whether
caused by vitiated sap, as Dr. Burnett supposed, or by the
irritating punctures of insects, which is the prevailing opin-
ion, or whatever be their origin and seat, they form an
appropriate bed for the growth of numerous little parasitical
plants or fungi, to which botanists give the name of Spheria
morbosa. These plants are the minute black granules that
cover the surface of the wart, and give to it its black color.
When fully matured, they are filled with a gelatinous fluid,
and have a little pit or depression on their summit. They
come to their growth, discharge their volatile seed, and die
in the course of a single summer; and with them perishes
80 COLEOPTERA.
the tumor whence they sprung. It is worthy of remark,
that they are sure to appear on these warts in due time, and
that they are never found on any other part of the tree.
Insects are often found in the warts of the plum-tree, as
well as in those of the cherry-tree. The larve of a minute
Cynips, or gall-fly, are said to inhabit them,* but have never
fallen under my observation. The naked caterpillars of a
minute moth are very common in the warts of the plum-
tree, in which also are sometimes found other insects, among
them little grubs from which genuine plum-weevils have been
raised. This is a very interesting fact in the economy of
the plum-weevil. It may be questioned, however, whether
it be a mere mistake of instinct that leads the curculio to
lay its eggs in the warts of the plum-tree, or a special pro-
vision of a wise Providence to secure thereby a succession
of the species in unfruitful seasons.
The following, among other remedies that have been sug-
gested, may be found useful in checking the ravages of the
plum-weevil. Let the trees be briskly shaken or suddenly
jarred every morning and evening during the time that the
insects appear in the beetle form, and are engaged in laying
their egos. When thus disturbed, they contract their legs
and fall; and, as they do not immediately attempt to fly or
crawl away, they may be caught in a sheet spread under
the tree, from which they should be gathered into a large
wide-mouthed bottle, or other tight vessel, and be thrown
into the fire. Keeping the fruit covered with a coat of
whitewash, which is to be applied with a syringe as often
as necessary, has been much recommended of late to repel
the attacks of the curculio. A little glue, added to the
whitewash, causes it to stick better and last longer. We
may succeed by this remedy in securing a crop of plums ;
but as we cannot apply it to cherries and apples, they will
be sure to suffer more than ever, and hence no check will
* Schweinitz, Synopsis Fungorum ; in Transactions of the American Philo-
sophical Society, Philadelphia, New Series, Vol. IV. p. 204.
THE POTATO-WEEVIL. Si
be given to the increase of the weevil. All the fallen fruit
should be immediately gathered and thrown into a tight
vessel, and after it is boiled or steamed to kill the en-
closed grubs, it may be given as food to swine. Many
of the grubs will be found in the bottom of the vessel in
which the fallen fruit has been deposited. Not one of these
should be allowed to escape to the ground, but they should
all be killed before they have time to complete their trans-
formations. The diseased excrescences on the trees should
be cut out, and, as they often contain insects, they should
be burnt. If the wounds are washed with strong brine,
the formation of new warts will be checked. The moose
plum-tree (Prunus Americana) seems to be free from warts,
even when growing in the immediate vicinity of diseased for-
eign trees. It would, therefore, be the best of stocks for
budding or ingrafting upon. It can be easily raised from the
stone, and grows rapidly, but does not attain a great size.
Among the many insects that have been charged with
being the cause of the wide-spread pestilence, commonly
called the potato-rot, there is a kind of weevil that lives in
the stalk of the potato. The history of this little insect was
first made known by Miss Margaretta H. Morris, of Ger-
mantown, Pennsylvania. In August, 1849, her attention
was called to this subject by Mr. Wilkinson, the principal
of the Mount Airy Agricultural Institute, ‘* who discovered
small grubs in the potato-vines on his farm, and naturally
feared injurious consequences.” On the 28th pig 41.
of the same month and year, Miss Morris sent
to me some specimens of the insects im a piece
of the potato-stalk, wherein they underwent their
transformations. They proved to be the beetles
described by Mr. Say under the name of Bari-
dius trinotatus (Fig. 41), so called from their
having three black dots on their backs. This kind of beetle
is about three twentieths of an inch long. Its body is covered
with short whitish hairs, which give to it a gray appearance.
11
82 COLEOPTERA.
One of the black dots is on the scutel, and the others are
on the hinder angles of the thorax ; and by these it can be
readily distinguished from other species. According to Miss
Morris, it lays its eggs singly on the plant at the base of a
leaf. The grubs burrow into and consume the inner sub-
stance of the stalk, proceeding downwards towards the root.
In many fields in the neighborhood of Germantown every
stem was found to be infested by these insects, causing the
premature decay of the vines, and giving to them the appear-
ance of having been scalded. The insects undergo all their
transformations in the stalks. Their pupa state lasts from
fourteen to twenty days, and they take the beetle form dur-
ing the last of August and beginning of September. ‘These
insects, though common enough in the Middle States, I have
never found in New England, in the course of thirty years
of observation, and have failed to discover them here since
my attention was called to their depredations by Miss Morris.
That they may become very injurious to the potato crop
where they abound, will be readily admitted; but, as they
do not occur in all places, either here or in Europe, where
the potato-rot has prevailed, they cannot be justly said to
produce this disease.*
The most pernicious of the Rhynchophorians, or snout-
beetles, are the insects properly called grain-weevils, belong-
ing to the old genus Calandra. These insects must not be
confounded with the still more destructive larvee of the corn-
moth (Zinea granella), which also attacks stored grain, nor
with the orange-colored maggots of the wheat-fly ( Cectdomyta
Tritic), which are found in the ears of growing wheat. Al-
though the grain-weevils are not actually injurious to vege-
tation, yet as the name properly belonging to them has often
been misapplied in this country, thereby creating no little
confusion, some remarks upon them may tend to prevent
future mistakes. ;
* See my communication on this insect, &c., in the New England Farmer, for
June 22, 1850, Vol. II. p. 204.
f GRAIN-WEEVILS. 83
The true grain-weevil or wheat-weevil of Europe, Calan-
dra (Sitophilus) granaria, or Cureulio granarius of Linneus,
in its perfected state is a slender beetle of a pitchy-red color,
about one eighth of an inch long, with a slender snout slightly
bent downwards, a coarsely punctured and very long thorax,
constituting almost one half the length of the whole body,
and wing-covers that are furrowed and do not entirely cover
the tip of the abdomen. This little insect, both in the beetle
and grub state, devours stored wheat and other grains, and
often commits much havoc in granaries and brewhouses. Its
powers of multiplication are very great, for it is stated that
a single pair of these destroyers may produce above six
thousand descendants in one year. The female deposits her
egos upon the wheat after it is housed, and the young grubs
hatched therefrom immediately burrow into the wheat, each
individual occupying alone a single grain, the substance of
which it devours, so as often to leave nothing but the hull;
and this destruction goes on within while no external ap-
pearance leads to its discovery, and the loss of weight is
the only evidence of the mischief that has been done to the
orain. In due time the grubs undergo their transformations,
and come out of the hulls, in the beetle state, to lay their
egos for another brood. These insects are effectually de-
stroyed by kiln-drying the wheat; and grain that is kept
cool, well ventilated, and is frequently moved, is said to be
exempt from attack. J
Rice is attacked by an insect closely resembling the wheat-
weevil, from which, however, it is distinguished by having
two large red spots on each wing-cover; it is also some-
what smaller, measuring only about one tenth of an inch
in length, exclusive of the snout. This beetle, the Calan-
dra (Sitophilus) Oryzce,* or rice-weevil (Plate II. Fig. 8),
is not entirely confined to rice, but depredates upon wheat,
and also on Indian corn. In the Southern States it is called
the black weevil, to distinguish it from other insects that in-
* Curculio Oryze of Linneus.
84 COLEOPTERA.
fest grain. Iam not aware that these weevils attack wheat
in New England; but I have seen stored Southern corn
swarming with them; and, should they multiply and’ extend
in this section of the country, they will become a source
of serious injury to one of the most valuable of our staple
productions. It is said that this weevil lays its eggs on the
rice in the fields, as soon as the grain begins to swell. If
this indeed be true, we have very little to fear from it here,
our Indian corn being so well protected by the husks that it
would probably escape from any injury, if attacked. On
the contrary, if the insects multiply in stored grain, then
our utmost care will be necessary to prevent them from
infesting our own garners. ‘The parent beetle bores a hole
into the grain, and drops therein a single egg, going from
one grain to another till all her eggs are laid. She then
dies, leaving, however, the rice well seeded for a future
harvest of weevil-grubs. In due time the eggs are hatched,
the grubs live securely and unseen in the centre of the
rice, devouring a considerable portion of its substance, and
when fully grown they gnaw a little hole through the end
of the grain, artfully stopping it wp again with particles of
rice-flour, and then are changed to pup. This usually
occurs during the winter; and in the following spring the
Insects are transformed to beetles, and come out of the
grain. By winnowing and sifting the rice in the spring,
the beetles can be ‘separated, and then should be gathered
immediately and destroyed.
The sudden change of the temperature that generally
occurs in the early part of May, brings out great numbers
of insects from their winter quarters, to enjoy the sunshine
and the ardent heat which are congenial to their natures.
While a continued hum is heard, among the branches of
the trees, from thousands of bees and flies, drawn thither
by the fragrance of the bursting buds and the tender foliage,
and the very ground beneath our feet seems teeming with
insect life, swarms of little beetles of various kinds come
SP IBUID) DEY AN TEAEC 18319) 1DPAD bad Se 85
forth to try their wings, and, with an uncertain and heavy
flight, launch into the air. Among these beetles there are
many of a dull red or fox color, nearly cylindrical in form,
tapering a very little before, obtusely rounded at both ex-
tremities, and about one quarter of an inch in length. They
are seen slowly creeping upon the sides of wooden buildings,
resting on the tops of fences, or wheeling about in the air,
and every now and then suddenly alighting on some tree
or wall, or dropping to the ground. If we go to an old
pine-tree we may discover from whence they have come,
and what they have been about during the past period of
their lives: Here they will be found creeping out of thou-
sands of small round holes which they have made through
the bark for their escape. Upon raising a piece of the bark,
already loosened by the undermining of these insects, we
find it pierced with holes in every direction, and even the
surface of the wood will be seen to have been gnawed by
these little miners. After enjoying themselves abroad for a
few days, they pair, and begin to lay their eggs. The pitch-
pine is most generally chosen by them for this purpose, but
they also attack other kinds of pines. They gnaw little holes
here and there through the rough bark of the trunk and
limbs, drop their eggs therein, and, after this labor is
finished, they become exhausted and die. In the autumn the
erubs hatched from these eggs will be found fully grown.
They have a short, thick, nearly cylindrical body, wrinkled
on the back, are somewhat curved, and of a yellowish-white
color, with a horny darker-colored head, and are destitute of
feet. They devour the soft mner substance of the bark,
boring through it in various directions for this purpose, and,
when they have come to their full size, they gnaw a passage to
the surface for their escape after they have completed their
transformations. These take place deep in their burrows late
in the autumn, at which time the insects may be found, in
various states of maturity, within the bark. Their depreda-
tions interrupt the descent of the sap, and prevent the forma-
4
86 COLEOPTERA.
tion of new wood; the bark becomes loosened from the wood,
to a greater or less extent, and the tree languishes and prema-
Fig. 2. turely decays. The name of this insect is Hylur-
gus terebrans,* the boring Hylurgus (Fig. 42) ; the
generical name signifying a carpenter, or worker in
2S wood. It belongs to the family Scotyripa, includ-
ing various kinds of destructive insects, which may be called
cylindrical bark-beetles. The insects of this family may be
recognized by the following characters. The body is nearly
cylindrical, obtuse before ‘and behind, and generally of some
shade of brown. The head is rounded, sunk pretty deeply
in the fore part of the thorax, and does not end with a
snout; the antennz are short, more or less crooked or curved
in the middle, and end with an oval knob; the feelers are
very short. The thorax is rather long, and as broad as the
following part of the body. ‘The wing-covers are frequently
cut off obliquely, or hollowed at the hinder extremity. The
legs are short and strong, with little teeth on the outer edge
or extremity of the shanks, and the feet are not wide and
spongy beneath.
Though these cylindrical bark-beetles are of small size,
they multiply very fast, and where they abound are produc-
tive of much mischief, particularly in forests, which are often
greatly injured by their larvee, and the wood is rendered
unfit for the purposes of art. In the year 1780, an insect
of this family made its appearance in the pine-trees of one
of the mining districts of Germany, where it increased so
rapidly that in three years afterwards whole forests had
disappeared beneath its ravages, and an end was nearly put
to the working of the extensive mines in this range of
country, for the want of fuel to carry on the operations.
Pines and firs are the most subject to their attacks, but there
are some kinds which infest other trees. The premature
decay of the elm in some parts of Europe is occasioned by
the ravages of the Scolytus destructor, of which an interesting
* Scolytus terebrans of Olivier.
THE BNRK-BRET LES. 87
account was written in 1824, by Mr. Macleay. An abstract
of his paper may be found in the fifth volume of the “‘ New
Eneland Farmer.” * The larve or grubs of these bark-
beetles resemble those of the Hylurgus terebrans, or pine bark-
beetle already described. Like the grubs of the weevils,
they are short and thick, and destitute of legs.
The red cedar is inhabited by a very small bark-beetle,
named by Mr. Say Hylurgus dentatus, the toothed Hylurgus.
It is nearly one tenth of an inch in length, and of a dark-
brown color; the wing-cases are* rough with little grains,
which become more elevated towards the hinder part, and
are arranged in longitudinal rows, with little furrows between
them. The tooth-lke appearance of these little elevations
suggested the name given to this species. The female bores
a cylindrical passage beneath the bark of the cedar, dropping
her eggs at short intervals as she goes along, and dies at the
end of her burrow when her eggs are all laid. The grubs
hatched from these proceed in feeding nearly at right angles,
forming on each side numerous parallel furrows, smaller than
the central tube of the female. They complete their trans-
formations in October, and eat their way through the bark,
which will then be seen to be perforated with thousands of
little round holes, through which the beetles have escaped.
Under the bark of the pitch-pine I have found, in com-
pany with the pine bark-beetle, a more slender bark-beetle,
of a dark chestnut-brown color, clothed with a few short yel-
lowish hairs, with a long, almost egg-shaped thorax, which is
very rough before, and short wing-covers, deeply punctured
in rows, hollowed out at the tip lke a gouge, and beset
around the outer edge of the hollow with six little teeth on
each side. This beetle measures one fifth of an inch, or
rather more, in length. It arrives at maturity in the autumn,
but does not come out of the bark till the following spring,
at which time it lays its eggs. It is the Zomicus evesus, or
excavated Tomicus; the specific name, signifying eaten out
* Page 169.
88 COLEOPTERA.
or excavated, was given to it by Mr. Say on account of the
hollowed and bitten appearance of the end of its wing-covers.
Its grubs eat zigzag and wavy passages, parallel to each other,
between the bark and the wood. They are much less com-
mon in the New England than in the Middle and Southern
States, where they abound in the yellow pines.
Another bark-beetle is found here, closely resembling the
preceding, from which it differs chiefly in the inferiority of
its size, being but three twentieths of an inch in
length, and in ‘having only three or four teeth at
the outer extremity of each wing-cover. It is the
Tomicus Pim of Mr. Say (Fig. 43). The grubs
of this insect are very injurious to pine-trees. I
have found them under the bark of the white and
pitch pine, and they have also been discovered in the larch.
The beetles appear during the month of August.
There is another small bark-beetle, the Zomicus liminaris 9
of my Catalogue, which has been found, in great. numbers,
by Miss Morris, under the bark of peach-trees, affected with
the disease called the yellows, and hence supposed -by her to
be connected with this malady.* I have found it under
the bark of a diseased elm; but have nothing more to offer,
from my own observations, concerning its history, except
that it completes its transformation in August and September.
It is of a dark-brown color; the thorax is punctured, and
the wing-covers are marked with deeply punctured furrows,
and are beset with short hairs. It does not average one
tenth of an inch in length.
The pear-tree in New England has been found to be
subject to a peculiar malady, which shows itself during mid-
summer by the sudden withering of the leaves and fruit, and
the discoloration of the bark of one or more of the limbs,
Fig. 43.
[® This species differs from the others known in this country by having the last
three joints of the antennz dilated laterally, forming a lamellate club like that of
the Scarabzeidz ; it therefore belongs to the genus Phloiotribus. — Lxc.]
* See Miss Morris on the Yellows, in Downing’s Horticulturist, Vol. IV. p. 502.
THE BLUIGCHT-BEETLE. 89
followed by the immediate death of the part affected. This
kind of blight, as it has been called, being oftenest confined
to a single branch, or to the extremity of a branch, seems to
be a local affection only. It ends with the death of the
branch, down to a certain point, but does not extend below
the seat of attack, and does not affect the health of other
parts of the tree. In June, 1816, the Hon. John Lowell, of
Roxbury, discovered a minute insect in one of the affected
limbs of a pear-tree; afterwards, he repeatedly detected the
same insects in blasted limbs, and his discoveries have been
confirmed by Mr. Henry Wheeler and the late Dr. Oliver
Fiske, of Worcester, and by many other persons. Mr. Low-
ell submitted the limb and the insect contained therein to
the examination of Professor Peck, who gave an account
and figure of the latter, in the fourth volume of the ‘“ Massa-
chusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal.”
From this account, and from the subsequent communica-
tion by Mr. Lowell, in the fifth volume of the “* New Eng-
land Farmer,” it appears that the grub or larva of the insect
eats its way inward through the alburnum or sap-wood into
the hardest part of the wood, beginning at the root of a bud,
behind which probably the egg was deposited, following the
course of the eye of the bud towards the pith, around which
it passes, and part of which it also consumes ; thus forming,
after penetrating through the alburnum, a circular burrow
or passage in the heart-wood, contiguous to the pith which
it surrounds. By this means the central vessels, or those
which convey the ascending sap, are divided, and the circula-
tion is cut off. This takes place when the increasing heat of
the atmosphere, producing a greater transpiration from the
leaves, renders a large and continued flow of sap necessary
to supply the evaporation. For the want of this, or from
some other unexplained cause, the whole of the limb above
the seat of the insect’s operations suddenly withers, and
perishes during the intense heat of midsummer. The larva
is changed to a pupa, and subsequently to a little beetle, in
12
90 COLEOPTERA.
the bottom of its burrow, makes its escape from the tree in
the latter part of June, or beginning of July, and probably
deposits its eggs before August has passed.
This insect, which may be called the blight-beetle, from the
injury it occasions, attacks also apple, apricot, and plum trees,
though less frequently than pear-trees. In the latter part of
May, 1843, a piece of the blighted limb of an apple-tree was
sent to me for examination. It was twenty-eight inches
in length, and three quarters of an inch in diameter at
the lower end. Its surface bore the marks of twenty buds,
thirteen of which were perforated by the insects; and from
the burrows within I took twelve of the blight-beetles in
a living and perfect condition, the thirteenth msect having
previously been cut out. On the 9th of July, 1844, the
Hon. M. P. Wilder sent to me a piece of a branch from
a plum-tree, which contained, within the space of one foot,
four nests or branching burrows, in each of which several
insects in the grub and chrysalis state were found, and also
one that had completed its transformations. Soon afterwards
I caught one of the blight-beetles on a plum-tree, probably
about to lay her eggs. In the following month of August,
I received a blighted branch of an apricot-tree, one inch in
diameter at the largest end, and containing, within the short
distance of six inches, seven or eight perfect blight-beetles,
each in a separate burrow, and vestiges of other burrows
that had been destroyed in cutting the branch.*
This little beetle, which is only one tenth of an inch in
length, was named Scolytus Pyri, the pear-tree Scolytus, by
Professor Peck. It is of a deep brown color, with the
antennee and legs of the color of iron-rust. The thorax is
short, very convex, rounded and rough before ; the wing-
covers are minutely punctured in rows, and slope off very
suddenly and obliquely behind; the shanks are widened
and flattened towards the end, beset with a few little teeth
* See my communications on these insects in the Massachusetts Ploughman for
June 17, 1843. Also Downing’s Horticulturist for February, 1848, Vol. II. p. 365.
t
*
2
-
THE BOSTRICHIANS. 91
externally, and end with a short hook; and the joints of
the feet are slender and entire. This insect cannot be
retained in the genus Scolytus, as defined by modern nat-
uralists, but is to be placed in the genus Yomicus. The
minuteness of the insect, the difficulty attending the discoy-
ery of the precise seat of its operations before it has left the
tree, and the small size of the aperture through which it
makes its escape from the limb, are probably the reasons why
it has eluded the researches of those persons who disbelieve
in its existence as the cause of the blasting of the limbs o7
the pear-tree. It is to be sought for at or near the lowes:
part of the diseased limbs, and in the immediate vicinity or
the buds situated about that part. The remedy, suggested
by Mr. Lowell and Professor Peck, to prevent other limbs
and trees from being subsequently attacked in the same way,
consists in cutting off the blasted limb below the seat of injury,
and burning it before the perfect insect has made its escape.
It will therefore be necessary carefully to examine our pear-
trees daily, during the month of June, and watch for the first
indication of disease, or the remedy may be applied too late
to prevent the dispersion of the msects among other trees.
There are some other beetles, much like the preceding in
form, whose grubs bore into the solid wood of trees. They
were formerly included among the cylindrical bark-beetles,
but have been separated from them recently, and now form
the family Bosrricuips, or Bostrichians. Some of these
beetles are of large size, measuring more than an inch in
length, and, in the tropical regions where they are found,
must prove very injurious to the trees they inhabit. The
body in these beetles is hard and cylindrical, and generally
of a black color. The thorax is bulging betore, and the
head is sunk and almost concealed under the projecting tore
part of it. The antennze are of moderate length, and end
with three large joints, which are saw-toothed internally.
The larvze are mostly wood-eaters, and are whitish fleshy
grubs, wrinkled on the back, furnished with six legs, and
92 COLEOPTERA.
resemble in form the grubs of some of the small Scara-
beelans.
The shagbark or walnut tree is sometimes infested by the
grubs of the red-shouldered Apate, or Apate basillaris of
Say, an insect of this family. The grubs bore diametrically
through the trunks of the walnut to the very heart, and
undergo their transformations in the bottom of their bur-
rows. Several trees have fallen under my observation which
have been entirely killed by these insects. The beetles are
of a deep black color, and are punctured all over. The
thorax is very convex and rough before; the wing-coyvers
are not excavated at the tip, but they slope downwards very
suddenly behind, as if obliquely cut off, the outer edge of
the cut portion is armed with three little teeth on each wing-
cover, and on the base or shoulders there is a large red spot.
This insect measures one fifth of an inch or more in length.
The most powerful and destructive of the wood-eating
insects are the grubs of the long-horned or Capricorn-beetles
(CER AMBYCID), called borers by way of distinction. There
are many kinds of borers which do not belong to this tribe.
Some of them have already been described, and others will
be mentioned under the orders to which they belong. Those
now under consideration differ much from each other in their
habits. Some live altogether in the trunks of trees, others
in the limbs; some devour the wood, others the pith; some
are found only in shrubs, some in the stems of herbaceous
plants, and others are confined to roots. Certain kinds are
limited to plants of one species, others live indiscriminately
upon several plants of one natural family; but the same
kind of borer is not known to inhabit plants differing essen-
tially from each other in their natural characters. As might
be expected from these circumstances, the beetles produced
from these borers are of many different kinds. Nearly one
hundred species have been found in Massachusetts, and
probably many more remain to be discovered.
The Capricorn-beetles agree in the following respects.
THE CAPRICORN-BEETLES. 93
The antennz are long and tapering, and generally curved
like the horns of a goat, which is the origin of the name
above given to these beetles. ‘The body is oblong, approach-
ing to a cylindrical form, a little flattened above, and taper-
ing somewhat behind. The head is short, and armed with
powerful jaws. The thorax is either square, barrel-shaped,
or narrowed before ; and is not so wide behind as the wing-
covers. The legs are long; the thighs thickened in the
middle; the feet four-jointed, not formed for rapid motion,
but for standing securely, being broad and cushioned beneath,
with the third joint deeply notched. Most of these beetles
remain upon trees and shrubs during the daytime, but fly
abroad at night. Some of them, however, fly by day, and
may be found on flowers, feeding on the pollen and the
blossoms. When annoyed or taken into the hands, they
make a squeaking sound by rubbing the joints of the thorax
and abdomen together. ‘The females are generally larger
and more robust than the males, and have rather shorter
antennee. Moreover, they are provided with a jointed tube
at the end of the body, capable of being extended or drawn
in like the joints of a telescope, by means of which they
convey their eggs into the holes and chinks of the bark of
plants.
The larve hatched from these eggs are long, whitish,
fleshy grubs, with the transverse incisions of the body very
deeply marked, so that the rings are very convex or hunched
both above and below. The body tapers a little behind, and
is blunt-pointed. The head is much smaller than the first
ring, slightly bent downwards, of a horny consistence, and
is provided with short but very powerful jaws, by means
whereof the insect’ can bore, as with a centre-bit, a cylindri-
cal passage through the most solid wood. Some of these
borers have six very small legs, namely, one pair under each
of the first three rings ; but most of them want even these
short and imperfect limbs, and move through their bur-
rows by alternate extension and contraction of their bodies,
94 COLEOPTERA.
on each or on most of the rings of which, both above and
below, there is an oval space covered with little elevations,
somewhat like the teeth of a fine rasp; and these little oval
rasps, which are designed to aid the grubs in their motions,
fully make up to them the want of proper feet.
Some of these borers always keep one end of their burrows
open, out of which, from time to time, they cast their chips,
resembling coarse sawdust; others, as fast as they proceed,
fill up the passages behind them with their castings, well
known here by the name of powder-post. These borers
live from one year to three or perhaps more years before
they come to their growth. They undergo their transfor-
mations at the furthest extremity of their burrows, many
of them previously gnawing a passage through the wood to
the inside of the bark, for their future escape. The pupa
is at first soft and whitish, and it exhibits all the parts of
the future beetle under a filmy veil which inwraps every
limb. The wings and legs are folded upon the breast, the
long antenne are turned back against the sides of the body,
and then bent forwards between the legs. When the beetle
has thrown off its pupa-skin, it gnaws away the thin coat
of bark that covers the mouth of its burrow, and comes out
of its dark and confined retreat, to breathe the fresh air,
and to enjoy for the first time the pleasure of sight, and the
use of the legs and wings with which it is provided.
The Capricorn-beetles have been divided into three fami-
lies, corresponding with the genera Prionus, Cerambyx, and
Leptura of Linneus. Those belonging to the first family
are generally of a brown color, have flattened .and saw-
toothed or beaded antenne of a moderate length, project-
ing jaws, and kidney-shaped eyes. Those in the second
have eyes of the same shape, more slender or much longer
antenne, and smaller jaws; and are often variegated in
their colors. The beetles belonging to the third family are
readily distinguished by their eyes, which are round and
prominent. These three families are divided into many
THE PRIONIANS. 95
smaller groups and genera, the peculiarities of which cannot
be particularly pointed out in a work of this kind.
The Prionians, or Prionipa, derive their name from a
Greek word signifying a saw, which has been applied to
them either because the antennz, in most of these beetles,
consists of flattened joints, projecting internally somewhat
hike the teeth of a saw, or on account of their upper jaws,
which sometimes are very long and toothed within. It is
said that some of the beetles thus armed can saw off large
Iimbs by seizing them between their jaws, and flying or
whirling sidewise round the enclosed limb, till it is completely
divided. ‘The largest insects of the Capricorn tribe belong to
this family, some of the tropical species measuring five or six
inches in length, and one inch and a half or two inches in
breadth. Their larve are broader and more flattened than
the grubs of the other Capricorn-beetles, and are provided
with six very short legs. When about to be transformed,
they collect a quantity of their chips around them, and make
therewith an oval pod or cocoon, to enclose themselves.
Our largest species is the broad-necked Prionus (Fig. 44),
Prionus laticollis* of Drury, its Fig. 44.
first describer. It is of a long
oval shape and of a pitchy-black
color. The jaws, though short,
are very thick and strong; the an-
tenn are stout and saw-toothed
in the male, and more slender in
the other sex ; the thorax is short
and wide, and armed on the lat-
eral edges with three teeth ; the
wing-covers have three slightly
elevated lines on each of them,
and are rough with a multitude
of large punctures, which run to-
gether irregularly. It measures from one inch and one
* Prionus brevicornis of Fabricius.
96 COLEOPTERA.
eighth to one inch and three quarters in length; the females
being always much larger than the males. The grubs of
this beetle, when fully grown, are as thick as a man’s thumb.
They live in the trunks and roots of the balm of gilead,
Lombardy poplar, and probably in those of other kinds of
poplar also. The beetles may frequently be seen upon, or
flying round, the trunks of these trees in the month of July,
even in the daytime, though the other kinds of Prionus
generally fly only by night.
The one-colored Prionus, Prionus unicolor* 1° of Drury
Vig. 45. , (Fig. 45), inhabits pine-trees.
y= Its body is long, narrow, and
flattened, of a light bay-brown
color, with the head and an-
tenne darker. The thorax is
very short, and armed on each
side with three sharp teeth ;
the wing-covers are nearly
of equal breadth throughout,
and have three slightly ele-
vated ribs on each of them.
This beetle measures from
one inch and one quarter to
one inch and a half in length, and about three or four tenths
of an inch in breadth. It flies by night, and frequently
enters houses in the evening, from the middle of July to
September.
The second family of the Capricorn-beetles may be allowed
to retain the scientific name, CERAMBYCID«, of the tribe to
which it belongs. The Cerambycians have not the very
prominent jaws of the Prionians; their eyes are always
kidney-shaped or notched for the reception of the first joint
of the antennz, which are not saw-toothed, but generally
* P. cylindricus of Fabricius.
[1° This species was very properly separated by Serville as a distinct genus
Orthosoma. — LEC. ]
a ea
¥
5
¢
THE BANDED STENOCORUS. 97
slender and tapering, sometimes of moderate length, some-
times excessively long, especially in the males; the thorax
is longer and more convex than in the preceding family, not
thin-edged, but often rounded at the sides.
Some of these beetles, distinguished by their narrow wing-
covers, which are notched or armed with two little thorns at
the tip, and by the great length of their antenne, belong to
the genus Stenocorus, a name signifying narrow or straitened.
One of them, which is Fig. 46.
rare here, inhabits the ~
hickory, in its larva state
forming long galleries in
the trunk of this tree in
the direction of the fibres
of the wood. ‘This beetle
is the Stenocorus (Ceras-
phorus) cinctus,* or band-
ed Stenocorus (Fig 46).
It is of a hazel color, with
a tint of gray, arising from °
the short hairs with which
it is covered ; there is an
oblique ochre-yellow band
across each wing-cover ; and a short spine or thorn on the
middle of each side of the thorax. The antennz of the
males are more than twice the length of the body, which
measures from three quarters of an inch to one inch and one
quarter in length.
The ground beneath black and white oaks is often ob-
served to be strewn with small branches, neatly severed from
these trees as if cut off with a saw. Upon splitting open the
cut end of a branch, in the autumn or winter after it has
fallen, it will be found to be perforated to the extent of six
or eight inches in the course of the pith, and a slender grub,
the author of the mischief, will be discovered therein. In
* Cerambyx cinctus, Drury; Stenocorus garganicus, Fabricius.
13
98 COLEOPTERA.
the spring this grub is transformed to a pupa, and in June or
July it is changed to a beetle, and comes out of the branch.
The history of this insect was first made
public by Professor Peck,* who called it
) the oak-pruner, or Stenocorus (Hlaphidion)
putator (Fig 47)." In its adult state it is
a slender long-horned beetle, of a dull
brown color, sprinkled with gray spots,
composed of very short close hairs; the
antennz are longer than the body in the males, and equal to
it in length in the other sex, and the third and fourth joints
are tipped with a small spine or thorn; the thorax is barrel-
shaped, and not spined at the sides; and the scutel is yellow-
Fig. 48. ish-white. It varies in length from four and a
half to six tenths of an inch. It lays its eggs
in July. Each egg is placed close to the axilla
or joint of a leaf-stalk or of a small twig, near
the extremity of a branch. The grub (Fig 48)
hatched from it penetrates at that spot to the
pith, and then continues its course towards the
body of the tree, devouring the pith, and there-
by forming a cylindrical burrow, several inches
in length, in the centre of the branch? Having
reached its full size, which it does towards the
end of the summer, it divides the branch at
the lower end of its burrow (Fig 49, pupa),
by gnawing away the wood transversely from
within, leaving only the rig of bark untouched.
It then retires backwards, stops up the end
of its hole, near the transverse section, with
fibres of the wood, and awaits the fall of the
branch, which is usually broken off and pre-
cipitated to the ground by the autumnal winds.
Fig. 47.
* Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal, Vol. V., with a plate.
[11 This species was previously described by Fabricius as Stenocorus villosus,
which specific name must therefore be preserved. — LEC. ]
THE CAPRICORN-BEETLES. 99
The leaves of the oak are rarely shed before the branch
falls, and thus serve to break the shock. Branches of five
or six feet in length and an inch in diameter are thus severed
by these insects, a kind of pruning that must be injurious to
the trees, and should be guarded against if possible. By
collecting the fallen branches in the autumn, and burning
them before the spring, we prevent development of the
beetles, while we derive some benefit from the branches as
fuel.
It is somewhat remarkable that, while the pine and fir
tribes rarely suffer to any extent from the depredations of
caterpillars and other leaf-eating insects, the resinous odor
of these trees, offensive as it 1s to such insects, does not
prevent many kinds of borers from burrowing into and de-
stroying their trunks. Several of the Capricorn-beetles, while
in the grub state, live only in pine and fir trees, or in timber
of these kinds of wood. ‘They belong chiefly to the genus
Caladium, a name of unknown or obscure origin. ‘Their
antennz are of moderate length; they have a somewhat
flattened body ; the head nods forward, as in Stenocorus ; the
thorax is broad, nearly circular, and somewhat flattened or
indented above; and the thighs are very slender next to the
body, but remarkably thick beyond the middle. The larve
are of moderate length, more flattened than the grubs of
the other Capricorn-beetles, have a very broad and horny
head, small but powerful jaws, and are provided with six
extremely small legs. ‘They undermine the bark, and per-
forate the wood in various directions, often doing immense
injury to the trees, and to new buildings, in the lumber
composing which they may happen to be concealed. Their
burrows are wide and not cylindrical, are very winding, and
are filled up with a kind of compact sawdust as fast as the
insects advance. The larva state is said to continue two
years, during which period the insects cast their skins seyeral
times. The sides of the body in the pupa are thin-edged,
and finely notched, and the tail is forked.
100 COLEOPTERA.
One of the most common kinds of Callidium found here
is a flattish, rusty-black beetle, with some downy whitis
spots across the middle of the wing-covers; the thorax is
nearly circular, is covered with fine whitish down, and has
two elevated polished black points upon it; and the wing-
covers are very coarsely punctured. It measures from four
tenths to three quarters of an inch in length. This insect is
the Callidium bajulus (Plate II. Fig. 12) ; the second name,
meaning a porter, was given to it by Linnzus, on account
of the whitish patch which it bears on its back. It mhabits
fir, spruce, and hemlock wood and lumber, and may often
be seen on wooden buildings and fences in July and August.
We are informed by Kirby and Spence, that the grubs
sometimes greatly injure the wood-work of houses in Lon-
don, piercing the rafters of the roofs in every direction, and,
when arrived at maturity, even penetrating through sheets
of lead which covered the place of their exit. One piece of
lead, only eight inches long and four broad, contained twelve
oval holes made by these insects, and fragments of the lead
were found in their stomachs. As this insect is now com-
mon in the maritime parts of the United States, it was
probably first brought to this country by vessels from Eu-
rope.
The violet Callidium, Callidium violaceum,* ® (Plate II.
Fig. 11,) is of a Prussian blue or violet color; the thorax is
transversely oval, and downy, and sometimes has a greenish
tinge; and the wing-covers are rough with thick irregular
punctures. Its length varies from four to six tenths of an
inch. It may be found in great abundance on piles of pine
wood, from the middle of May to the first of June; and the
larvee and pupz are often met with in splitting the wood.
They live mostly just under the bark, where their broad and
winding tracks may be traced by the hardened sawdust with
* Cerambyz violaceus of Linnzus.
[12 Our species is considered different from the European Callidium violaceum,
under the name C. antennatum, Newman. — LEc.]
THE CAPRICORN-BEETLES. 101
which they are crowded. Just before they are about to be
transformed, they bore into the solid wood to the depth of
several inches. They are said to be very injurious to the
sapling pines in Maine. Professor Peck supposed this species
of Callidium to have been introduced into Europe in timber
exported from this country, as it is found in most parts of
that continent that have been much connected with North
America by navigation. Thus Europe and America seem
to have interchanged the porter and violet Callidium, which,
by means of shipping, have now become common to the two
continents.
From the regularity of its form, and the noble size it
attains, the sugar-maple is accounted one of the most beau-
tiful of our forest-trees, and is esteemed as one of the most
valuable, on account of its many useful properties. This
fine tree suffers much from the attacks of borers, which in
some cases produce its entire destruction. We are indebted
to the Rev. L. W. Leonard, of Dublin, N. H., for the first
account of the habits and transformations of these borers.
In the summer of 1828, his attention was called to some
young maples, in Keene, which were in a languishing condi-
tion. He discovered the insect in its beetle state under the
loosened bark of one of the trees, and traced the recent
track of the larva three inches into the solid wood. In the
course of a few years, these trees, upon the cultivation of
which much care had been bestowed, were nearly destroyed
by the borers. The failure, from the same cause, of sev-
eral other attempts to raise the sugar-maple, has since
come to my knowledge. The insects are changed to beetles,
and come out of the trunks of the trees in July. In the
vicinity of Boston, specimens have been repeatedly taken,
which were undoubtedly brought here in maple logs from
Maine. The beetle was first described in 1824, in the Ap-
pendix to Keating’s ‘‘ Narrative of Long’s Expedition,” by
Mr. Say, who called it Clytus speciosus ; that is, the beauti-
ful Clytus. (Plate I. Fig. 15.) It was afterwards inserted,
102 COLEOPTERA.
and accurately represented by the pencil of Lesueur, in Say’s
«« American Entomology,” and, more recently, a description
and figure of it have appeared in Griffith’s translation of
Cuvier’s “ Animal Kingdom,” under the name of Clytus
Hayii.
The beautiful Clytus, like the other beetles of the genus
to which it belongs, is distinguished from a Callidium by its
more convex form, its more nearly globular thorax, which
is neither flattened nor indented, and by its more slender
thighs. The head is yellow, with the antenne and the eyes
reddish black; the thorax is black, with two transverse
yellow spots on each side; the wing-covers, for about two
thirds of their length, are black, the remaining third is
yellow, and they are ornamented with bands and spots
arranged in the followmg manner: a yellow spot on each
shoulder, a broad yellow curved band or arch, of which the
yellow scutel forms the key-stone, on the base of the wing-
covers, behind this a zigzag yellow band forming the letter
W, across the middle another yellow band arching back-
wards, and on the yellow tip a curved band and a spot of a
black color; the legs are yellow; and the under side of the
body is reddish yellow, variegated with brown. It is the
largest known species of Clytus, bemg from nine to eleven
tenths of an inch in length, and three or four tenths in
breadth. It lays its eggs on the trunk of the maple in July
and August. The grubs burrow into the bark as soon as
they are hatched, and are thus protected during the winter.
In the spring they penetrate deeper, and form, in the course
of the summer, long and winding galleries in the wood, up
and down the trunk. In order to check their devastations,
they should be sought for in the spring, when they will
readily be detected by the sawdust that they cast out of their
burrows; and, by a judicious use of a knife and stiff wire,
they may be cut out or destroyed before they have gone
deeply into the wood.
Many kinds of Clytus frequent flowers, for the sake of the
Lin PAINTED CLY TUS. 103
pollen, which they devour. During the month of Septem-
ber, the painted Clytus, Clytus pictus,* (Plate II. Fig. 10,) is
often seen in abundance, feeding by day upon the blossoms
of the golden-rod. If the trunks of our common locust-tree,
Robinia pseudacacia, are examined at this time, a still greater
number of these beetles will be found upon them, and most
often paired. ‘The habits of this insect seem to have been
known, as long ago as the year 1771, to Dr. John Reinhold
Foster, who then described it under the name of Leptura
Robinie, the latter beg derived from the tree which it
inhabits. Drury, however, had previously described and
figured it, under the specific name here adopted, which,
having the priority, in point of time, over all the others that
have been subsequently imposed, must be retained. This
Capricorn-beetle has the form of the beautiful maple Clytus.
It is velvet-black, and ornamented with transverse yellow
bands, of which there are three on the head, four on the
thorax, and six on the wing-covers, the tips of which are also
edged with yellow. ‘The first and second bands on each
wing-cover are nearly straight; the third band forms a V,
or, united with the opposite one, a W, as in the speciosus ;
the fourth is also angled, and runs upwards on the inner
margin of the wing-cover towards the scutel; the fifth is
broken or interrupted by a longitudinal elevated line; and
the sixth is arched, and consists of three little spots. The
antennz are dark brown; and the legs are rust-red. These
insects vary from six tenths to three quarters of an inch in
length.
In the month of September these beetles gather on the
locust-trees, where they may be seen glittering in the sun-
beams with their gorgeous livery of black velvet and gold,
coursing up and down the trunks im pursuit of their mates,
or to drive away their rivals, and stopping every now and
then to salute those they meet with a rapid bowing of the
shoulders, accompanied by a creaking sound, indicative of
* Leptura picta, Drury; Clytus jlecuosus, Fabricius.
104 COLEOPTERA. .
recognition or defiance. Having paired, the female, attend-
ed by her partner, creeps over the bark, searching the
crevices with her antenne, and dropping therein her snow-
white eggs, in clusters of seven or eight together, and at
intervals of five or six minutes, till her whole stock is safely
stored. ‘The eggs are soon hatched, and the grubs immedi-
ately burrow into the bark, devouring the soft inner sub-
stance that suffices for their nourishment till the approach
of winter, during which they remain at rest in a torpid state.
In the spring they bore through the sap-wood, more or less
deeply into the trunk, the general course of their winding
and irregular passages being in an upward direction from
the place of their entrance. For a time they cast their chips
out of their holes as fast as they are made, but after a while
the passage becomes clogged and the burrow more or less
filled with the coarse and fibrous fragments of wood, to get
rid of which the grubs are often obliged to open new holes
through the bark. The seat of their operations is known by
the oozing of the sap and the dropping of the sawdust from
the holes. The bark around the part attacked begins to
swell, and in a few years the trunks and limbs will become
disfigured and weakened by large porous tumors, caused by
the efforts of the trees to repair the injuries they have
suffered. According to the observations of General H. A.
5. Dearborn, who has given an excellent account* of this
insect, the grubs attain their full size by the 20th of July,
soon become pupz, and are changed to beetles and leave the
trees early in September. ‘Thus the existence of this species
is limited to one year.
Whitewashing, and covering the trunks of the trees with
grafting composition, may prevent the female from deposit-
ing her eggs upon them ; but this practice cannot be carried
to any great extent in plantations or large nurseries of the
trees. Perhaps it will be useful to head down young trees
to the ground, with the view of destroying the grubs con-
* Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal, Vol. VI. p. 272.
(
SSC
nate Ae a = 7
PHB The UER. 105
tained in them, as well as to promote a more vigorous
growth. Much evil might be prevented by employing chil-
dren to collect the beetles while in the act ofproviding for
the continuation of their kind. A common black bottle, con-
taining a little water, would be a suitable vessel to receive
the beetles as fast as they were gathered, and should be
emptied into the fire in order to destroy the msects. The
gathering should be begun as soon as the beetles first appear,
and should be continued as long as any are found on the
trees, and furthermore should be made a general business
for several years in succession. I have no doubt, should this
be done, that, by devoting one hour every day to this object,
we may, in the course of a few years, rid ourselves of this
destructive insect.
The largest Capricorn-beetle, of the Cerambycian family,
found in New England, is the Lamia (Monohammus titillator)
of Fabricius (Fig. 50), or the tickler, so named probably on
Fig. 50.
account of the habit which it has, in common with most of
the Capricorn-beetles, of gently touching now and then the
surface on which it walks with the tips of its long anten-
ne. Three or four of these beetles may sometimes be seen
14
106 COLEOPTERA.
together in June and July, on logs or on the trunks of trees
in the woods, the males paying their court to the females,
or contending with their rivals, waving their antenne, and
showing the eagerness of the contest or pursuit by their
rapid creaking sounds.
The head of the Lamias is vertical or perpendicular ; the
antennee of the males are much longer than the body, and
taper to the end; the thorax is cylindrical before and behind,
and is armed on the middle of each side with a very large
pointed wart or tubercle; the tips of the wing-covers are
rounded; and the fore legs are longer than the rest, with
broad hairy soles in the males.
The titillator is of a brownish color, variegated or mottled
with spots of gray, and the wing-covers, which are coarsely
punctured, have also several small tufted black spots upon
them ; the middle legs are armed with a small tooth on the
upper edge; the antennze of the male are twice as long as
the body, and those of the other sex equal the body in
length, which measures from one inch and one eighth to
one inch and one quarter. What kind of tree the grub of
this insect inhabits is unknown to me.
Trees of the poplar tribe, both in Europe and America,
are subject to the attacks of certain kinds of borers, differing
essentially from all the foregoing when arrived at maturity.
They belong to the genus Saperda. In the beetle state the
head is vertical, the antenne are about the length of the
body in both sexes, the thorax is cylindrical, smooth, and
unarmed at the sides, and the fore legs are shorter than the
others. Our largest kind is the Saperda calcarata of Say
(Plate II. Fig. 21), or the spurred Saperda, so named
because the tips of the wing-covers end with a little sharp
point or spur. It is covered all over with a short and close
nap, which gives it a fine blue-gray color, it is finely punc-
tured with brown, there are four ochre-yellow lines on the
head, and three on the top of the thorax, the scutel is also
ochre-yellow, and there are several irregular lines and spots
THE TWO-STRIPED SAPERDA. 107
of the same color on the wing-covers. It is from one inch
to an inch and a quarter in length. This beetle closely
resembles the European Saperda carcharias, which inhabits
the poplar ; and the grubs of our native species, with those
of the broad-necked Prionus, have almost entirely destroyed
the Lombardy poplar in this vicmity. They live also in the
trunks of our American poplars. They are of a yellowish-
white color, except the upper part of the first segment, which
is dark buff. When fully grown they measure nearly two
inches in length. The body is very thick, rather larger
before than behind, and consists of twelve segments separated
from each other by deep transverse furrows. ‘The first
seoment is broad, and slopes obliquely downwards to the
head ; the second is very narrow ; on the upper and under
sides of each of the following segments, from the third
to the tenth inclusive, there is a transverse oval space,
rendered rough like a rasp by minute projections. ‘These
rasps serve instead of legs, which are entirely wanting. The
beetles may be found on the trunks and branches of the
various kinds of poplars, in August and September ; they
fly by night, and sometimes enter the open windows of
houses in the evening.
The borers of the apple-tree have become notorious, through-
out the New England and Middle States, for their extensive
ravages. They are the larve of a beetle called Saperda
bivittata* by Mr. Say, the two-striped, or the brown and
white striped Saperda (Plate I. Fig. 16); the upper side of
its body being marked with two longitudinal white stripes
between three of a light-brown color, while the face, the an-
tenn, the under side of the body, and the legs are white.
This beetle varies in length from a little more than one
half to three quarters of an inch. It comes forth from the
trunks of the trees, in its perfected state, early in June,
making its escape in the night, during which time only it
uses its ample wings in going from tree to tree in search
* Saperda candida? Fabricius.
108 COLEOPTERA.
of companions and food. In the daytime it keeps at rest
among the leaves of the plants which it devours.
The trees and shrubs principally attacked by this borer
are the apple-tree, the quince, mountain ash, hawthorn and
other thorn bushes, the June-berry or shad-bush, and other
kinds of Amelanchier and Aronia. Our native thorns and
Aronias are its natural food; for I have discovered the larvez
in the stems of these shrubs, and have repeatedly found the
beetles upon them, eating the leaves, in June and July. It is
in these months that the eggs are deposited, being laid upon
the bark near the root, during the night. The larve hatched
therefrom are fleshy whitish grubs, nearly cylindrical, and
tapering a little from the first ring to the end of the body.
(Plate II. Fig. 17.) The head is small, horny, and brown ;
the first ring is much larger than the others, the next two are
very short, and, with the first, are covered with punctures
and very minute hairs; the following rings, to the tenth
inclusive, are each furnished, on the upper and under side,
with two fleshy warts situated close together, and destitute
of the little rasp-like teeth, that are usually found. on the
grubs of the other Capricorn-beetles ; the eleventh and twelfth
rings are very short; no appearance of legs can be seen,
even with a magnifying glass of high power.
The grub, with its strong jaws, cuts a cylindrical passage
through the bark, and pushes its castings backwards out of
the hole from time to time, while it bores upwards into the
wood. The larva state continues two or three years, during
which the borer will be found to have penetrated eight or ten
inches upwards in the trunk of the tree, its burrow at the
end approaching to, and being covered only by, the bark.
Here its transformation takes place. ‘The pupa does not
differ much from other pupe of beetles; but it has a trans-
verse row of minute prickles on each of the rings of the
back, and several at the tip of the abdomen. ‘These prob-
ably assist the insect in its movements, when casting off its
pupa-skin. The final change occurs about the first of June,
THE COATED SAPERDA. 109
soon after which, the beetle gnaws through the bark that
covers the end of its burrow, and comes out of its place of
confinement in the night.
Notwithstanding the pains that have been taken by some
persons to destroy and exterminate these pernicious borers,
they continue to reappear in our orchards and nurseries every
season. ‘Ihe reasons of this are to be found in the habits of
the imsects, and in individual carelessness. Many orchards
suffer deplorably from the want of proper attention; the
trees are permitted to remain, year after year, without any
pains bemg taken to destroy the numerous and various
insects that infest them; old orchards, especially, are neg-
lected, and not only the rugged trunks of the trees, but
even a forest of unpruned suckers around them, are left to
the undisturbed possession and perpetual inheritance of the
Saperda.
On the means that have been used to destroy this borer, a
few remarks only need to be made; for it is evident that they
can be fully successful only when generally adopted. Killing
it by a wire thrust into the holes it has made, is one of the
oldest, safest, and most successful methods. Cutting out the
grub, with a knife or gouge, is the most common practice ;
but it is feared that these tools have sometimes been used
without sufficient caution. A third method, which has more
than once been suggested, consists in plugging the holes
with soft wood. If a little camphor be previously inserted,
this practice promises to be more effectual; but experiments
are wanting to confirm its expediency.
The coated Saperda, or Saperda vestita (Plate II. Fig. 19),
described by Mr. Say in the Appendix to Keating’s Narrative
of Major Long’s Expedition, resembles the foregoing species
in form. It measures from six to eight tenths of an inch in
length ; it is entirely covered with a close greenish-yellow
down or nap, and has two or three small black dots near the
middle of each wing-cover. Mr. Say discovered it near the
southern extremity of Lake Michigan, and states that it is
110 COLEOPTERA.
also sometimes found in Pennsylvania; but he does not
appear to have known anything of its history. It is also
found in Massachusetts, but has been rarely seen until
within a few years. One of my specimens was taken in
Milton about twenty years ago, and several others were
taken in Cambridge, during the summers of 1843 and 1844,
upon the European lindens, from the trunks and branches
of which they had just come forth. A knowledge of the
habits of this insect might have led to its more frequent
discovery. One of the lindens above named was a noble
and venerable tree, with a trunk measuring eight feet and
five inches in circumference, three feet from the ground.
A strip of the bark, two feet wide at the bottom, and
extending to the top of the trunk, had been destroyed, and
the exposed surface of the wood was pierced and grooved
with countless numbers of holes, wherein the borers had
been bred, and whence swarms of the beetles must have
issued in past times. Some of the large limbs and a portion
of the top of the tree had fallen, apparently in consequence
of the ravages of these insects; and it is a matter of surprise
that this fine linden should have withstood and outlived the
attacks of such a host of miners and sappers.
The lindens of Philadelphia have suffered much more
severely from these borers. Dr. Paul Swift, in a letter
written in May, 1844, gave to me the following interesting
account of them. ‘ The trees in Washington and Inde-
pendence Squares were first observed to have been attacked
about seven years ago. Within two years, it has been found
necessary to cut down forty-seven European lindens in the
former square alone, where there now remain only a few
American lindens, and these a good deal eaten.” ‘+ Many
of the beetles were found upon the small branches and leaves
on the 28th day of May, and it is said that they come out
as early as the first of the month, and continue to make
their way through the bark of the trunk and large branches
during the whole of the warm season. They immediately fly
THE CAPBR DA RADE NT A TAs LEE
into the top of the tree, and there feed upon the epidermis of
the tender twigs, and the petioles of the leaves, often wholly
denuding the latter, and causing the leaves to fall. They
deposit their eggs, two or three in a place, upon the trunk
and branches, especially about the forks, making slight incis-
ions or punctures, for their reception, with their strong jaws.
As many as ninety eggs have been taken from a single beetle.
The grubs, hatched from these egos, undermine the bark to
the extent of six or eight inches, in sinuous channels, or
penetrate the solid wood an equal distance. It is supposed
that three years are required to mature the insect. Various
expedients have been tried to arrest their course, but without
effect. A stream, thrown into the tops of the trees from the
hydrant, is often used with good success to dislodge other
insects ; but the borer-beetles, when thus disturbed, take
wing and hover over the trees till all is quiet, and then alight
and go to work again. ‘The trunks and branches of some of
the trees have been washed over with various preparations
without benefit. Boring the trunk near the ground, and
putting in sulphur and other drugs, and plugging, have been
tried with as little effect.”
This beetle I have taken in Massachusetts only in June,
mostly between the Ist and 17th, and none after the 20th
day of the month. The grub closely resembles that of the
apple-tree borer. Figures of the insect, in all its stages,
may be seen in the tenth volume. of Hovey’s Magazine,
page 330.
There is another destructive Saperda, whose history re-
mains to be written. It is the Saperda tridentata (Plate II.
Fig. 13), so named by Olivier on account of the tridentate
or three-toothed red border of its wing-covers. This beetle
is of a dark brown color, with a tint of gray, owing to a
thin coating of very short down. It is ornamented with a
curved line behind the eyes, two stripes on the thorax, and
a three-toothed or three-branched stripe on the outer edge
of each wing-cover, of a rusty red color. There are also
it? COLEOPTERA.
six black dots on the thorax, two above, and two on the
sides ; and each of the angles between the branches and the
lateral stripes of the wing-covers is marked with a blackish
spot. The two hinder branches are oblique, and extend
nearly or quite to the suture; the anterior branch is short
and hooked. Its average length is about half an inch; but
it varies from four to six tenths of an inch. ‘The males are
smaller than the females, but have longer antennee.
This pretty beetle has been long known to me, but its
habits were not ascertained till the year 1847. On the 19th
of June, in that year, Theophilus Parsons, Esq. sent me
some fragments of bark and insects which were taken by
Mr. J. Richardson from the decaying elms on Boston Com-
mon; and, among the insects, I recognized a pair of these
beetles in a living state. My curiosity was immediately
excited to learn something more concerning these beetles and
their connection with the trees, but was not satisfied by a
partial examination made in the course of the summer. It
was not till the followmg winter, that an opportunity was
afforded for a thorough search, with the permission of the
Mayor, the Hon. Josiah Quincy, Jun., and with the help of
the Superintendent of the Common.
The trees were found to have suffered terribly from the
ravages of these insects. Several of them had already been
cut down, as past recovery; others were in a dying state,
and nearly all of them were more or less affected with disease
or premature decay. Their bark was perforated, to the height
of thirty feet from the ground, with numerous holes, through
which insects had escaped; and large pieces had become so
loose, by the undermining of the grubs, as to yield to slight
efforts, and come off in flakes. The inner bark was filled
with the burrows of the grubs, great numbers of which, in
various stages of growth, together with some in the pupa
state, were found therein; and even the surface of the wood,
in many cases, was furrowed with their irregular tracks.
Very rarely did they seem to have penetrated far into the
THE SAPERDA TRIDENTAT A, 113
wood itself; but their operations were mostly confined to the
inner layers of the bark, which thereby became loosened from
the wood beneath. The grubs rarely exceed three quarters
of an inch in length. ‘They have no feet, and they resemble
the larvee of other species of Saperda, except in being rather
more flattened. They appear to complete their transforma-
tions in the third year of their existence.
The beetles probably leave their holes in the bark during
the month of June and in the beginning of July; for, in the
course of thirty years, I have repeatedly taken them at
various dates, from the Sth of June to the 10th of July.
It is evident, from the nature and extent of their depreda-
tions, that these insects have alarmingly hastened the decay
of the elm-trees on Boston Mall and Common, and that they
now threaten their entire destruction. Other causes, how-
ever, have probably contributed to the same end. It will be
remembered that these trees have greatly suffered, in past
times, from the ravages of canker-worms. Moreover, the
impenetrable state of the surface-soil, the exhausted condition
of the subsoil, and the deprivation of all benefit from the
decomposition of accumulated leaves, which, in a state of
nature, the trees would have enjoyed, but which a regard for
neatness has industriously removed, have doubtless had no
small influence in diminishing the vigor of the trees, and
thus made them fall unresistingly a prey to insect-devourers.
The plan of this work precludes a more full consideration
of these and other topics connected with the growth and
decay of these trees; and I can only add, that it may be
prudent to cut down and burn all that are much infested
by the borers.
The tall blackberry, Jtudus villosus, is sometimes cultivated
among us for the sake of its fruit, which richly repays the
care thus bestowed upon it. It does not seem to be known
that this plant and its near relation, the raspberry, sutter
from borers that live in the pith of the stems. These borers
differ somewhat from the preceding, being cylindrical in the
15
114 COLEOPTERA.
middle, and thickened a little at each end. ‘The head is
proportionally larger than in the other borers ; the first three
rings of the body are short, the second being the widest, and
each of them is provided beneath with a pair of minute
sharp-pomted warts or imperfect legs; the remaining rings
are smooth, and without tubercles or rasps; the last three
are rather thicker than those which immediately precede
them, and the twelfth rmg is very obtusely rounded at the
end. The beetles from these borers are very slender, and
of a cylindrical form, and their antennze are of moderate
length and do not taper much towards the end.
The species which attacks the blackberry appears to be the
Saperda ( Oberea) tripunctata of Fabricius (Fig.
51). It is of a deep black color, except the
fore part of the breast and the top of the tho-
rax, which are rusty yellow, and there are two
black elevated dots on the middle of the thorax,
and a third dot on the hinder edge close to the
scutel ; the wing-covers are coarsely punctured,
Fig. 51.
in rows on the top, and irregularly on the sides and tips,
- each of which is slightly notched and ends with two little
points. The two black dots on the middle of the thorax are
sometimes wanting. This beetle varies from three tenths
to half an inch in length. It finishes its transformations
towards the end of July, and lays its eggs early in August,
one by one, on the stems of the blackberry and raspberry,
near a leaf or small twig. The grubs burrow directly into
the pith, which they consume as they proceed, so that the
stem, for the distance of several inches, is completely
deprived of its: pith, and consequently withers and dies
before the end of the summer. In Europe one of these
slender Saperdas attacks the hazel-bush, and another the
twigs of the pear-tree, in the same way.
The Lepturians, or Lepruraps, constitute the third fam-
ily of the Capricorn-beetles. In most of them the body is
narrowed behind, which is the origin of the name applied
THE LEPTURIANS. abibs,
to them, signifying really narrow tail. They differ from the
other Capricorn-beetles in the form of their eyes, which are
not deeply notched, but are either oval or rounded and prom-
inent, and the antennze are more distant from them, and are
implanted near the middle of the forehead. Moreover, the
head is not deeply sunk in the fore part of the thorax, but is
connected with it by a narrowed neck. ‘The thorax varies
somewhat in shape, but is generally narrowed before and
widened behind. The Lepturians are often gayly colored,
and fly about by day, visiting flowers for the sake of the
pollen and tender leaves, which they eat. Their grubs live
in the trunks and stumps of trees, are rather broad and
somewhat flattened, and are mostly furnished with six ex-
tremely short legs.
The largest and finest of these beetles in New England is
the Desmocerus pallatus,* (Plate II. Fig. 18,) which appears
on the flowers and leaves of the common elder towards the
end of June and until the middle of July. It is of a deep
violet or Prussian-blue color, sometimes glossed with green,
and nearly one half of the fore part of the wing-covers is
orange-yellow, suggesting the idea of a short cloak of this
color thrown over the shoulders, which the name palliatus,
that is, cloaked, was designed to express. The head is nar-
row. ‘The thorax has nearly the form of a cone cut off at
the top, being narrow before and wide behind ; it is somewhat
uneven, and has a little sharp projecting point on each side
of the base. ‘The antennz have the third and the three fol-
lowing joints abruptly thickened at the extremity, giving
them the knotty appearance indicated by the generical name
Desmocerus, which signifies knotty horn. The larve live in
the lower part of the stems of the elder, and devour the pith ;
they have hitherto escaped my researches, but I have found
the beetles in the burrows made by them.
The bark of the pitch-pine is often extensively loosened by
the grubs of Lepturians at work beneath it, in consequence
* Cerambyzx palliatus of Forster; Stenocorus cyaneus, Fabricius.
116 COLEOPTERA.
of which it falls off in large flakes, and the tree perishes.
These grubs live between the bark and the wood, often in
great numbers together, and, when they are about to become
pup, each one surrounds itself with an oval ring of woody
fibres, within which it undergoes its transformations. The
beetle is matured before winter, but does not leave the tree
until spring. It is the ribbed Rhagium, or
Rhagium lineatum,* (Fig. 52,) so named be-
cause it has three elevated longitudinal lines or
ribs on each wing-cover ; and it measures from
four and a half to seven tenths of an inch in
length. The head and thorax are gray, striped
with black, and thickly punctured ; the anten-
nz are about as long as the two forenamed parts of the body
together ; the thorax is narrow, cylindrical before and behind,
and swelled out in the middle by a large pointed wart or
tubercle on each side; the wing-covers are wide at the
shoulders, gradually taper behind, and are slightly convex
above; they are coarsely punctured between the smooth ele-
vated lines, and are variegated with reddish ash-color and
black, the latter forming two irregular transverse bands; the
under side of the body, and the legs, are variegated with dull
red, gray, and black. The gray portions on this beetle are
occasioned by very short hairs, forming a close kind of nap,
which is easily rubbed off.
The Buprestians and the Capricorn-beetles seem evidently
allied in their habits, both being borers during the greater
part of their lives, and living in the trunks and limbs of trees,
to which they are more or less injurious in proportion to their
numbers. Some of the beetles in these two groups resemble
each other closely in their forms and habits. The resem-
blance between the slender cylindrical Saperdas and some
of the cylindrical Buprestians belonging to the genus Agrilus,
is indeed very remarkable, and cannot fail to strike a common
observer. Their larve also are not only very similar in
* Stenocorus lineatus of Olivier.
SPISETD, GIDL T1551) 314 OD ee gig ize
their forms, but they have the same habits; living in the
centre of stems, and devouring the pith.
The insects that have passed under consideration in the
foregoing part of this treatise spend by far the greater por-
tion of their lives, namely, that wherein they are larvze only,
in obscurity, buried in the ground, or concealed within the
roots, the stems, or the seeds of plants, where they perform
their appointed tasks unnoticed and unknown. ‘Thus the
work of destruction goes secretly and silently on, till it be-
comes manifest by its melancholy consequences ; and too late
we discover the hidden foes that have disappointed the hopes
of the husbandman, and ruined those spontaneous produc-
tions of the soil that constitute so important a source of our
comfort and _ prosperity.
There still remain several groups of beetles to be described,
consisting almost entirely of msects that spend the whole, or
the principal part, of their lives upon the leaves of plants,
and which, as they derive their nourishment, both in the
larva and adult states, from leaves alone, may be called leaf-
beetles, or, as they have recently been named, phyllophagous,
that is, leaf-eating insects. When, as in certain seasons, they
appear in eousidevable numbers, they do not a little injury
to vegetation, and, being generally exposed to view on the
leaves that they devour, they soon attract attention. But
the power possessed by most plants of renewing their foli-
age, enables them soon to recover from the attacks of these
devourers ; and the injury sustained, unless often repeated,
is rarely attended by the ruinous consequences that follow
the hidden and unsuspected ravages of those insects that sap
vegetation in its most vital parts. Moreover, the leaf-eaters
are more within our reach, and it is not so difficult to destroy
them, and protect plants from their depredations. The leaf.
beetles are generally distinguished hy the want of a snout, by
their short legs and broad cushioned feet, and their antenne
of moderate length, often thickened a little towards the end,
or not distinctly tapermg. Some of them have an oblong
118 COLEOPTERA.
body and a narrow or cylindrical thorax, and resemble very
much some of the Lepturians, with which Linnzeus included
them. Others, and indeed the greater number, have the
body oval, broad, and often very convex.
The oblong leaf-beetles, called Criocerians (CRIOCERIDIDA),
have some resemblance to the Capricorn-beetles. They are
distinguished by the following characters. ‘The eyes are
prominent and nearly round; the antenne are of moderate
length, composed of short, nearly cylindrical or beaded joints,
and are implanted before the eyes; the thorax is narrow and
almost cylindrical or square ; the wing-covers, taken together,
form an oblong square, rounded behind, and much wider
than the thorax; and the thighs of the hind legs are often °
thickened in the middle.
The three-lined leaf-beetle, Crioceris trilineata of Olivier,®
(Fig. 53,) will serve to exemplify the habits of
the greater part of the insects of this family.
This beetle is about one quarter of an inch long,
of a rusty buff or nankin-yellow color, with two
black dots on the thorax, and three black stripes
on the back, namely, one on the outer side of each
wing-cover, and one in the middle on the inner
edges of the same; the antennz (except the first joint), the
outside of the shins, and the feet are dusky. The thorax is
abruptly narrowed or pinched in on the middle of each side.
When held between the fingers, these insects make a creak-
ing sound like the Capricorn-beetles. They appear early in
June on the leaves of the potato-vines, having at that time
recently come out of the ground, where they pass the winter
in the pupa state. Within a few years, these insects have
excited some attention, on account of their prevalence in
some parts of the country, and from a mistaken notion that
they were the cause of the potato-rot. They eat the leaves
[18 The genus Crioceris as now restricted contains only species indigenous to the
other continent, although one of them, C. asparagi, has been recently introduced
from Europe, and is found abundantly near Brooklyn, New York. The species
above mentioned belongs to Lema. — LEc.]
THE .LEAR-BEETLES. 119
of the potato, gnawing large and irregular holes through
them; and, in the course of a few days, begin to lay their
oblong oval golden-yellow eggs, which are glued to the
leaves, in parcels of six or eight together. The grubs,
which are hatched in about a fortnight afterwards, are of a
dirty yellowish or ashen-white color, with a darker-colored
head, and two dark spots on the top of the first wing. They
are rather short, approaching to a cylindrical form, but
thickest in the middle, and have six legs, arranged in pairs
beneath the first three rings. After making a hearty meal
upon the leaves of the potato, they cover themselves with
their own filth. The vent is situated on the upper side of
the last rmg, so that their dung falls upon their backs, and,
by motions of the body, is pushed forwards, as fast as it ac-
cumulates, towards the head, until the whole of the back is
entirely coated with it. This covering shelters their soft and
tender bodies from the heat of the sun, and probably serves
to secure them from the attacks of their enemies. When
it becomes too heavy or too dry, it is thrown off, but re-
placed again by a fresh coat in the course of a few hours.
In eating, the grubs move backwards, never devouring the
portion of the leaf immediately before the head, but that
which lies under it. Their numbers are sometimes very
great, and the leaves are then covered and nearly consumed
by these filthy insects. When about fifteen days old, they
throw off their loads, creep down the plant, and bury them-
selves in the ground. Here each one forms for itself a little
cell of earth, cemented and varnished within by a gummy
fluid discharged from its mouth, and when this is done, it
changes to a pupa. In about a fortnight more the insect _
throws off its pupa skin, breaks open its earthen cell, andy
crawls out of the ground. The beetles come out towards
the end of July or early in August, and lay their egos for
asecond brood of grubs. The latter come to their growth
and go. into the ground in the autumn, and remain there
in the pupa form during the winter.
120 COLEOPTERA.
The only method that occurs to me, by means of which
we may get rid of them, when they are so numerous as to
be seriously injurious to plants, is to brush them from the
leaves into shallow vessels containing a little salt and water
or vinegar.
The habits of the Hispas, little leaf-beetles, forming the
family Hispap, were first made known by me in the year
1835, in the *“* Boston Journal of Natural History,” * where
a detailed account of them, with descriptions of three native
‘species, and figures of the larvae and pupz, may be found.
The upper side of the beetles is generally rough, as the.
generical name implies. The larve burrow under the skin
of the leaves of plants, and eat the pulpy substance within,
so that the skin, over and under the place of their opera-
tions, turns brown and dries, and has somewhat of a blistered
appearance, and within these blistered spots the larvee or
erubs, the pupze, or the beetles may often be found. The
egos of these insects are little rough blackish grains, and
are glued to the surface of the leaves, sometimes singly, and
sometimes in clusters of four or five together. The grubs
of our common species are about one fifth of an inch in
length, when fully grown. The body is oblong, flattened,
rather broader before than behind, soft, and of a whitish
color, except the head and the top of the first rig, which
are brown, or blackish, and of a horny consistence. It has
a pair of legs to each of the first three rings; the other
rings are provided with small fleshy warts at the sides, and
transverse rows of little rasp-like points above and beneath.
The pupa state lasts only about one week, soon after which
the beetles come out of their burrows.
The leaves of the apple-tree are inhabited by some of these
little mining insects, which in the beetle state are probably
the Hispa roseat of Weber, or the rosy Hispa (Fig. 54).
They are of a deep or tawny reddish-yellow color above,
marked with little deep red lines and spots. The head is
Vor ate ip. i4t. { Hispa quadrata, Fabricius; H. marginata, Say.
THE ROSY HISPA. HLA’ |
small; the antenne are short, thickened towards the end,
and of a black color; the thorax is narrow Vig. BA.
before and wide behind, rough above, striped
with deep red on each side; the wing-covers
taken together form an oblong square ; there
are three smooth longitudinal lines or ribs on
each of them, spotted with blood-red, and the
spaces between these lines are deeply punc-
tured in double rows; the under side of the body is black,
and the legs are short and reddish. ‘They measure about
one fifth of an inch in length. These beetles may be found
on the leaves of the apple-tree, and very abundantly on
those of the shad-bush CAmelanchier ovalis), and choke-berry
(Pyrus arbutifola), during the latter part of May and the
beginning of June.
In the middle of June, another kind of Avspa may be
found pairing and laying eggs on the leaves of the locust-
tree. The grubs appear during the month of July, and are
transformed to beetles in August. They measure nearly
one quarter of an inch in length, are of a tawny yellow
color, with a black longitudinal line on the middle of the
back, partly on one and partly on the other wing-eover, the
imner edges of which meet together and form what is called
the suture ; whence this species was named Hispa suturalis
by Fabricius ; the head, antennze, body beneath, and legs are
black ; and the wing-covers are not so square behind as in
the rosy Hispa.
The tortoise-beetles, as they are familiarly called from
their shape, are leaf-eating insects, belonging to the family
CasstipaAp#. This name, derived from a word signifying a
helmet, is applied to them because the fore part of the
semicircular thorax generally projects over the head like the
front of a helmet. In these beetles the body is broad oval
or rounded, flat beneath, and slightly convex above. The
antenne are short, slightly thickened at the end, and inserted
close together on the crown of the head. The latter is small,
16
122 COLEOPTERA.
and concealed under, or deeply sunk into, the thorax. The
legs are very short, and hardly seen from above. ‘These
insects are often gayly colored or spotted, which increases
their resemblance to a tortoise; they creep slowly, and fly
by day. Their larve and pupz resemble those of the
following species in most respects.
Cassida aurichalcea (Plate I. Fig. 5), so named by Fabri-
cius on account of the brilliant brassy or golden lustre it
assumes, is found durimg most of the summer months on
the leaves of the bitter-sweet (Solanum dulcamara), and in
great abundance on various kinds of Convolvulus, such as our
large-flowered Convolvulus sepium, the morning-glory, and
the sweet-potato vine. The leaves of these plants are eaten
both by the beetles and their young. ‘The former begin to
appear during the months of May and June, having probably
survived the winter in some place of shelter and concealment,
and their larve in a week or two afterwards. ‘The larve
are broad oval, flattened, dark-colored grubs
(Fig. 55), with a kind of fringe, composed of
stiff prickles, around the thin edges of the
body, and a long forked tail. ‘This fork serves
to hold the excrement when voided; and a
mass of it half as large as the body of the
insect is often thus accumulated. The tail,
with the loaded fork, is turned over the back,
and thus protects the insect from the sun, and probably also
from its enemies. The first broods of larve arrive at their
growth and change to pupe early in July, fixing themselves
firmly by the hinder part of their bodies to the leaves, when
this change is about to take place. The pupa remains
fastened to the cast-skin of the larva. It is broad oval,
fringed at the sides, and around the fore part of the broad
thorax, with large prickles. Soon afterwards the beetles
come forth, and lay their eggs for a second brood of grubs,
which, in turn, are changed to beetles in the course of the
autumn. In June, 1824, the late Mr. John Lowell sent me
Fig. 55.
' THE CHRYSOMELIANS. 123
specimens of this little beetle, which he found to be injurious
to the sweet-potato vine, by eating large holes through the
leaves. This beetle is very broad oval in shape, and about
one fifth of an inch in length. When living, it has the
power of changing its hues, at one time appearing only of
a dull yellow color, and at other times shining with the
splendor of polished brass or gold, tinged sometimes also
with the variable tints of pearl. ‘The body of the insect is
blackish beneath, and the legs are dull yellow. It loses its
brilliancy after death. ‘The wing-covers, the parts which ex-
hibit the change of color, are med beneath with an orange-
colored paint, which seems to be filled with little vessels ;
and these are probably the source of the changeable _bril-
liancy of the insect.
The Chrysomelians (CHRYSOMELADZ) compose an exten-
sive tribe of leaf-eating beetles, formerly included in the
old genus Chrysomela. ‘The meaning of this word is golden
beetle, and many of the insects to which it was applied by
Linneus are of brilliant and metallic colors. They differ,
however, so much in their essential characters, their forms,
and their habits, that they are now very properly distributed
into four separate groups or families. ‘The first of these,
called GaLERucADs#, or Galerucians, consists mostly of dull-
colored beetles; having an oblong oval, slightly convex body ;
a short, and rather narrow, and uneven thorax ; slender
antenne, more than half the length of the body, and im-
planted close together on the forehead ; slender legs, which are
nearly equal in size; and claws split at the end. They fly
mostly by day, and are by nature either very timid or very
cunning, for, when we attempt to take hold of them, they
draw up their legs, and fall to the ground. They sometimes
do great injury to plants, eating large holes in the leaves, or
consuming entirely those that are young and tender. The
larvee are rather short cylindrical grubs, generally of a black-
ish color, and are provided with six legs. They live and
feed together in swarms, and sometimes appear in very great
124 COLEOPTERA.
numbers on the leaves of plants, committing ravages, at these
times, as extensive as those of the most destructive caterpil-
lars. This was the case in 1837 at Sevres, in France, and
in 1838 and 1839 in Baltimore and its vicinity, where the
elm-trees were entirely stripped of their leaves during mid-
summer by swarms of the larve of Galeruca Calmariensis ;
and, in the latter place, after the trees had begun to revive,
and were clothed with fresh leaves, they were again attacked
by new broods of these noxious grubs. These insects, which
were undoubtedly introduced into America with the Euro-
pean elm, are as yet unknown in the New England States.
The eggs of the Galerucians are generally laid in little
clusters or rows along the veins of the leaves, and those of
the elm Galeruca are of a yellow color. The pupa state of
some species occurs on the leaves, of others in the ground ;
and some of the larve live also in the ground on the roots
of plants.
One of the most common kinds is the Galeruca vittata,* or
striped Galeruca, (Plate Il. Fig. 8,) generally known here
by the names of striped bug, and cucumber-beetle. This
destructive insect is of a light-yellow color above, with a
black head, and a broad black stripe on each wing-cover, the
inner edge or suture of which is also black, forming a third
narrower stripe down the middle of the back; the abdomen,
the greater part of the fore legs, and the knees and feet of
the other legs, are black. It is rather less than one fifth of
an inch long. larly in the spring it devours the tender
leaves of various plants. I have found it often on those of
our Aronias, Amelanchier botryapium and ovalis, and Pyrus
arbutifolia, towards the end of April. It makes its first
appearance, on cucumber, squash, and melon vines, about
the last of May and first of June, or as soon as the leaves
begin to expand ; and, as several broods are produced in the
course of the summer, it may be found at various times on
these plants, till the latter are destroyed by frost. Great
* Crioceris vittata of Fabricius.
THE CUCUMBER-BEETLE. 125
numbers of these little beetles may be obtained in the autumn
from the flowers of squash and pumpkin vines, the pollen and
germs of which they are very fond of. They get into the
blossoms as soon as the latter are opened, and are often
caught there by the twisting and closing of the top of the
flower ; and, when they want to make their escape, they are
obliged to gnaw a hole through the side of their temporary
prison. ‘The females lay their eggs in the ground, and the
larvee probably feed on the roots of plants, but they have
hitherto escaped my researches.
Various means have been suggested and tried to prevent
the ravages of these striped cucumber-beetles, which have
become notorious throughout the country for their attacks
upon the leaves of the cucumber and squash. Dr. B. S.
Barton, of Philadelphia, recommended sprinkling the vines
with a mixture of tobacco and red pepper, which he stated
to be attended with great benefit. Watering the vines with
a solution of one ounce of Glauber’s salts in a quart of water,
or with tobacco-water, an infusion of elder, of walnut-leaves,
or of hops, has been highly recommended. Mr. Gourgas, of
Weston, has found no application so useful as ground plaster
of Paris ; and a writer in the ‘* American Farmer” extols the
use of charcoal dust. Deane recommended sifting powdered
soot upon the plants when they are wet with the morning
dew, and others have advised sulphur and Scotch snuff to be
applied in the same way. As these insects fly by night, as
well as by day, and are attracted by lights, burning splinters
of pine knots or of staves of tar-barrels, stuck into the
ground during the night, around the plants, have been found
useful in destroying these beetles. The most effectual pre-
servative, both against these insects and the equally destruc-
tive black flea-beetles which infest the vines in the spring,
consists in covering the young vines with millinet stretched
over small wooden frames. Mr. Levi Bartlett, of Warner,
N. H., has described a method for making these frames
expeditiously and economically, and his directions may be
126 COLEOPTERA.
found in the second volume of the ‘“‘ New England Farmer,” *
and in Fessenden’s ‘‘ New American Gardener,” + under the
article Cucumber.
The cucumber flea-beetle above mentioned, a little, black,
jumping insect, well known for the injury done by it, im the
spring, to young cucumber plants, belongs to another family
of the Chrysomelian tribe, called Hatricapz. The following
are the chief peculiarities of the beetles of this family. The
body is oval and very convex above; the thorax is short,
nearly or quite as wide as the wing-covers behind, and nar-
rowed before; the head is pretty broad; the antenne are
slender, about half the length of the body, and are implanted
nearly on the middle of the forehead; the hindmost thighs
are very thick, being formed for leaping; hence these insects
have been called flea-beetles, and the scientific name Haltiea,
derived from a word signifying to leap, has been applied to
them. The surface of the body is smooth, generally polished,
and often prettily or brilliantly colored. The claws are
very thick at one end, are deeply notched towards the other,
and terminate with a long curved and sharp point, which
enables the insect to lay hold firmly upon the leaves of
the plants on which they live. These beetles eat the leaves
of vegetables, preferring especially plants of the cabbage,
turnip, mustard, cress, radish, and horse-radish kind, or
those which, in botanical language, are called cruciferous
plants, to which they are often exceedingly injurious. The
turnip-fly, or more properly turnip flea-beetle, is one of
these Halticas, which lays waste the turnip-fields in Europe,
devouring the seed-leaves of the plants as soon as they
appear above the ground, and continuing their ravages upon
new crops throughout the summer. Another small flea-
beetle is often very injurious to the grape-vines in Europe,
and a larger species attacks the same plant in this country.
The flea-beetles conceal themselves during the winter, in dry
places, under stones, in tufts of withered grass and moss,
* Page 305. 7 Sixth edition, p. 91.
» but Mr. Say subsequently informed me that it was
THE OPMEAZBEERTLES. 197
and in chinks of walls. They lay their eggs in the spring,
upon the leaves of the plants upon which they feed. The
larvee, or young, of the smaller kinds burrow into the leaves,
and eat the soft pulpy substance under the skin, forming
therein little winding passages, in which they finally com-
plete their transformations. Hence the plants suffer as much
from the depredations of the larva, as from those of the
beetles, a fact that has too often been overlooked. The
larvee of the larger kinds are said to live exposed upon the
surface of the leaves which they devour, till they have come
to their growth, and to go into the ground, where they
are changed to pupze, and soon afterwards to beetles. The
mining larve, the only kinds which are known to me from
personal examination, are little slender grubs, tapering to-
wards each end, and provided with six legs. They arrive
at maturity, turn to pupa, and then to beetles in a few
weeks. Hence there is a constant succession of these in-
sects, in their various states, throughout the summer. The
history of the greater part of our Halticas or flea-beetles is
still unknown; I shall, therefore, only add, to the foregoing
general remarks, descriptions of two or three common spe-
cies, and suggest such remedies as seem to be useful in
protecting plants from their ravages.
The most destructive species in this vicinity is that which
attacks the cucumber plant as soon as the latter appears
above the ground, eating the seed-leaves, and thereby de-
stroying the plant immediately. Supposing this to be an
undescribed insect, I formerly named it Halteca
Cucumeris, the cucumber flea-beetle (Fig. 56) ;
Fig. 56.
the pubescens of Illiger, so named because it is very
slightly pubescent or downy. Count Dejean, who
gave to it the specific name of fuscula, considered
it as distinct from the pubescens; and it differs from the
descriptions of the latter in the color of its thighs, and in
never having the tips and shoulders of the wing-covers yel-
¥
128 COLEOPTERA.
lowish; so that it may still bear the name given to it in my
Catalogue. It is only one sixteenth of an inch long, of a
black color, with clay-yellow antennz and legs, except the
hindmost thighs, which are brown. ‘The upper side of the
body is covered with punctures, which are arranged in rows
on the wing-cases; and there is a deep transverse furrow
across the hinder ~part of the thorax. During the summer,
these pernicious flea-beetles may be found, not only on cu-
cumber-vines, but on various other plants having fleshy and
succulent leaves, such as beans, beets, the tomato, and the
potato. They injure all these plants, more or less, according
to their numbers, by nibbling little holes in the leaves with
their teeth; the functions of the leaves being thereby im-
paired in proportion to the extent of surface and amount of
substance destroyed. The edges of the bitten parts become
brown and dry by exposure to the air, and assume a rusty
appearance. Since the prevalence of the disease commonly
called the potato-rot, attention has been particularly directed
to various insects that live upon the potato-plant; and, as
these flea-beetles have been found upon it in great numbers,
in some parts of the country, they have been charged with
being the cause of the disease. The same charge has also
been made against several other kinds of insects, some of
which will be described in the course of this work. In my
own opinion, the origin, extension, and continued reappear-
ance of this wide-spread pestilence are not due to the depre-
dations of insects of any kind. Mr. Phanuel Flanders, of
Lowell, where the flea-beetles have appeared in unusual
numbers, showed to me, in August, 1851, some potato-leaves
that were completely riddled with holes by them, so that
but little more than the ribs and veims remained un-
touched. He thinks that their ravages may be prevented
by watering the leaves with a solution of lime, a remedy
long ago employed in England, with signal benefit, in pre-
serving the turnip crop from the attacks of the turnip flea-
beetle.
|
Ti Cw Ea VN HA BEE TEE, 129
The wavy-striped flea-beetle, Haltica striolata* (Hig. 57),
may be seen in great abundance on the horse-rad- 4, 57,
ish, various kinds of cresses, and on the mustard
and turnip, early in May, and indeed at other
times throughout the summer. It is very injurious
to young plants, destroying their seed-leaves as
soon as the latter expand. Should it multiply to
any extent, it may in time become as great a pest as the
European turnip flea-beetle, which it closely resembles in its
appearance, and in all its habits. ‘Though rather larger than
the cucumber flea-beetle, and of a longer oval shape, it is
considerably less than one tenth of an inch in length. It is
of a polished black color, with a broad wavy buff-colored
stripe on each wing-cover, and the knees and feet are reddish
yellow. Specimens are sometimes found having two buff-
yellow spots on each wing-cover instead of the wavy stripe.
These were not known by Fabricius to be merely varieties
of the striolata, and accordingly he described them as distinct,
under the name of bipustulata,t the two-spotted.
The steel-blue flea-beetle, Haltiea chalybea of Iliger, (Fig.
08, and Plate II. Fig. 5,) or the grape-vine
flea-beetle, as it might be called on account of
its habits, is found in almost all parts of the
United States, on wild and cultivated grape-
vines, the buds and leaves of which it destroys.
Though it has received the specific name of
chalybea, meaning steel-blue, it is exceedingly
variable in its color, specimens being often seen on the same
vine of a dark purple, violet, Prussian blue, greenish blue,
and deep green color. The most common tint of the upper
side is a glossy, deep, greenish blue; the under side is dark
green; and the antenne and feet are dull black. The body
is oblong-oval, and the hinder part of the thorax is marked
with a transverse furrow. It measures rather more than
three twentieths of an inch in length. In this part of the
Fig. 58.
* Crioceris striolata, Fabricius. t Crioceris bipustulata, Fabricius
Le
130 COLEOPTERA.
country these beetles begin to come out of their winter
quarters towards the end of April, and continue to appear till
the latter part of May. Soon after their first appearance
they pair, and probably lay their eggs on the leaves of the
vine, and perhaps on other plants also. A second brood of
the beetles is found on the grape-vines towards the end of
July. I have not had an opportunity to trace the history
of these insects any further, and consequently their larvee are
unknown tome. Mr. David Thomas has given an interest-
ing account of their habits and ravages in the twenty-sixth
volume of Silliman’s *“* American Journal of Science and
Arts.” These brilliant insects were observed by him, in the
spring of 1851, m Cayuga County, N. Y., creeping on the
vines, and destroying the buds, by eating out the central
succulent parts. Some had burrowed even half their length
into the buds. When disturbed, they jump rather than fly,
and remain where they fall for a time without motion.
During the same season these beetles appeared in unusu-
ally great numbers in New Haven, Conn., and its vicinity,
and the injury done by them was “wholly unexampled.”
‘¢Some vines were entirely despoiled of their fruit buds, so
as to be rendered, for that season, barren.” Mr. Thomas
found the vine-leaves were infested, in the years 1830 and
1831, by ‘small chestnut-colored smooth worms,” and sus-
pecting these to be the larve of the beetle (which he called
Chrysomela vitivora), he fed them in a tumbler, containing
some moist earth, until they were fully grown, when they
buried themselves in the earth. ‘‘ After a fortnight or so,”
some of the beetles were found in the tumbler. Hence there
is no doubt that the former were the larve of the beetles,
and that they undergo their transformations in the ground.
A good description of the larve, and a more full account of
their habits, seasons, and changes, are still wanted.
In England, where the ravages of the turnip flea-beetle
have attracted great attention, and have caused many and
various experiments to be tried with a view of checking
THE CHRYSOMELIANS. Ti
them, it is thought that ‘“‘the careful and systematic use
of lime will obviate, in a great degree, the danger which
has been experienced” from this insect. From this and
other statements in favor of the use of lime, there is good
reason to hope that it will effectually protect plants from
the various kinds of flea-beetles, if dusted over them, when
wet with dew, in proper season. Watering plants with alka-
line solutions, it is said, will kill the insects without injuring
the plants. The solution may be made by dissolving one
pound of hard soap in twelve gallons of the soap-suds left
after washing. This mixture should be applied twice a day
with a water-pot. Kollar very highly recommends watering
or wetting the leaves of plants with an infusion or tea of
wormwood, which prevents the flea-beetles from touching
them. Perhaps a decoction of walnut-leaves might be equal-
ly serviceable. Great numbers of the beetles may be caught
by the skilful use of a deep bag-net of muslin, which should
be swept over the plants infested by the beetles, after which
the latter may be easily destroyed. This net cannot be used
with safety to catch the insects on very young plants, on
account of the risk of bruising or breaking their tender
leaves.
The Chrysomelians, CHRYSOMELAD#, properly so called,
form the third family of the tribe to which I have given the
same name, because these insects hold the chief place in it,
ia respect to size, beauty, variety, and numbers. ‘These leaf
beetles are mostly broad oval, sometimes nearly hemispherical,
in their form, or very convex above and flat beneath. The
head is rather wide, and not concealed under the thorax.
The latter is short, and broad behind. The antennzx are
about half the length of the body, and slightly thickened
towards the end, and arise from the sides of the head, be-
tween the eyes and the corners of the mouth; being much
further apart than those of the Galerucians and flea-beetles.
The legs are rather short, nearly equal in length, and the
hindmost thighs are not thicker than the others, and are not
132 COLEOPTERA.
fitted for leaping. ‘The colors of these beetles are often rich
and brilliant, among which blue and green, highly polished,
and with a golden or metallic lustre, are the most common
tints. The larve are soft-bodied, short, thick, and slug-
shaped grubs, with six legs before, and a prop-leg behind.
They live exposed on the leaves of plants, which they eat,
and to which most of them fasten themselves by the tail,
when about to be transformed. Some, however, go into
the ground when about to change to pupe. Many of these
insects, both in the larva and beetle state, have been found
to be very injurious to vegetation in other countries; but I
am not aware that any of them have proved seriously injuri-
ous to cultivated or other valuable plants in this country.
There are some, it is true, which may hereafter increase so
as to give us much trouble, unless effectual means are taken
to protect and cherish their natural enemies, the birds.
The largest species in New England inhabits the common
milk-weed, or silk-weed (Aselepias Syriaca), upon which it
may be found, in some or all of its states, from the middle
of June till September. Its head, thorax, body beneath, an-
tenn, and legs are deep blue, and its wing-covers orange,
with three large black spots upon them, namely, one on the
shoulder, and another on the tip of each, and the third across
the base of both wing-covers. Hence it was named Chry-
somela trimaculata by Fabricius, or the three-spotted Chry-
somela (Plate II. Fig. 9). It is nearly three eighths of an
inch long, and almost hemispherical. Its larve and pup
are orange-colored, spotted with black, and pass through
their transformations on the leaves of the Asclepias.
The most elegant of our Chrysomelians is the Chrysomela
scalaris of Leconte, literally the ladder Chryso-
mela (Fig. 59). It is about three tenths of an
inch long, and of a narrower and more regularly
oval shape than the preceding. ‘The head, tho-
rax, and under side of its body are dark green,
the wing-covers silvery white, ornamented with small green
THE BLUE-WINGED CHRYSOMELA. 133
spots on the sides, and a broad jagged stripe along the suture
or inner edges; the antennze and legs are rust-red, and the
wings are rose-colored. It is a most beautiful object when
flying, with its silvery wing-covers, embossed with green,
raised up, and its rose-red wings spread out beneath them.
These beetles inhabit the lime or linden (Tilia Americana),
and the elm, upon which they may be found in April, May,
and June, and a second brood of them in September and
October. ‘They pass the winter in holes, and under leaves
and moss. ‘The trees on which they live are sometimes a
good deal injured by them and by their larve (Fig.
60). The latter are hatched from eggs laid by the
beetles on the leaves in the spring, and come to
their growth towards the end of June. They are
then about six tenths of an inch long, of a white
color, with a black line along the top of the back, and a row
of small square black spots on each side of the body; the
head is horny and of an ochre-yellow color. Like the grubs
of the preceding species, these are short, and very thick, the
back arching upwards very much in the middle. I believe
that they go into the ground to turn to pupe. Should they
become so numerous as seriously to injure the lime and elm
trees, it may be found useful to throw decoctions of tobacco
or of walnut-leaves on the trees by means of a garden or
fire engine, a method which has been employed with good
effect for the destruction of the larve of Galeruca Cal-
Fig. 60.
marvensis.
The most common leaf-beetle of the family under consid-
eration is the blue-winged Chrysomela, or
Chrysomela cceruleipennis of Say (Fig. 61),
an insect hardly distinct from the European
Chrysomela Polygont, and like the latter it
lives in great numbers on the common knot-
grass (Polygonum aviculare), which it com-
pletely strips of its leaves two or three times
in the course of the summer. This little
134 COLEOPTERA.
beetle is about three twentieths of an inch long. Its head,
wing-covers, and body beneath are dark blue ; its thorax and
legs are dull orange-red ; the upper side of its abdomen is
also orange-colored; and the antennze and feet are blackish.
The females have a very odd appearance before they have
laid their eggs, their abdomen being enormously swelled out
like a large orange-colored ball, which makes it very difficult
for them to move about. I have found tliese insects on the
knot-grass in every month from April to September inclusive.
The larve eat the leaves of the same plant.
Having described the largest, the most elegant, and the
most common of our Chrysomelians, I must omit all the rest,
except the most splendid, which was called Humolpus auratus
by Fabricius, that is, the gilded Eumolpus (Plate II. Fig. 1).
It is of a brilliant golden green color above, and of a deep
purplish green below; the legs are also purple-green ; but
the feet and the antenne are blackish. The thorax is
narrower behind than the wing-covers, and the rest of the
body is more oblong oval than in the foregoing Chrysome-
lians. It is about three eighths of an inch long. This splen-
did beetle may be found in considerable numbers on the
leaves of the dog’s-bane (Apocynum Androsemifolium), which
it devours, during the months of July and August. The
larve are unknown to me.
The fourth family of the leaf-eating Chrysomelians consists
of the Cryptocephalians (CRYPTOCEPHALID#), so named from
the principal genus Cryptocephalus, a word signifying con-
cealed head. These insects somewhat resemble the beetles of
the preceding family ; but they are of a more cylindrical form,
and the head is bent down, and nearly concealed in the fore
part of the thorax. Their larve are short, cylindrical, whit-
ish grubs, which eat the leaves of plants. Each one makes
for itself a little cylindrical or ego-shaped case, of a substance
sometimes resembling clay, and sometimes like horn, with
an opening at one end, within which the grub lives, putting
out its head and fore legs when it wishes to eat or to move.
THE CANTHARIDES. 135
When it is fully grown, it stops up the open end of its case,
and changes to a pupa, and afterwards to a beetle within it,
and then gnaws a hole through the case, in order to escape.
As none of these insects have been observed to do much
injury to plants in this country, I shall state nothing more
respecting them, than that Clythra dominicana™ inhabits the
sumach, C. quadriguttata’ oak-trees, Chlamys gibbosa low
whortleberry bushes, Cryptocephalus luridus the wild indigo-
bush, and most of the other species may be found on different
kinds of oaks.
Although the blistering beetles, or Cantharides (CantHa-
RIDIDZ), have been enumerated among the insects directly
beneficial to man, on account of the important use made of
them in medical practice, yet it must be admitted that they
are often very injurious to vegetation. ‘The green Canthar-
ides, or Spanish flies, as they are commonly called, are found
in the South of Europe, and particularly in Spain and Italy,
where they are collected in great quantities for exportation.
In these countries they sometimes appear in immense swarms,
on the privet, lac, and ash; so that the limbs of these plants
bend under their weight, and are entirely stripped of their
foliage by these leaf-eating beetles. In like manner our
native Cantharides devour the leaves of plants, and some-
times prove very destructive to them.
The Cantharides are distinguished from all the preceding
insects by their feet, the hindmost pair of which have only
four joints, while the first and middle pairs are five-jointed.
In this respect they agree with many other beetles, such as
clocks or darkling beetles, meal-beetles, some of the mush-
room-beetles, flat bark-beetles, and the like, with which they
form a large and distinct section of Coleopterous insects.
[14 Clythra ( Coscinoptera) dominicana. — LEC. ]
[15 Clythra (Babia) quadriguttata. — LEC. ]
136 COLEOPTERA:
The following are the most striking peculiarities of the fam-
ily to which the blistering beetles belong. The head is broad
and nearly heart-shaped, and it is joied to the thorax by a
narrow neck. The antenne are rather long and tapering,
sometimes knotted in the middle, particularly in the males.
The thorax varies in form, but is generally much narrower
than the wing-covers. The latter are soft and flexible, more
or less bent down at the sides of the body, usually long and
narrow, sometimes short and overlapping on their inner
edges. The legs are long and slender ; the soles of the feet
are not broad, and are not cushioned beneath ; and the claws
are split to the bottom, or double, so that there appear to be
four claws to each foot. The body is quite soft, and when
handled, a yellowish fluid, of a disagreeable smell, comes out
of the jomts. These beetles are timid insects, and when
alarmed they draw up their legs and feign themselves dead.
Nearly all of them have the power of raising blisters when
applied to the skin, and they retain it even when dead and
perfectly dry. It is chiefly this property that renders them
valuable to physicians. Four of our native Cantharides have
been thus successfully employed, and are found to be as pow-
erful in their effects as the imported species. -For further
particulars relative to their use, the reader is referred to my
account of them published in 1824, in the first volume of
‘The Boston Journal of Philosophy and the Arts,” and in
the thirteenth volume of “The New England Medical and
Surgical Journal.”
Occasionally potato-vines are very much infested by two
or three kinds of Cantharides, swarms of which attack and
destroy the leaves during midsummer. One of these kinds
has thereby obtained the name of the potato-fly. It is the
Cantharis vittata,* or striped Cantharis. It is of a dull
tawny yellow or light yellowish-red color above, with two
* Lytta vittata, Fabricius.16
[16 The name Lytta is now adopted by most entomologists in preference to that
of Cantharis for these insects. — LEc.]
THE MARGINED CANTHABIS. 137
black spots on the head, and two black stripes on the thorax
and on each of the wing-covers. The under side of the body,
the legs, and the antennz are black, and covered with a
grayish down. Its length is from five to six tenths of an
inch. In this and the three following species the thorax is
very much narrowed before, and the wing-covers are long
and narrow, and cover the whole of the back. The striped
Cantharis is comparatively rare in New England ; but in the
Middle and Western States it often appears in great numbers,
and does much mischief in potato-fields and gardens, eating
up, not only the leaves of the potato, but those of many other
vegetables. It is one of the insects to which the production
of the potato-rot has been ascribed. The habits of this kind
of Cantharis are similar to those of the following species.
There is a large blistering beetle which is very common on
the virgin’s bower (Clematis Virginiana), a trailing plant,
which grows wild in the fields, and is cultivated for covering
arbors. I have sometimes seen this plant completely stripped
of its leaves by these insects, during the month of August.
They are very shy, and when disturbed fall immediately
from the leaves, and attempt to conceal themselves among
the grass. They most commonly resort to the low branches
of the Clematis, or those that trail upon the ground, and
more rarely attack the upper parts of the vine. They also
eat the leaves of various kinds of Ranunculus or buttercups,
and, in the Middle and Southern States, those of Clematis
viorna and crispa. ‘This beetle is the Cantharis
marginata of Olivier, or margined Cantharis
(Fig. 62). It measures six or seven tenths of
an inch in length. Its head and thorax are
thickly covered with short gray down, and have
a black spot on the upper side of each; the
wing-covers are black, with a very narrow gray
edging ; and the under side of the body and the /
legs are also gray.
The most destructive kind of Cantharis found in Massa-
18
138 COLEOPTERA.
chusetts is of a more slender form than the preceding, and
measures only from five and a half to six tenths of an inch
in length. Its antennz and feet are black, and all the rest
of its body is ashen gray, being thickly covered with a very
short down of that color. Hence it is called Cantharis cine-
rea,*" or the ash-colored Cantharis (Fig. 63).
- When the insect is rubbed, the ash-colored
substance comes off, leaving the surface
black. It begins to appear in gardens about
the 20th of June, and is very fond of the
leaves of the English bean, which it sometimes
entirely destroys. It is also occasionally found
in considerable numbers on potato-vines ; and in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, it has repeatedly appeared in great profusion
upon hedges of the honey-locust, which have been entirely
stripped of foliage by these voracious insects. They are also
found on the wild indigo-weed. In the night, and in rainy
weather, they descend from the plants, and burrow in the
ground, or under leaves and tufts of grass. Thither also
they retire for shelter during the heat of the day, beng most
actively engaged in eating in the morning and evening.
About the 1st of August they go into the ground and lay
their eggs, and these are hatched in the course of one month.
The larve are slender, somewhat flattened grubs, of a yel-
lowish color, banded with black, with a small reddish head,
and six legs. These grubs are very active in their motions,
and appear to live upon fine roots in the ground; but I have
not been able to keep them till they arrived at maturity, and
therefore know nothing further of their history.
About the middle of August, and during the rest of this
and the following month, a jet-black Cantharis may be seen
on potato-vines, and also on the blossoms and leaves of vari-
Fig. 63.
* Lytta cinerea, Fabricius.
[17 As this specific name was previously applied by Forster to the species men-
tioned on the previous page as Cuntharés or Lytta marginata, and has priority over
that name, I have changed the name of the present species to Lytta Fabricii. —
LEc.]
THE BLACK CANTHARIS. 139
ous kinds of golden-rod, particularly the tall golden-rod
(Solidago altissima), which seems to be its favorite food.
In some places it is as plentiful in potato-fields as the striped
and the margined Cantharis, and by its serious ravages has
often excited attention. These three kinds, in fact, are often
confounded under the common name of potato-flies ; and it
is still more remarkable, that they are collected for medical
use, and are sold in our shops by the name of Cantharis
vittata, without a suspicion of their being distinct from each
other. The black Cantharis, or Cantharis atra-
ta* (Fig. 64), is totally black, without bands or
spots, and measures from four tenths to half of an
inch in length. I have repeatedly taken these
insects, in considerable quantities, by brushing or
shaking them from the potato-vines into a broad
tin pan, from which they were emptied into a
covered pail containing a little water, which, by
wetting their wings, prevented their flymg out when the
pail was uncovered. ‘The same method may be employed
for taking the other kinds of Cantharides, when they become
troublesome and destructive from their numbers; or they
may be caught by gently sweeping the plants they frequent
with a deep muslin bag-net. They should be killed by
throwing them into scalding water, for one or two minutes,
after which they may be spread out on sheets of paper to
dry, and may be made profitable by selling them to the
apothecaries for medical use.
There are some blistering beetles, belonging to another
genus, which seem deserving of a passing notice, not on
account of any great injury committed by them, but be-
cause they can be used in medicine like the foregoing,
Fig. 64.
and are considered by some naturalists as forming one of
the links connecting the orders Coleoptera and Orthoptera.
These insects belong to the genus Meloe, so named, it 1s
supposed, because they are of a black, or deep blue-black
* Lytta atrata, Fabricius.
140 COLEOPTERA.
color. They are called oil-beetles in England, on account
of the yellowish liquid which oozes from their joints in large
drops when they are handled. Their head is large, heart-
shaped, and bent down, as in the other blistering beetles.
Their thorax is narrowed behind, and very small in pro-
portion to the rest of the body. The latter is egg-shaped,
pointed behind, and so enormously large that it drags on
the ground when the beetle attempts to walk. The wings
are wanting, and of course these insects are unable to fly,
although they have a pair of very short oval wing-covers,
which overlap on their inner edges, and do not cover more -
than one third of the abdomen. ‘These beetles eat the leaves
of various kinds of buttercups.
Our common species is the Meloe angusticollis of Say, or
narrow-necked oil-beetle. (Fig. 65 repre-
sents the female, and the antenna of the
male at her left.) It is of a dark indigo-
blue color; the thorax is very narrow, and
the antennz of the male are curiously
twisted and knotted in the middle. It
measures from eight tenths of an inch to
one inch in length. It is very common
on buttercups in the autumn, and I have
also found it eating the leaves of potato-
vines.
The foregoing insects are but a small number of those,
belonging to the order Coleoptera, which are injurious to
vegetation. ‘Those only have been selected that are the
most remarkable for their ravages, or would best serve to
illustrate the families and genera to which they belong. The
orders Orthoptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera,
and Diptera remain to be treated in the same way, in
carrying out the plan upon which this treatise has been
begun, and to which it is limited.
Fig. 65.
PLATE “Ht.
mrel de
CHAP ira Pi 1:
ORTHOPTERA.
EARWIGS. — COCKROACHES. — MANTES, OR SOOTHSAYERS. — WALKING-LEAVES.
— WALKING-STICKS, OR SPECTRES. — MOLE-CRICKET. — FIELD CRICKETS. —
CLIMBING CRICKET. — WINGLESS CRICKET. — GRASSHOPPERS. — KATY-DID. —
Locusts.
HE destructive insects popularly known in this country
by the name of grasshoppers, but which in our version
of the Bible, and in other works in the English language, are
called locusts, have, from a period of very high antiquity,
attracted the attention of mankind by their extensive and
lamentable ravages. It should here be remarked, that in
America the name of locust is very improperly given to the
Cicada of the ancients, or the harvest-fly of English writers,
some kinds of which will be the subject of future remark in
this treatise. The name of locust will here be restricted to
certain kinds of grasshoppers; while the popularly named
locust, which, according to common belief, appears only once
in seventeen years, must drop this name, and take the more
correct one of Cicada or harvest-fly. The very frequent
misapplication of names, by persons unacquainted with nat-
ural history, is one of the greatest obstacles to the progress of
science, and shows how necessary it 1s that things should be
called by their right names, if the observations communicated
respecting them are to be of any service. Every intelligent
farmer is capable of becoming a good observer, and of making
valuable discoveries in natural history; but if he be ignorant
of the proper names of the objects examined, or if he give to
them names which previously have been applied by other
persons to entirely different objects, he will fail to make the
142 ORTHOPTERA.
result of his observations intelligible and useful to the com-
munity.
The insects which I here call locusts, together with other
grasshoppers, earwigs, crickets, spectres or walking-sticks,
and walking-leaves, soothsayers, cockroaches, &c., belong to
an order called OrrHoprera, literally straight wings ; for
their wings, when not in use, are folded lengthwise in narrow
plaits like a fan, and are laid straight along the top or sides
of the back. They are also covered by a pair of thicker
wing-like members, which, in the locusts and grasshoppers,
are long and narrow, and lie lengthwise on the sides of the
body, sloping outwards on each side like the roof of a house ;
in the cockroaches, these upper wings or wing-covers are
broader, almost oval, and lie horizontally on the top of the
back, overlapping on their inner edges; and in the crickets,
the wing-covers, when closed, are placed like those of cock-
roaches, but have a narrow outer border, which is folded
perpendicularly downwards so as to cover the sides of the
body also.
All the Orthopterous insects are provided with transverse-
ly movable jaws, more or less like those of beetles, but they
do not undergo a complete transformation in coming to ma-
turity. The young, in fact, often present a close resemblance
to the adult insects in form, and differ from them chiefly in
wanting wings. ‘They move about and feed precisely like
_ their parents, but change their skins repeatedly before they
come to their full size. The second stage in the progress
of the Orthopterous insects to maturity is not, like that of
beetles, a state of inactivity and rest, in which the insect loses
the grub-like or larva form which it had when hatched from
the egg, and becomes a pupa or chrysalis, more nearly resem-
bling the form of a beetle, but soft, whitish, and with its un-
developed wings and limbs incased in a thin transparent skin
which impedes all motion. On the contrary, the Orthoptera
in the pupa state do not differ from the young and from the
old insects, except in having the rudiments of wings and
DIVISIONS. 143
wing-covers projecting, like little scales, from the back near
the thorax. These pupz are active and voracious, and in-
crease greatly in size, which is not the case with the insects
that are subject to a complete transformation, for such never
eat or grow in the pupa state. When fully grown, they cast
off their skins for the sixth or last time, and then appear in
the adult or perfect state, fully provided with all their mem-
bers, with the exception of a few kinds which remain wingless -
throughout their whole lives. The slight changes to which
the Orthoptera are subject consist of nothing more than a
successive series of moultings, during which their wings are
gradually developed. These changes may receive the name
of imperfect or incomplete transformation, in contradistinc-
tion to the far greater changes exhibited by those insects
which pass through a complete transformation in their pro-
gress to maturity.
Cockroaches are general feeders, and nothing comes amiss
to them, whether of vegetable or animal nature ; the Mantes
or soothsayers are predaceous and carnivorous, devouring
weaker insects, and even those of their own kind occasion-
ally; but by far the greater part of the Orthopterous insects
subsist on vegetable food, grass, flowers, fruits, the leaves,
and even the bark of trees; whence it follows, in connection
with their considerable size, their great voracity, and the
immense troops or swarms in which they too often appear,
that they are capable of doing great injury to vegetation.
The Orthoptera may be divided into four large groups : —
1. Runners ( Orthoptera cursoria*™), including earwigs and
cockroaches, with all the legs fitted for rapid motion ;
2. GRASPERS ( Orthoptera raptoria), such as the Mantes, or
soothsayers, with the shanks of the fore legs capable of being
doubled upon the under side of the thigh, which, moreover,
is armed with teeth, and thus forms an instrument for seizing
and holding their prey ;
* These are the four divisions proposed by Mr. Westwood in his “ Introdue-
tion,” who, however, applies to them their Latin names only.
144 ORTHOPTERA.
3. WALKERS (Orthoptera ambulatoria), like the spectres
or walking-sticks, having weak and slender legs, which do
not admit of rapid motion ; and
4. Jumpers ( Orthoptera saltatoria), such as crickets, grass-
hoppers, and locusts, in which the thighs of the hind legs are
much larger than the others, and are filled and moved with
powerful muscles, which enable these insects to leap with
facility.
I. RUNNERS. (Orthoptera Cursoria.)
In English works on gardening, earwigs are reckoned
among obnoxious insects, various remedies are suggested to
banish them from the garden, and even traps and other
devices are described for capturing and destroying them.
They have a rather long and somewhat flattened body,
which is armed at the hinder end with a pair of slender
sharp-pointed blades, opening and shutting horizontally like
scissors, or like a pair of nippers, which suggested the name
of Forficula, literally little nippers, applied to them by scien-
tific writers.. Although no well authenticated instances are
on record of their entering the human ear, yet, during the
daytime, they creep into all kinds of crevices for the sake
of concealment, and come out to feed chiefly by night. It
is common with English gardeners to hang up, among the
flowers and fruit-trees subject to their attacks, pieces of hol-
low reeds, lobster claws, and the like, which offer enticing
places of retreat for these insects on the approach of daylight,
and by means thereof great numbers of them are obtained
in the morning. The little creeping animal, with numerous
legs, commonly but erroneously called earwig in America, is
not an insect; but of the true earwig we have several species,
though they are by no means common, and certainly never
appear in such numbers as to prove seriously injurious to
vegetation. Nevertheless, it seemed well to give to this kind
of insect a passing notice in its proper place among the
Orthoptera, were it only for its notoriety in other countries.
COCKROACHES. 145
Of cockroaches (Blatta) we have also several kinds;
those which are indigenous I believe are
found exclusively in woods, under stones
and leaves, while the others, and particu-
larly the Oriental cockroach (Blatta ori-
entalis), (Fig. 66,) which is supposed to
have originated in Asia, whence it has
spread to Europe, and thence to Amer-
ica, and has multiplied and become estab-
lished in most of our maritime commercial
towns, are domestic species, and are found
in houses, under kitchen hearths, about
ovens, and in dark and warm closets,
whence they issue at night, and prowl
about in search of food. But, as these
disgusting and ill-smelling insects con-
fine themselves to our dwellings, and do not visit our gar-
dens and fields, they will require no further remarks than
the mention of a method which has sometimes been found
useful in destroying them. Mix together a table-spoonful
of red-lead and of Indian meal with molasses enough to
make a thick batter, and place the mixture at night on a
plate or piece of board in the closets or on the hearths
frequented by the cockroaches. ‘They will eat it and be-
come poisoned thereby. The dose is to be repeated for
several nights in succession. Dr. F. H. Horner* recom-
mends the following preparation to destroy cockroaches.
Mix one teaspoonful of powdered arsenic with a table-
spoonful of mashed potato, and crumble one third of it,
every night, at bedtime, about the kitchen hearth, or where
the insects will find and devour it. As both of these prep-
arations are very poisonous, great care should be taken in
the use of them, and of any portions that may be left by
the insects.
Fig. 66.
* Downing’s Horticulturist, Vol. Il. p. 348 (Jan. 1848).
19
146 ORTHOPTERA.
II. GRASPERS. (Orthoptera raptoria.)
These, which consist of the Mantes, called praying mantes
and soothsayers, from their singular attitudes and motions,
and camel-crickets, from the great length of the neck, are
chiefly tropical insects, though some of them are occasionally
found in this country. Moreover, they are exclusively pre-
daceous insects, seizing, with their singular fore legs, cater-
pillars, and other weaker insects, which they devour. They
are, therefore, to be enumerated among the insects that are
beneficial to mankind, by keeping in check those that subsist
on vegetable food.
TIl. WALKERS. (Orthoptera ambulatoria.)
To this division belong various insects, mostly found in
warm climates, and displaying the most extraordinary forms.
Some of them are furnished with wings, which, by their
shape, and the branching veins with which they are covered,
exactly represent leaves, either green, or dry and withered ;
such are the walking-leaves, as they are called (Phylliwim
pulchrifolum, siccifolium, &e.). Others are wingless, of a
long and cylindrical shape, resembling a stick with the bark
on it, while the slender legs, standing out on each side, give
to these insects almost precisely the appearance of a little
branching twig, whence is derived the name of walking-sticks,
generally applied to them. The South American Bacteria
arumatia, rubispinosa, and phyllina, and two species of Dia-
pheromera?+ described and figured in Say’s ‘** American
Entomology,” under the names of Spectrum femoratum (Fig.
67, male) and dzvittatum, are of the latter description. These
insects are very sluggish and inactive, are found among trees
[1 Two species of Phasma are noticed. The first is Bacunculus femoratus, Say,
which has also received the name of Bacunculus Sayi, Burm., and under which
name it is best known to European authors. The latter was long ago figured by
Stoll, in his great work upon the Orthoptera, and his name preoccupied that of
Say and should be retained for it; it is Amisomorpha Buprestoides. The former
has been found in most of the States east of the Mississippi, while the latter is
peculiar to Florida and some of the Southern States. — UHLER ]
PHP WAL KING OSTI CK. 147
and bushes, on which they often remain motionless for a long
time, or walk slowly over the leaves and young shoots, which
Fig. 67.
is
are their appropriate food. ‘The American species are not
so numerous, and have not proved so injurious as particu-
larly to attract attention.
148 ORTHOPTERA.
IV. JUMPERS. (Orthoptera saltatoria.)
These are by far the most abundant and prolific, and the
most destructive of the Orthopterous insects. ‘They were all
included by Linnzus in his great genus Gryllus, in separate
divisions, however, three of which correspond to the families
Achetade,* Grylliade,} and Locustiade,t in my “ Catalogue
of the Insects of Massachusetts,’ and may retain the synony-
mous English names of Crickets, Grasshoppers, and Locusts.
These three families may thus be distinguished from each
other.
1. Crickets (AcHETAD#); with the wing-covers horizon-
tal, and furnished with a narrow, deflexed outer border ;
antenne long and tapering; feet three-jointed (except Ccan-
thus, which has four joints to the hind feet) ; two tapering,
downy bristles at the end of the body, between which, in
most of the females, there is a long spear-pointed piercer.
2. Grasshoppers (GRYLLID#£) ; with the wing-covers slop-
ing downwards at the sides of the body, or roofed, and not
bordered ; antennze lone and tapering; feet with four joints ;
end of the body, in the females, with a projecting sword or
sabre-shaped piercer.
3. Locusts (Locustap#) ; with the wing-covers roofed,
and not bordered ; antenne rather short, and in general not
tapering at the end; feet with only three joints ; female with-
out a projecting piercer.
1. Crickets. (Achetade.)
There may sometimes be seen in moist and soft ground,
particularly around ponds, little ridges or hills of loose fresh
earth, smaller than those which are formed by moles. They
cover little burrows, that usually terminate beneath a stone
or clod of turf. These burrows are made and inhabited by
mole-crickets, which are among the most extraordinary of
the cricket kind. The common mole-cricket of this country
* Gryllus Acheta, Linneus. T Gryllus Tettigonia, L. t Gryllus Locusta, L.
THE COMMON MOLE-CRICKET. 149
(Fig. 68) is, when fully grown, about one inch and a quarte
in length, of a light bay or fawn color, nig OF
and covered with a very short and vel-
vet-like down. The wing-covers are
not half the length of the abdomen, and
the wings are also short, their tips, when
folded, extending only about one eighth
of an inch beyond the wing-covers.
The fore legs are admirably adapted
for digging, being very short, broad,
and strong; and the shanks, which are
excessively broad, flat, and three-sided,
have the lower side divided by deep
notches into four finger-like projections,
that give to this part very much the
appearance and the power of the hand
of a mole. From this similarity in
structure, and from its burrowing habits,
this insect receives its scientific name of Gryllotalpa, derived
from Gryllus, the ancient name of the cricket, and Talpa,
a mole; and our common species has the additional name
of brevipennis,* or short-winged, to distinguish it from the
European species, which has much longer wings. Mole-
crickets avoid the light of day, and are active chiefly during
the night. They live on the tender roots of plants, and in
Europe, where they infest moist gardens and meadows, they
often do great injury by burrowing under the turf, and
cutting off the roots of the grass, and by undermining and
destroying, in this way, sometimes whole beds of cabbages,
beans, and flowers. In the West Indies, extensive ravages
have been committed in the plantations of the sugar-cane by
another species, Gryllotalpa didactyla, which has only two
* Serville, “ Orthoptéres,’’ p. 808.2
[2 It was previously described by Burmeister, under the name G. borealis, and
this name must be applied to it and retained. It was known to Catesby, who
figures it in his ‘‘ Natural History of Carolina.” — Unurr.]
150 ORTHOPTERA.
finger-like projections on the shin. The mole-cricket of Eu-
rope lays from two to three hundred eggs, and the young
do not come to maturity till the third year; circumstances
both contributing greatly to increase the ravages of these
insects. It is observed, that, in proportion as cultivation is
extended, destructive insects multiply, and their depredations
become more serious. We may, therefore, in process of
time, find mole-crickets in this country quite as much a pest
as they are in Europe, although their depredations have
hitherto been limited to so small an extent as not to have
attracted much notice. Should it hereafter become necessary
to employ means for checking them, poisoning might be
tried, such as placing, in the vicinity of their burrows, grated
carrots or potatoes mixed with arsenic. It is well known
that swine will eat almost all kinds of insects, and that they
are very sagacious in rooting them out of the ground. They
might, therefore, be employed with advantage to destroy
these and other noxious insects, if other means should fail.
We have no house-crickets in America ;? our species in- -
habit gardens and fields, and enter our houses only by acci-
dent. Crickets are, in great measure, nocturnal and solitary
insects, concealing themselves by day, and coming from their
retreats to seek their food and their mates by night. There
are some species, however, which differ greatly from the
others in their’ social habits. These are not unfrequently
seen during the daytime in great numbers in paths, and by
the roadside; but the other kinds rarely expose themselves
to the light of day, and their music is heard only at night.
With crickets, as with grasshoppers, locusts, and harvest-
flies, the males only are musical; for the females are not
provided with the instruments from which the sounds emitted
[3 This language may apply to the particular district in which Dr. Harris made
his observations, but it would be gratuitous to say that we have no house-crickets
in America, for nothing is better known to the country-people of Maryland than
the “‘cricket on the hearth,” and in some sections of the West they are also well
known to inhabit the chimney-places and first-floor apartments of the dwellings.
— UHLER.]
eit eT teeter
HARING Ok MEE. CRICKETS. Tat
by these different insects are produced. In the male cricket
these make a part of the wing-covers, the horizontal and over-
lapping portion of which, near the thorax, is convex, and
marked with large, strong, and irregularly curved veins.
When the cricket shrills, Gwe cannot say sings, for he has
no vocal organs,) he raises the wing-covers a little, and
shufiles them together lengthwise, so that the projecting
veins of one are made to grate against those of the other.
The English name cricket, and the French cri-cri, are evi-
dently derived from the creaking sounds of these insects.
Mr. White of Selborne says that ‘the shrilling of the field-
cricket, though sharp and stridulous, yet marvellously de-
lights some hearers, filling their minds with a train of summer
ideas of everything that is rural, verdurous, and joyous” ;
sentiments in which few persons, if any, in America will
participate; for with us the creaking of crickets does not
begin till summer is gone, and the continued and monotonous
sounds, which they keep up during the whole night, so
long as autumn lasts, are both wearisome and sad. Where
crickets abound, they do great injury to vegetation, eating
the most tender parts of plants, and even devouring roots
and fruits, whenever they can get them. Melons, squashes,
and even potatoes, are often eaten by them, and the quantity
of grass that they destroy must be great, from the immense
numbers of these insects which are sometimes seen in our
meadows and fields. They may be poisoned in the same
way as mole-crickets. Crickets are not entirely confined
to a vegetable diet ; they devour other insects whenever they
can meet with and can overpower them. They deposit their
egos, which are numerous, in the ground, making holes for
their reception, with their long, spear-pointed piercers. The
egos are laid in the autumn, and do not appear to be hatched
till the ensuing summer. ‘The old insects for the most part,
die on the approach of cold weather; but a few survive the
winter, by sheltering themselves under stones, or in holes
secure from the access of water.
152 ORTHOPTERA.
The scientific name of the genus that includes the cricket
is Acheta, and our common species 1s
the Acheta abbreviata (Fig. 69), so
named from the shortness of its wings,
which do not extend beyond the wing-
covers. It is about three quarters of
an inch in length, of a black color, with
a brownish tinge at the base of the
wing-covers, and a pale line on each
side above the deflexed border. The
pale line is most distinct in the female,
Fig. 69.
and_ is oftentimes entirely wanting in
the male.
We have another species with very
short or abortive wings; it is entirely
of a black color, and measures six tenths of an inch in length
from the head to the end of the body. It may be called
Acheta nigra,* the black cricket.
A third species, differing from these two in being entirely
destitute of wings, and in having the wing-covers proportion-
ally much shorter, and the last joint of the feelers (palpt)
almost twice the length of the preceding joint, is furthermore
distincuished from them by its greatly inferior size, and its
different coloring. It measures from three to above four
tenths of an inch in length, and varies in color from dusky
brown to rusty black, the wing-covers and hindmost thighs
being always somewhat lighter. In the brownish-colored
varieties three longitudinal black lines are distinctly visible
on the top of the head, and a black line on each side of
the thorax, which is continued along the sides of the wing-
covers to their tips. This black line on the wing-covers is
never wanting, even in the darkest varieties. The hindmost
thighs have, on the outside, three rows of short oblique
black lines, presenting somewhat of a twilled appearance.
[4 It is A. Pennsylvanica, Burm. Priority of nomenclature requires this name
to be retained. — UHLER.]
THE CLIMBING CRICKETS. Mes
This is one of the social species, which, associated together
in great swarms, and feeding in common, fre-
quent our meadows and road-sides, and, so far
from avoiding the light of day, seem to be quite
as fond of it as others are of darkness. It may
be called Acheta vittata,* (Fig. 70,) the striped
cricket.
These kinds of crickets live upon the ground,
and among the grass and low herbage; but there
is another kind which inhabits the stems and branches of
shrubs and trees, concealing itself during the daytime among
the leaves, or in the flowers of these plants. Some Isabella
grape-vines, which were trained against one side of my
house, were much resorted to by these delicate and noisy
little crickets. The males begin to be heard about thie
middle of August, and do not leave us until after the
middle of September. ‘Their shrilling is excessively loud,
and is produced, like that of other crickets, by the rubbing of
one wing-cover against the other; but they generally raise
Fig. 70.
their wing-covers much higher than other crickets do while
they are playing. These wing-covers, in the males, are also
very large, and as long as the wings ; they are exceedingly
thin, and perfectly transparent, and have the horizontal
portion divided into four unequal parts by three oblique
raised lines, two of which are parallel and form an angle with
the anterior line. The antennz and legs are both very long
and slender, the hinder thighs being much smaller in pro-
portion than those of other crickets, and the hindmost feet
have four instead of three joints. The two bristle-formed
appendages at the end of the body are as long as the piercer,
and the latter is only about half the length of the body, while,
in the ground-crickets, the piercer is usually as long as
the body, or longer. These insects have, therefore, been sep-
arated from the other crickets, under the generical name of
(Ecanthus, a word which means inhabiting flowers. They
* It belongs to M. Serville’s new genus Nemobius.
20
154 ORTHOPTERA.
may be called climbing crickets, from their habit of mounting
upon plants and dwelling among the leaves and flowers.
According to M. Salvi,* the female makes several perfora-
tions in the tender stems of plants, and in each perforation
thrusts two eggs quite to the pith. The eggs are hatched
about midsummer, and the young immediately issue from
their nests and conceal themselves among the thickest foliage
of the plant. When arrived at maturity the males begin
their nocturnal serenade at the approach of twilight, and
continue it with little or no intermission till the dawn of day.
Should one of these little musicians get admission to the
chamber, his incessant and loud shrilling will effectually
banish sleep. Of three species which in-
habit the United States, one only is found
in Massachusetts. It is the Weanthus ni-
veus (Fig. 71), or white climbing cricket.
The male is ivory-white, with the up-
per side of the first jot of the antenne,
and the head between the eyes, of an
ochre-yellow color ; there is a minute black
dot on the under sides of the first and
second joints of the antennz ; and in some
individuals the extremities of the feet and the under sides
of the hindmost thighs are ochre-yellow. The body is
about half an inch long, exclusive of the wing-covers. The
female (Fig. 72) is usually
rather longer, but the wing-
Fig. 72.
covers are much narrower
than those of the male, and
there is a great diversity of
coloring in this sex; the body being sometimes almost white,
or pale greenish-yellow, or dusky, and blackish beneath.
There are three dusky stripes on the head and thorax, and
the legs, antenne, and piercer are more or less dusky or
blackish. The wing-covers and wings are yellowish-white,
* Memorie intorno le Locuste grillajole. 8vo, Verona, 1750.
ee
THBIeRNG SHOPPERS. DO
sometimes with a tinge of green, and the wings are rather
longer than the covers. Some of these insects have been
sent to me by a gentleman who found them piercing and
laying eges in the branches of a peach-tree. Another cor-
respondent, who is interested in the tobacco culture in Con-
necticut, informed me that they injured the plant by eating
holes in the leaves.
2. GRASSHOPPERS. ((rryllide.)
Grasshoppers, properly so called, as before stated, are those
jumping orthopterous insects which have four joints to all
their feet, long bristle-formed antenne, and in which the
females are provided with a piercer, flattened at the sides,
and somewhat resembling a sword or cimeter in shape. The
wing-covers slope downwards at the sides of the body, and
overlap only a little on the top of the back near the thorax.
This overlapping portion, which forms a long triangle, is
traversed, in the males, by strong projecting veins, between
which, in many of them, are membranous spaces as transpar-
ent as glass. The sounds emitted by the males, and varying
according to the species, are produced by the friction of these
overlapping portions together.
In Massachusetts there is one kind of grasshopper which
forms a remarkable exception to the other native insects of
this family; and, as it does not seem to have been named
or described by any author, although by no means an un-
common insect, it may receive a passing notice here. It is
found only under stones and rubbish in woods, has a short
thick body, and remarkably stout hind thighs, like a cricket,
but is entirely destitute of wing-covers and wings, even when
arrived at maturity. It belongs to M. Serville’s genus Pha-
langopsis, and I propose to call it Phalangopsis maculata,*
* Gryllus maculatus, Harris. Catalogue of the Insects of Massachusetts.®
[5 According to the authority of Erichson, it was previously described with
the name Phalangopsis lapidicola, Burm. — UHLER.]
156 ORTHOPTERA.
(Fig. 73,) the spotted wingless cricket. Its body is of a pale
yellowish-brown color, darker on the back, which is covered
with little light-colered
spots, and the outside of
the hindmost thighs is
marked with numerous
short oblique lines, dis-
posed in parallel rows,
like those on the thighs of
Acheta vittata. It varies in length from one half to more than
three quarters of an inch, exclusive of the piercer and legs.
The body is smooth and shining, and the back is arched.
Most grasshoppers are of a green color, and are furnished
with wings and wing-covers, the latter frequently resembling
the leaves of trees and shrubs, upon which, indeed, many of
these insects pass the greater part of their lives. Their leaf-
like form and green color evidently seem to have been de-
signed for their better concealment. They are nocturnal
insects, or at least more active by night than by day. When
taken between the fingers, they emit from their mouths a
considerable quantity of dark-colored fluid, as do also the
locusts or diurnal grasshoppers. They devour the leaves of
plants, and lead a solitary life, or at least do not associate
and migrate from place to place in great swarms, like some
of the crickets and the locusts. There is a remarkable differ-
ence in their habits, which does not appear to have been
described hitherto. Some of these grasshoppers live upon
grass and other herbaceous or low plants in fields and mead-
ows. The piercer of the females is often straight, or only
slightly curved. They commit their eggs to the earth, thrust-
ing them into holes made therein with the piercer. They lay
a large number of eggs at a time, and cover them with a kind
of varnish, which, when dry, forms a thin film that com-
pletely encloses them. These eggs are elongated, and nearly
of an ellipsoidal form. Other green Grylli live upon trees
and shrubs. Their wing-covers and wings are broader, and
HH aK ACE Yo DD: Ea
their piercer is shorter and often more curved, than in the
foregoing kinds. They do not lay their eggs in the ground,
but deposit them upon branches and twigs, in regular rows.
My attention was first directed to the eggs of the tree-grylli
by Mr. F. C. Hill, late of Philadelphia.
Some of these grasshoppers have the front of the head
obtuse, and others have it conical, or prolonged to a point
between the antenne. Among the former is the insect
which, from its peculiar note, is called the katy-did. Its
body is of a pale green color, the wing-covers and wings
being somewhat darker. Its thorax is rough like shagreen,
and has somewhat the form of a saddle, being curved down-
wards on each side, and rounded and slightly elevated behind,
and is marked by two slightly transverse furrows. The
wings are rather shorter than the wing-covers, and the latter
are very large, oval, and concave, and enclose the body with-
in their concavity, meeting at the edges above and below,
somewhat like the two sides or valves of a pea-pod. The
veins are large, very distinct, and netted like those of some
leaves, and there is one vein of larger size running along the
middle of each wing-cover, and simulating the midrib of a
leaf. ‘The musical organs of the male consist of a pair of
taborets. They are formed by a thin and transparent mem-
brane stretched in a strong half-oval frame in the triangular
overlapping portion of each wing-cover. During the daytime
these insects are silent, and conceal themselves among the
leaves of trees; but at night they quit their lurking-places,
and the joyous males begin the tell-tale call with which they
enliven their silent mates. This proceeds from the friction
of the taboret frames against each other when the wing-covers
are opened and shut, and consists of two or three distinct
notes almost exactly resembling articulated sounds, and cor-
responding with the number of times that the wing-covers
are opened and shut; and the notes are repeated at intervals
of a few minutes, for hours together. The mechanism of the
taborets, and the concavity of the wing-covers, reverberate
158 ORTHOPTERA.
and increase the sound to such a degree, that it may be
heard in the stillness of the night, at the distance of a quarter
of a mile. At the approach of twilight the katy-did mounts
to the upper branches of the tree in which he lives, and, as
soon as the shades of evening prevail, begins his noisy babble,
while rival notes issue from the neighboring trees, and the
groves resound with the call of ‘“katy-did, she-did” the live-
long night. Of this insect I have met with no scientific
description except my own, which was published in 1831 in
the eighth volume of the “ Encyclopedia Americana,” page
ei 42. Itis the Platyphyllum*
Al ie concavum, + (Fig. 74,) and
‘ Y measures, from the head to
the end of the wing-covers,
rather more than one inch
and a half, the body alone
beg one inch in length.
“suc, The piercer is broad, later-
ally compressed, and curved
like a cimeter; and there
are, in both sexes, two little
thorn-like projections from
the middle of the breast be-
tween the fore legs. The
katy-did is found in the per-
fect state during the months
of September and October, at which time the female lays her
egos. These are slate-colored, and are rather more than
* Platyphyllum means broad-wing.
+ Can this be the Locusta perspicillata of Fabricius ? 6
[§ This is Cyrtophyllus perspicillatus, Burm. = Locusta perspicillata, Fab. Dr.
Harris’s generic name has priority over that of Burmeister, and hence this insect
must be called Platyphyllum perspicillatum, Fab. The insect called katy-did in
the Southern States is entirely different from this one, although its habit of sitting
upon the trees and issuing this shrill note has induced some persons to mistake it
for the true one from New England. The Southern katy-did belongs to the genus
Phylloptera, and from the ovipositor being shaped somewhat like that of Locusta
curvicauda, De Geer, Dr. Harris supposed it to be that species. — UHLER.]
THE OBLONG LEAF-WING. 159
one eighth of an inch in length. They resemble tiny oval
bivalve shells in shape. ‘The insect lays them in two con-
tiguous rows along the surface of a twig, the bark of which is
previously shaved off or made rough with her piercer. Each
row consists of eight or nine eggs, placed somewhat obliquely,
and overlapping each other a little, and they are fastened to
the twig with a gummy substance. In hatching, the egg splits
open at one end, and the young insect creeps through the cleft.
I am indebted to Miss Morris for specimens of these eggs.
We have another broad-winged green grasshopper, differ-
ing from the katy-did, in having the wing-covers narrower,
flat and not concave, and shorter than the wings, the thorax
smooth, flat above, and abruptly bent downwards at a right
angle on each side, and the breast without any projecting
spines in the middle. The piercer has the same form as that
of the katy-did. The musical organ of the left wing-cover,
which is the uppermost, is not transparent, but is green
and opaque, and is traversed by a strong curved vein; that
of the right wing-cover is semi-transparent in the middle.
This insect is the Phylloptera oblongifolia,* (Fig. T5,) or ob-
Fig. 75.
long leaf-winged grasshopper. Its body measures about an
inch im length, and from the head to the tips of the wings,
from an inch and three quarters to three inches. It is found
i its perfect state during the months of September and
October, upon trees, and, when it flies, makes a whizzing
noise somewhat like that of a weaver’s shuttle. The notes
* Locusta oblongifolia of De Geer, a different species from the lawrifoka of Lin-
neeus, With which it has been confounded by many naturalists.
160 ORTHOPTERA. ;
of the male, though grating, are comparatively feeble. The
females lay their eggs in the autumn on the twigs of trees
and shrubs, in double rows, of seven or eight eggs in each
row. These eggs, in form, size, and color, and in their
arrangement on the twig, strikingly resemble those of the
katy-did. The Rev. Thomas Hill, of Waltham, had the
kindness to procure some of them for me from Philadelphia.
A third species, also of a green color, with still narrower
wing-covers, which are of almost equal width from one end
to the other, but are rounded at the tips, and are shorter
than the wings, has the head, thorax, musical organs, and
breast like those of the preceding species, but the piercer is
Fig. 76.
f
much shorter, and very much more crooked, being bent
vertically upwards from near its base. The male has a long
tapering projection from the under side of the extremity of
THE MEADOW GRASSHOPPERS. 161
the body, curved upwards like the piercer of the female.
‘This grasshopper belongs to the genus Phaneroptera, so
named, probably, because the wings are visible beyond the
tips of the wing-covers ; and, as it does not appear to have
been described before, I propose to call it angustifolia,*
(Fig. 76,) the narrow-leaved. It measures from the fore-
head to the end of the abdomen about three quarters of an
inch, and to the tips of the wings from an inch and a half
to an inch and three quarters. Its habits appear to be the
same as those of the oblongifolia. It comes to maturity
some time in the latter part of August or the beginning of
September. 7
From the middle till the end of summer, the grass in our
meadows and moist fields is filled with myriads of little grass-
hoppers, of different ages, and of a light green color, with a
brown stripe on the top of the head, extending to the tip of
the little smooth and blunt projection between the antenne,
and a broader brown stripe bounded on each side by deeper
brown on the top of the thorax. The antennz, knees, and
shanks are green, faintly tinted with brown, and the feet are
dusky. When come to maturity, they measure three quar-
ters of an inch or more, from the forehead to the end of the
body, or one inch to the ends of the wing-covers. The
latter are abruptly narrowed in the middle, and taper thence
to the tip, which, however, is rounded, and extends as far
back as the wings. The color of the wing-covers is green,
but they are faintly tinged with brown on the overlapping
portion, and have the delicacy and semi-transparency of the
* I formerly mistook this insect for the Locusta curvicauda of De Geer, which
is found in the Middle and Southern States, but not in Massachusetts, is a larger
species, with wing-covers broadest in the middle, and different organs in the male,
and belongs to the genus Phylloptera.7
[7 This is the true curvicauda; it was figured by Drury as P. myrtifolia, but he
unfortunately confounded it with a species somewhat resembling it from South
America, which has caused some authors to refer his figure to the one described
by Linneus; but that is a different insect, belonging to the genus Phylloptera.
The synonymy of this species is, Phaneroptera curvicauda, De Geer = P. myrtifolia,
Drury = P. septentrionalis, Serv. = P. angustifolia, Harris. — UNLER. ]
21
162 ORTHOPTERA.
skin of an onion. ‘The shrilling organs in the males consist
of a transparent glassy spot, bounded and traversed by strong
veins, in the middle of the overlapping portion of each wing-
cover, which part is proportionally much larger and longer
than in the other grasshoppers; but the transparent spot is
rather smaller on the left than on the right wing-cover. The
male is furthermore distinguished by having two small black
spots or short dashes, one behind the other, on each wing-
cover, on the outside of the transparent spot. The wings
are green on their front margins, transparent, and reflecting
a faint pink color behind. ‘The piercer of the female is
cimeter-shaped, being curved, ‘and pointed at the end, and is
about three tenths of an inch long. The hindmost thighs, in
both sexes, are smooth and not spinous beneath; there are
two little spines in the middle of the breast; and the anten-
nz are very long and slender, and extend, when turned
lack, considerably beyond the end of the hind legs. During
the evening, and even at other times in shady places, the
males make a sharp clicking noise, somewhat like that pro-
duced by snapping the point of a pen against the thumb-nail,
but much louder. This kind of grasshopper very much
resembles the Locusta agilis of De Geer, which is found in
Pennsylvania and the Southern States, but does not inhabit
Massachusetts, and is distinguished from
our species by having the wings nearly one
tenth of an inch longer than the wing-
covers, the antenne excessively long (two
inches or more), and the piercer not quite
so much curved as in our species, besides
other differences which it is unnecessary
to record here. As our species does not
appear to have been named, or described
by any previous writer, I propose to call
it Orchelimum vulgare (Fig. T7), the com-
mon meadow-grasshopper, the generical
name signifying literally, I dance in the
Fig. 77.
meadow.
THE SWORD-BEARER. 163
With this species another one is also found, bearing a con-
siderable resemblance to it in color and form, but measuring
only four or five tenths of an inch from the head to the end
of the body, or from seven to eight tenths to the tips of the
wings, which are a little longer than the wing-covers. The
latter are narrow and taper to the end, which is rounded, but
the overlapping portion is not so large as in the common
species, and the male has not the two black spots on each
wing-cover. ‘The upper part of the abdomen is brown, with
the edges of the segments greenish-yellow, and the piercer,
which is nearly three tenths of an inch long, is brown and
nearly straight. ‘This little imsect comes very near to Lo-
custa fasciata of De Geer, who, however, makes no’ mention
of the broad brown stripe on the head and thorax. I therefore
presume that our species is not the Hig. 78.
same, and propose to call it Orcheli- Vi
mum gracile (Fig. 78), the slender
meadow-grasshopper. M. Serville,
by whom this genus was instituted,
has described three species, two of
which are stated to be North Amer-
ican, and the remaining one is probably also from this coun-
try; but his descriptions do not answer for either of our
species. - Both of these kinds of meadow-grasshoppers are
eaten greedily by fowls of all kinds.
One more grasshopper remains to be described. It is
distinguished from all the preceding species by having the
head conical, and extending to a blunt point between the
eyes. It belongs to the genus Conocephalus, a word express-
ive of the conical form of the head, and, in my Catalogue
of the Insects of Massachusetts, bears the specific name of
ensiger (Fig. 79, male), the sword-bearer, from the long,
straight, sword-shaped piercer of the female, It measures
an inch or more from the point of the head to the end of
the body, and from one inch and three quarters to two
inches to the end of the wing-covers. It is pale green, with
164 ORTHOPTERA.
the head whitish, or only faintly tinted with green, and the
legs and abdomen are pale brownish-green. A little tooth
projects downwards from the under side of the conical part
of the head, which extends between the antenne, and imme-
diately before this little tooth is a black line bent backwards
on each side like the letter U. The hindmost thighs have
five or six exceedingly minute spines on the inner ridge of
the under side. ‘The shrilling organ of the male on the left
Wing-cover is green and opaque, but that on the right has
a space in the middle that is transparent like glass. The
piercer of the female is above an inch long, very slightly
bent near the body, and is perfectly straight from thence to
the tip, which ends in a pomt. The color of this grasshop-
per is very apt to change after death to a dirty brown. It
comes very near to the dissimilis described by M. Serville,
but appears to be a different species.*
* In the collection belonging to the Boston Society of Natural History, there is
an insect which I suppose to be the Conocephalus dissimilis of Serville. It was
taken in North Carolina by Professor Hentz. The conical projection of the head
is shorter and more obtuse than in the ensiger, the sides of the thorax are brown-
ish, the hindmost thighs have a double row of black dots on the under side, and
the spines on this part are more numerous and rather larger. Professor Hentz has
sent to me from Alabama another species distinct from both of these, about the
same in length, but considerably broader. The conical part of the head between
the eyes is broader, flattened above, and, as well as the thorax, rough like shagreen.
There is a projecting tubercle beneath, but the curved black line is wanting, and
the tip of the cone has a minute point abruptly bent downwards, and forming a
hook. The sides of the thorax are bent down suddenly so as to make an angular
ridge on each side of the middle. The wing-covers are dotted with black around
their edges, and have also an irregular row of larger and more distinct spots along
THE! LOCUSTS. 165
3. Locusts. (Locustade.)
The various insects included under the name of locusts
nearly all agree in having their wing-covers rather long and
narrow, and placed obliquely along the sides of the body,
meeting, and even overlapping for a short distance, at their
upper edges, which together form a ridge on the back like a
sloping roof. Their antenne are much shorter than those of
most grasshoppers, and do not taper towards the end, but are
nearly of equal thickness at both extremities. Their feet
have really only three joints; but as the under side of the
first joint is marked by one or two cross lines, the feet, when
seen only from below, seem to be four or five jointed. The
females have not along projecting piercer, like the crickets
and grasshoppers, but the extremity of their body is provided
with four short, wedge-like pieces, placed in pairs above and
below, and opening and shutting opposite to each other, thus
forming an instrument like a pair of nippers, only with four
short blades instead of two. When one of these insects is
about to lay her eggs, she drives these little wedges into the
earth ; these, being then opened and withdrawn, enlarge the
orifice ; upon which the insect inserts them again, and drives
them down deeper than before, and repeats the operation
above described until she has formed a perforation large and
deep enough to admit nearly the whole of her abdomen.
The males, though capable of producing sounds, have not
the cymbals and tabors of the crickets and grasshoppers ;
their instruments may rather be likened to violins, their hind
legs being the bows, and the projecting veins of their wing-
covers the strings. But besides these, they have on each
side of the body, in the first segment of the abdomen, just
above and a little behind the thighs, a deep cavity, closed by
a thin piece ef skin stretched tightly across it. These proba-
the middle. The hindmost thighs have a double row of strong spines beneath, and
the piercer is straight and only about six tenths of an inch long. This insect may
be called Conocephalus uncinatus, from the hook on the tip of the head.
166 ORTHOPTERA.
bly act in some measure to increase the reverberation of the
sound, like the cavity of a violin. When a locust begins to
play, he bends the shank of one hind leg beneath the thigh,
where it is lodged in a furrow designed to receive it, and
then draws the leg briskly up and down several times against
the projecting lateral edge and veins of the wing-cover.
He does not play both fiddles together, but alternately, for a
little time, first upon one, and then on the other, standing
meanwhile upon the four anterior legs and the hind leg
which is not otherwise employed. It is stated that, in Spain,
people of fashion keep these insects, which they call grillo, in
cages, for the sake of their music.
Locusts leap much better than grasshoppers, for the thighs
of their hind legs, though shorter, are much thicker, and
consequently more muscular within. The back part of the
shanks of these legs, from a little below the knee to the end,
is armed with strong sharp spines, arranged in two rows.
These may serve as means of defence, but the lower ones also
help to fix the legs firmly against the ground when the insect
is going to leap. The power of flight in locusts is, in general,
much greater than that of grasshoppers ; for the wing-covers,
being narrow, do not, like the much wider ones of grass-
hoppers, so much impede their passage through the air; while
their wings, which are ample, except in a few species, and
when expanded together form half of a circle, have very
strong joints, and are moved by very powerful muscles within
the chest. From the shoulders of the wings several stout ribs
or veins pass towards the hinder margin, spreading apart,
when the wings are opened, like the sticks of a fan, and are
connected and strengthened by little crossing veins, which
form a kind of network. The same structure exists in the
wings of grasshoppers, but in them the longitudinal ribs are
not so strong, and the network is much more delicate. Hence
the flight of grasshoppers is short and unsteady, while that of
locusts is longer and better sustained. Many locusts, when
they fly, make a loud whizzing noise, the source of which does
AGES ETROKCURSEINS 167
not seem to be understood. ‘Those of our native locusts, whose
flight is the most noisy, are the coral-winged, the yellow-
winged, and the broad-winged species. But as these are
comparatively small insects, and never assemble in such great
swarms as the much larger migrating locusts of Asia and
Africa, the noise of their flight bears no comparison to that
of the latter. When a large number of these take flight
together, it is said that the noise is like the rushing of a
whirlwind; and hence we read, of the symbolical locusts
of the Apocalypse, that the sound of their wings was as
the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle ; *
and of others, that their coming is like the noise of chariots
on the tops of mountains, or the crackling of stubble when
overrun and consumed by a flame of fire.T
The East seems to have suffered severely at various times
from the irruptions of immense swarms of locusts, darkening
the sky during their passage, stripping the surface of the
earth, where they alight, of all vestiges of vegetation, and
thus reducing, in an inconceivably short time, the most fertile
regions to barren wastes. The ground over which they have
passed presents the appearance of having been scorched by
fire; and hence the name of locust, which is derived from the
Latin,t and means a burnt place, is highly expressive of the
desolation occasioned by their ravages. Famine and pesti-
lence have sometimes followed their appearance, as we find
recorded by various writers. In the Scriptures § frequen‘
mention is made of the destructive powers of locusts, and
these accounts are fully confirmed by the testimony of nume:-
ous travellers in Asia and Africa, some of whom have been
eyewitnesses of the devastations of these insects. Among
* Revelation ix. 9. + Joel ii. 5.
t Locus and ustus.
§ For an explanation of the various passages in which allusion is made to lo-
custs, and for much interesting matter relating to the history of these insects, as
contained in the Bible and elucidated by the accounts of historians and travellers,
the reader is referred to the article Locust in the learned and instructive work of
my father, entitled, ‘‘The Natural History of the Bible, by Thaddeus Mason Har-
ris,’’ 8vo, Boston, 1820.
16S: ORTHOPTERA.
the later accounts, that contained in Olivier’s ‘* Travels ”
does not seem to have been quoted by English writers. The
following is a free translation of the passage. Olivier, at the
time of writing it, was in Syria. ‘ After a burning south
wind had prevailed for some time, there came, from the
interior of Arabia and from the southern parts of Persia,
clouds of locusts, whose ravages in these countries are as
grievous and as sudden as the destruction occasioned in
Europe by the most severe hail-storm. Of these my com-
panion, M. Brugiéres, and myself were twice witnesses. It
is difficult to describe the effect produced on us by the sight
of the whole atmosphere filled, on all sides, to a vast height,
with a countless multitude of these insects, which flew along
with a slow and even motion, and with a noise like the dash-
ing of a shower of rain. ‘The heavens were darkened by
them, and the light of the sun was sensibly diminished. In
a moment the roofs of the houses, the streets, and all the
fields were completely covered with these insects, and in two
days they almost entirely devoured the foliage of every plant.
Fortunately, however, they continued but a short time, and
seemed to have emigrated only for the purpose of providing
for a continuation of their kind. In fact, nearly all of them
which we saw on the next day were paired, and in a day or
two afterwards the ground was covered with their dead
bodies.””* These were not the still more celebrated and
destructive migratory locusts (Locusta migratoria), but con-
sisted of the species called Acrydium peregrinum.
Although the ravages of locusts in America are not fol-
lowed by such serious consequences as in the Eastern con-
tinent, yet they are sufficiently formidable to have attracted
attention, and not unfrequently have these insects laid waste
considerable tracts, and occasioned no little loss to the cul-
tivator of the soil. Our salt-marshes, which are accounted
among the most productive and valuable of our natural
meadows, are frequented by great numbers of the small red-
* Olivier, Voyage dans l’Empire Ottoman, lEgypte et la Perse, Tom. Il. p. 424.
Os
Hit Rapa GhD LOCUSTS. 169
legged species (Acrydium femur-rubrum), (Fig. 80, p. 174,)
intermingled occasionally with some larger kinds. These,
in certain seasons, almost entirely consume the grass of these
marshes, from whence they then take their course to the up-
lands, devouring, n their way, grass, corn, and vegetables,
till checked by the early frosts, or by the close of the nat-
ural term of their existence. When a scanty crop of hay
has been gathered from the grounds which these puny pests
have ravaged, it becomes so tainted with the putrescent
bodies of the dead locusts contained in it, that it is rejected
by horses and cattle. In this country locusts are not dis-
tinguished from grasshoppers, and are generally, though in-
correctly, comprehended under the same name, or under that
of flymg grasshoppers. They are, however, if we make
allowance for their inferior size, quite as voracious and in-
jurious to vegetation during the young or larva and pupa
states, when they are not provided with wings, as they are
when fully grown. In our newspapers I have sometimes
seen accounts of the devastations of grasshoppers, which
could only be applicable to some of our locusts.
At various times they have appeared in great abundance
in different parts of New England. It is stated that, in
Maine, ‘‘during dry seasons, they often appear in great mul-
titudes, and are the greedy destroyers of the half-parched
herbage.” ‘In 1749 and 1754 they were very numerous
and voracious; no vegetables escaped these greedy troops ;
they even devoured the potato tops; and in 1743 and 1756
they covered the whole country and threatened to devour
everything green. Indeed, so great was the alarm they oc-
casioned among the people, that days of fasting and prayer
were appointed,” * on account of the threatened calamity.
The southern and western parts of New Hampshire, the
northern and eastern parts of Massachusetts, and the south-
ern part of Vermont, have been overrun by swarms of these
* See Williamson’s History of Maine, Vol. I. pp. 102, 108, and compare with
p- 172 of the same work.
99)
170 ORTHOPTERA.
miscalled grasshoppers, and have suffered more or less from
their depredations.
Among the various accounts which I have seen, the follow-
ing, extracted from the Travels of the late President Dwight,*
seems to be the most full and circumstantial. ‘ Bennington
(Vermont), and its neighborhood, have for some time past
been infested by grasshoppers (locusts) of a kind with which
I had before been wholly unacquainted. At least, their his-
tory, as given by respectable persons, is in a great measure
novel. They appear at different periods, in different years ;
but the time of their continuance seems to be the same.
This year (1798) they came four. weeks earlier than in 1797,
and disappeared four weeks sooner. As I had no opportunity
of examining them, I cannot describe their form or their size.
Their favorite food is clover and maize. Of the latter they
devour the part which is called the silk, the immediate means
of fecundating the ear, and thus prevent the kernel from
coming to perfection. But their voracity extends to almost
every vegetable; even to the tobacco plant and the burdock.
Nor are they confined to vegetables alone. The garments of
laborers, hung up in the field while they are at work, these
insects destroy in a few hours; and with the same voracity
they devour the loose particles which the saw leaves upon
the surface of pine boards, and which, when separated, are
termed sawdust. The appearance of a board fence, from
which the particles had been eaten in this manner, and which
I saw, was novel and singular; and seemed the result, not
of the operations of the plane, but of attrition. At times,
particularly a little before their disappearance, they collect
in clouds, rise high in the atmosphere, and take extensive
flights, of which neither the cause nor the direction has
hitherto been discovered. JI was authentically informed that
some persons, employed in raising the steeple of the church
in Williamstown, were, while standing near the vane, coy-
ered by them, and saw, at the same time, vast swarms of
* Travels in New England and New York, by Timothy Dwight, Vol. II. p. 403.
THE LOCUSTS OF MASSACHUSETTS. Bea |
them flying far above their heads. It is to be observed,
however, that they customarily return, and perish on the
very grounds which they have ravaged.” Through the kind-
ness of the Rev. L. W. Leonard, of Dublin, New Hampshire,
I have been favored with specimens of the destructive locusts
which occasionally appear in that part of New England, and
which, most probably, are of the same species as the insects
mentioned by President Dwight. They prove to be the little
red-legged locusts, whose ravages on our salt-marshes I have
already recorded.
In the summer of 1838, the vicinity of Baltimore, Mary-
land, was infested by insects of this kind ; and I was in-
formed by a young gentleman from that place, then a student
in Harvard College, that they were so thick and destructive
in the garden and grounds of his father, that the negroes,
were employed to drive them from the garden with rods;
and in this way they were repeatedly whipped out of the
grounds, leaping and flying before the extended line of cas-
tigators like a flock of fowls. Some of these insects were
brought to me by the same gentleman, on his return to the
University, at the end of the summer vacation, and they
turned out to be specimens of the red-legged locusts already
mentioned.
It is not to be supposed that these are the only depreda-
tory locusts in this country. Massachusetts alone produces
a large number of species, some of which have never been
described; and the habits of many of them have not been
fully investigated. The difficulty which I have met with m
ascertaining, from mere verbal reports, or from the accounts
that occasionally appear in our public prints, the scientific
names of the noxious insects which are the subjects of such
remarks, and the impossibility, without this knowledge of
their names, of fixing upon the true culprits, has induced
me to draw up, in this treatise, brief descriptions of all our
locusts, as a guide to other persons in their investigations.
All the locusts of Massachusetts that are known to me
ie, ORTHOPTERA.
may be included in three large groups or genera; viz. Aery-
dium (of Geoffroy and Latreille), Locusta (Gryllus Locusta
of Linneus), and Tetrix (of Latreille). These three genera
may be distinguished from each Slog by the following
characters.*
1. Aerydiwm. The thorax (prothorax of Kirby) and the
wing-covers of ordinary dimensions ; a projecting spine in
the middle of the breast; and a little projecting cushion
between the nails of all the feet.
2. Locusta. The thorax, and usually the wing-covers also,
of ordinary dimensions ; no projecting spine in the middle of
the breast; cushions between the nails of the feet.
3. Tetrix. The thorax (prothorar) greatly prolonged,
tapering to a point behind, and covering the whole of the
back to the extremity of the abdomen; wing-covers exceed-
ingly minute, consisting only of a little scale on each side of
the body ; fore part of the breast forming a projection, like a
cravat or stock, to receive the lower part of the head; no
spine in the middle of the breast; no cushions between the
nails.
* T have not considered it necessary to give, in addition to these, the characters
that distinguish them from the other genera of American locusts, which are not
found in Massachusetts, but add the characteristics of these genera in this note.
Opsomala. Body slender and cylindrical; head long and conical, extending
with an obtuse point between the antenne; eyes oblong oval and ahiigaee anten-
nz short, flattened, and more or less enlaneod toward the base, and tapering
toward the point; a pointed tubercle between the fore legs on the breast; wing-
covers narrow and pointed; face sloping down toward the breast, and forming an
acute angle with the top of the head.
Trucalis. Body rather thicker; head shorter, but ending in a blunt cone be-
tween the antennez; eyes oval and oblique; antennz short, flattened, eriazged
near the base, and tapering to a point; no tubercle between the fore legs; wing-
covers wider and not so pointed; face sloping toward the breast, and forming an
angle of forty-five degrees with the top of the head; thorax flat above, and marked
with three longitudinal elevated lines.
Xiphicera. Robust; head not conical, but with a projection between the an-
tenn; face vertical; antennz rather short, flattened more or less, and tapering at
the end; a spine between the fore legs on the breast; wing-covers about as long as
the abdomen, obtuse or notched at the end; thorax with three elevated crested
lines, which are frequently notched.
Romalea, Very thick and short; head obtuse; face vertical; antenne short, of
equal thickness to the end, seventeen or eighteen jointed; thorax with a some-
THE SPINE=BREASTED!) LOCUSES. We
J. Acrypium. Spine-breasted Locusts.
This word, which is nearly the same as one of the Greek
names of a locust, has been variously applied by different
entomologists. I have followed Latreille and Serville im con-
fining it to those locusts which have a projecting spine or
tubercle in the middle of the fore part of the breast between
the fore legs. To this genus belong the following native
species.
1. Acrydium alutaceum. Leather-colored Locust.
Dirty brownish yellow; a paler yellow stripe on the top
of the head and thorax; a slightly elevated longitudinal line
on the top of the thorax; wing-covers semi-transparent, with
irregular brownish spots ; wings transparent, uncolored, netted
with dirty yellow ; abdomen with transverse rows of minute
blackish dots; hindmost thighs whitish within and without,
the white portion bounded by a row of minute distant black
dots, and crossed, herring-bone fashion, by numerous brown
lines; hindmost shanks reddish, with yellowish-white spines,
which are tipped with black. Length, to the end of the ab-
domen, 1# inch; the wing-covers expand over 3 inches.
This insect was brought to me, from Martha’s Vineyard,
by Mr. Robert Treat Paine. It bears a close resemblance in
form to Acrydium Americanum of De Geer,’ a much larger
and more showy Southern species.
2. Acrydium flavo-vittatum. Yellow-striped Locust.
Dull green or olive-colored, with a yellowish line on each
side from the forehead to the tips of the wing-covers ; hind-
what elevated crest; a spine between the fore legs on the breast; wing-covers and
wings much shorter than the abdomen.
The first two of these genera seem to connect the cone-headed grasshoppers with
the locust family, while the last two approach nearer to the genus Acrydium;
many foreign genera, however, are interposed between them.
[8 This reference to De Geer is incorrect, no such species being found in his
works; it may refer to Drury. Tlustrations I. pl. 49, f. 2. — UnLErR.]
[9 This insect was previously described by Say, who calls it A. divittatus.
The difference between the species, as found in New England and that of the
jay = ORTHOPTERA.
most shanks and feet blood-red, the spines tipped with black ;
wings transparent, faintly tinged with pale green, and netted
with greenish-brown lines. The abdomen of the male is
very obtuse and curves upwards at the end, and is furnished,
on each side of the tip, with a rather large oblong square
appendage, which has a little projecting angle in the middle
of the lower side. Length, to tip of the abdomen, from 1
inch to 1}; expands from 12 inch to 2 inches.
This and the following species probably belong to the
subgenus Oxya of Serville. ‘The yellow-striped locust is
one of our most common insects. It is readily known by its
color, and by the two yellowish lines on the thorax, extend-
ing, when the insect acquires wings, along the inner margin
of the wing-covers. It is very troublesome in gardens,
climbing upon the stems of beans, peas, and flowers, devour-
ing the leaves and petals, and defilmg them with its excre-
ment. The young begin to appear in June, and they come
to their growth and acquire their wings by the first of Au-
gust. When about to moult, like other locusts, they cling
to the stem of some plant, till the skin bursts and the insect
withdraws its body and legs from it, and leaves the cast-skin
still fastened to the plant.
3. Acrydium femur-rubrum.© Red-legged Locust. (Fig. 80.)
Grizzled with dirty olive and brown; a black spot extend-
ing from the eyes along the sides
of the thorax; an oblique yellow
line on each side of the body be-
neath the wings; a row of dusky
brown spots along the middle of
the wing-covers ; and the hindmost
shanks and feet blood-red, with black spines. The wings
Fig. 80.
western sections of the Union, consists only in the color of the legs and greater
depth of tint upon the thorax, &c. In the latter, the synonymy stands as follows:
A. ( Caloptenus) bivittatus, Say = A. ( Caloptenus) femoratus, Burm. = A. Milberti,
Serv. = A. flavo-vittatum, Harris. — UHLER.]
{9 This is also a Caloptenus. — UHLER.]
THE LOCUSTS PROPER. Ltd
are transparent, with a very pale greenish-yellow tint next
to the body, and are netted with brown lines. ‘The hind-
most thighs have two large spots, on the upper side, and the
extremity, black; but are red below, and yellow on the in-
side. ‘The appendages at the tip of the body in the male
are of a long triangular form. Length from ? inch to 1
inch; exp. 14 to 12 inch.
The red-legged locust was first described by De Geer from
specimens sent to him from Pennsylvania, and I have re-
tained the scientific name which he gave to it. It is the
Gryllus (Locusta) erythropus of Gmelin, and the Aerydium
Jemorale of Olivier. It appears to be very generally diffused
throughout the United States, and sometimes so greatly
abounds in certain places as to be productive of great injury
to vegetation. I have already described its prevalence on
our salt-marshes ; and it seems to constitute those large mi-
grating swarms whose flight has been observed and recorded
in various parts of this country. It comes to maturity with
us by the latter part of July; some broods, however, a little
earlier, and others later. It is most plentiful and destructive
during the months of August and September, and does not
disappear till some time in October.
II. Locusta. Locusts Proper.
With the English entomologists, I apply the name Locusta
to that genus which includes the celebrated migrating locust,
or Gryllus Locusta migratoria of Linneus. By the older
French entomologists the insects contained in it were united
to the genus Acrydiwm; but Latreille afterwards separated
them from Acrydiwm under the generical name of Gdipoda
(which means swelled leg), and he is followed in this by
Serville, the latest writer on the Orthoptera. In the in-
sects of this genus the breast is not armed with a blunt
spme or tubercle, a character which distinguishes the genus
Acrydium from it. In other respects these two genera are
much alike.
176 ORTHOPTERA.
1. Locusta Oarolina.*"' Carolina Locust. (Plate III. Fig. 3.)
Pale yellowish brown, with small dusky spots; wings
black, with a broad yellow hind margin, which is covered
with dusky spots at the tip. Length from 1 to 13 inch; exp.
23 to above 34 inches.
A more detailed description of this large, common, and
well-known species is unnecessary. The Carolina locust is
found in abundance by the road-side, from the middle to the
end of summer. It generally makes use of its large and
handsome wings in moving from place to place. It is fre-_
quently found in company with the red-legged locust in the
vicinity of salt-marshes, but it generally prefers warm and
dry situations. Pairing takes place with this species in the
months of September and October, immediately after which
the female prepares to lay her eggs. ‘These are deposited at
the bottom of a cylindrical hole in the ground, made in the
manner already described, and are not hatched till the fol-
lowing spring. The abdomen of the female admits of being
greatly extended in length; hence she frequently deposits
her eggs at the depth of nearly two inches beneath the sur-
face of the soil.
2. Locusta corallina. Coral-winged Locust.
Light brown ; spotted with dark brown on the wing-coy-
ers; wings light vermilion or coral-red, with an external
dusky border, which is wide and paler at the tip, narrowed
and darker behind; hind shanks yellow with black-tipped
spines. Length 1 to 14 inch; exp. 24 to 23 inches.
This species closely resembles the Acridium tuberculatum
of Palisot de Beauvois, which seems to be the Cdipoda dis-
coidea of Serville, found in the Southern States, of a much
larger size than the coral-winged locust, and having the
wings of a much deeper and duller red color, and the black- ©
* Gryllus Locusta Carolinus, Linnzus.
[11 L. Carolina must be referred to Hdipoda. — UHLER.]
THE YELEOW-WINGED LOCUST. OTe
ish border not so much narrowed behind. It cannot be
mistaken for the fenestralis, which M. Serville describes as
having the antennz nearly as long as the body, whereas in
this species they are not half that length. The coral-winged
locust is the first that makes its appearance with wings in the
spring, being found flying about in warm and dry pastures
as early as the middle of April or the first of May, and is
rendered very conspicuous by its bright-colored wings, and
the loud noise which it makes in flying. It probably passes
the winter in the pupa state, and undergoes its last. transfor-
mation in the spring; but its history is not yet fully known
to me, and this opinion is the result only of conjecture.
1
3. Locusta sulphurea.” Yellow-winged Locust. (Plate I. Fig. 6.)
Dusky brown ; thorax slightly keeled in the middle ; wing-
covers ash-colored at their extremities, more or less distinctly
spotted with brown; wings deep yellow next to the body,
dusky at tip, the yellow portion bounded beyond the middle
by a broad dusky brown band, which curves and is prolonged
on the hind margin, but does not reach the angle next to the
extremity of the body; hindmost thighs blackish at the end,
and with two black and two whitish bands on the inside;
hindmost shanks and their spines black, with a broad whitish
ring just below the knees. Length 38 to 14 ch; exp. 12 to
24 inches.
This insect agrees tolerably well with the brief description
given by Fabricius of his Gryllus sulphwreus, except that the
wings are not sulphur-yellow, but of a deeper tint. It is also
described and figured by Palisot de Beauvois under the name
of Acridium sulphureum. It is a rare species in this vicinity.
I have taken it, though sparingly, in its perfect state, in May
and in September. The elevated ridge on the top of the
thorax is higher than in any other species found in Massachu-
setts.
[12 L. sulphurea must be referred to Gdipoda. — UnLEr.]
23
178 ORTHOPTERA.
4, Locusta Maritima® Maritime Locust.
Ash-gray ; face variegated with white; wing-covers sprin-
kled with minute brownish spots, and semi-transparent at tip ;
wings transparent, faintly tinted with yellow next the body,
uncolored at tip, with a series of irregular blackish spots
forming a curved band across the middle; hindmost shanks
and feet pale yellow, with the extreme pomts of the spines
black. Length 2 to 1} inch; exp. 174 inch to 2? inches.
This species comes very near to Mr. Kirby’s description
of the Locusta leucostoma; but is evidently distinct from it,
and does not appear to have been described before. I have
received it from Sandwich, and have found it in great abun-
dance among the coarse grass which grows near the edges
of our sandy beaches, but have never seen it except in the
immediate vicinity of the sea. It comes to maturity and lays
its eggs about the middle of August or a little later.
5. Locusta equalis.* Barren-ground Locust.
Ash-gray, mottled with dusky brown and white; wing-
covers semi-transparent at tip, with numerous dusky spots
which run together so as to form three transverse bands ;
wings light yellow on their basal half, transparent with
dusky veins and a few spots at the tip, with an intermediate
broad black band, which, curving and becoming narrower
on the hind margin, is continued to the inner angle of the
wing; hindmost shanks coral-red, with a broad white ring
below the knees, and the spines tipped with black. Length.
14 inch; exp. 2} inches.
Mr. Say, to whom I sent a specimen of this handsome
locust, informed me that it was his Gryllus equalis, probably
intended for equalis. It is found, during the months of July
[13 L. maritima must be referred to Edipoda. — UHLER. ]
[14 L. equalis and latipennis are merely to be separated as races of one species,
and cannot remain as separate species. They must be referred to the genus
(Edipoda. — UHLER.]
THE MARBUED LOCUST. 179
and August, on dry barren hills and on sandy plains, upon
the scanty herbage intermingled with the reindeer moss.
6. Locusta latipennis.'* Broad-winged Locust.
Ash-colored, mottled with black and gray; wing-covers
semi-transparent beyond the middle, with numerous blackish
spots which run together at the base, and form a band across
the middle; wings broad, light yellow on the basal half, the
remainder dusky but partially transparent, with black net-
work, and deep black at tip, and an intermediate irregular
band, formed by a contiguous series of black spots, reaching
only to the hind margin, but not continued towards the inner
angle ; hindmost shanks pale yellow, with a black ring below
the knees, a broader one at the extremity, and a blackish
spot behind the upper part of the shank. Length 3% inch;
exp. 14 inch.
It is possible that this may be a variety of the preceding
species, from which it differs especially in the form and
width of the wings and in the colors of the hindmost shanks.
It is found in the same places, and at the same time, as the
barren-ground locust.
7. Locusta marmorata.’ Marbled Locust. (Fig. 81.)
Ash-colored, variegated with pale yellow and black ; thorax
suddenly narrowed before the mid- “hes Gi
dle, and the slightly elevated longi-
tudinal line on the top is cut through
in the middle by a transverse fissure ;
wing-covers marbled with large whit-
ish and black spots, and semi-transparent at the end; wings
light yellow on the half next to the body, transparent near
the end, with two black spots on the tip, and a broad inter-
mediate black band, which, narrowed and curving inwards
on the hind margin, nearly reaches the mner angle ; hind-
most thighs pale yellow, black at the extremity, and nearly
[15 LL. marmorata must be referred to Gdipeda. — UULER. ]
180 ORTHOPTERA.
surrounded by two broad black bands ; hind shanks coral-red,
with a black ring immediately below the knee, and followed
by a white rmg, black at the lower extremity also, with the
tips of the spines black. In some individuals there is an
additional black ring below the white one on the shanks.
Length from 75 to above 3% inch; exp. 1745 to 1585 inch.
The marbled locust, which is one of our prettiest species,
is found in the open places contiguous to or within pitch-pine
woods, flying over the scanty grass and reindeer moss which
not unfrequently grow in these situations. It is marked on
the wings somewhat like the barren-ground locust, but is
invariably smaller, with the thorax much more contracted
before the middle. It appears, in the perfect state, from the
middle of July to the middle of October.
8. Locusta eucerata.'® Long-horned Locust.
Ash-colored, variegated with gray and dark brown ; anten-
nee nearly as long as the body, and with flattened joints ;
thorax very much pinched or compressed laterally before the
middle, with a slightly elevated longitudinal line, which is
interrupted by two notches; wing-covers and wings long
and narrow; the former variegated with dusky spots, and
semi-transparent at tip; wings next to the body yellow,
sometimes pale, sometimes deep and almost orange-colored,
at other times uncolored and semi-transparent ; with a broad
black band across the middle, which is narrowed and pro-
longed on the hinder margin, and extends quite to the inner
angle; beyond the band the wings are transparent, with the
tips black or covered with blackish spots; hindmost shanks
whitish, with a black ring at each end, a broad one of the
same color just above the middle, and the spines tipped with
black. Length 3 inch to 7 inch; exp. 1,3 inch to more
than 14 inch.
The wings of this species are very variable in color at the
base. The fenestralis described by M. Serville has the base
[16 L. eucerata must be referred to @dipoda. — UHLER.]
Line MUSK YeoLOouUsT. 181
of the wings vermilion-red, but in other respects it approaches
to this species. The long-horned locust is found oftentimes
in company with the marbled species, and also near sea-
beaches with the maritime locust, from the last of July to the
middle of October.
9. Locusta nebulosa.” Clouded Locust.
Dusky brown; thorax with a slender keel-like elevation,
which is cut across in the middle by a transverse fissure ;
wing-covers pale, clouded, and spotted with brown; wings
transparent, dusky at tip, with a dark brown line on the
front margin; hindmost shanks brown, with darker spines,
and a broad whitish ring below the knees. Length from 38
inch to more than 1,2, inch; exp. from 13 inch to more than
2 inches.
A very common species, and easily known by its clouded
wing-covers and colorless wings. It abounds in pastures,
and even in corn-fields and gardens, during the months of
September and October, at which time it is furnished with
wings and may often be seen paired or busied in laying eggs.
It does not appear to have been described before.
The three following locusts differ from the preceding in
having the antennz shorter than the thorax, and slightly
thickened towards the end, and the face somewhat oblique,
the mouth being nearer the breast than in our other species
of Locusta; and they seem to constitute a distinct group or
sub-genus, which may receive the name of Zragocephala,' or
goat-headed locusts.
10. Locusta (Tragocephala) infuscata. Dusky Locust.
Dusky brown; thorax with a slender keel-like elevation ;
wing-covers faintly spotted with brown; wings transparent,
pale greenish yellow next to the body, with a large dusky
[17 L. nebulosa must be referred to @dipoda. — UHLER.]
[18 Tragocephala is synonymous with Gomphocerus, and L infuscata, L. viridi-
fasciata, and L. radiata must be referred to it. — UHLER.]
182 ORTHOPTERA.
cloud near the middle of the hind margin, and a black line
on the front margin; hind thighs pale, with two large black
spots on the inside; hind shanks brown, with darker spines,
and a broad whitish ring below the knees. Length 2? inch;
exp. above 14 inch.
This somewhat resembles the clouded locust, from which,
however, it is easily distinguished by its much shorter anten-
ne and the dusky cloud on the hinder margin of the wings.
I have captured it in pastures, in the perfect state, from the
middle of May to near the end of July. I believe that it has
never been described before.
11. Locusta (Tragocephala) viridi-fasciata. Green-striped Locust.
(Plate Til. Wig. 2.)
Green; thorax keeled above; wing-covers with a broad
green stripe on the outer margin extending from the base
beyond the middle and including two small dusky spots on
the edge, the remainder dusky but semi-transparent at the
end; wings transparent, very pale greenish yellow next to
the body, with a large dusky cloud near the middle of the
hind margin, and a black line on the front margin; antenne,
fore and middle legs reddish; hind thighs green, with two
black spots in the furrow beneath; hind shanks blue-gray,
with a broad whitish ring below the knees, and the spines
whitish, tipped with black. Length about 1 inch; exp. from
more than 1? to nearly 2 inches.
This insect is the Acrydium viridi-fasciatum of De Geer,
who was the first describer of it, the Gryllus Virginianus of
Fabricius, the Gryllus Locusta chrysomelas of Gmelin, the
Acrydium marginatum of Olivier, and the Acridium hemupte-
rum of Palisot de Beauvois. It is remarkable that a species
so strongly marked as this is should have been so profusely
named. Palisot de Beauvois seems to have selected the most
appropriate name for it; for the green portion of the wing-
covers is thick and opaque, and the dusky portion thin and
semi-transparent, as in the wing-covers of Hemipterous in-
RHE RAD LAME: iO CUST. 183
sects. It is very common in pastures and mowing lands
from the first of June to the middle of August, being found
im various states of maturity throughout this period. The
young also appear still earlier, and are readily known by
their green color, and large compressed thorax, which is
arched and crested or keeled above, and by their very short
and flattened antennz. These locusts are sometimes very
troublesome in gardens, living upon the leaves of vegetables
and flowers, and attacking the buds and half-expanded petals.
The larve or young survive the winter, sheltered among the
roots of grass and under leaves.
12. Locusta (Tragocephala) radiata. Radiated Locust.
Rust-brown ; thorax keeled above ; wing-covers entirely
brown, but semi-transparent at the end; wings transparent,
with brown network, and the principal longitudinal veins
black ; they are very faintly tinted with green next to the
body, have a large dusky cloud near the middle of the hind
margin, and a brown streak on the front margin ; hind shanks
reddish brown, a little paler below the knees, and the spines
tipped with black. Length about 1 inch; exp. from 12 to 2
menes.:
This species is now for the first time described. It seems
to be rare. I captured one specimen in Cambridge on the
Ist of July, and have received another from Dr. D. 8. C. H.
Smith of Sutton, Massachusetts. It is found in North Caro-
lina as early as the month of May in the perfect state.
The following species have the face still more oblique than
the foregoing, but the antennz are much longer, particularly
in the males, in which they nearly equal the body in length,
and are not enlarged towards the end. The eyes are oval
and oblique, and there is a deep hollow before each of them
for the reception of the first joint of the antenne. The
thorax is not crested or keeled, but is flattened above, with
three slender threadlike elevated lines, and the hind margin
is very nearly transverse, or not much (if at all) angulated
184 ORTHOPTERA.
behind. The wing-covers and wings are extremely short.
The hind legs are long and slender. I propose therefore to
separate these species from the other locusts under a sub-
genus by the name of Chloé altis, derived from the Greek,
and signifying a grasshopper.
13. Locusta (Chloéaltis) conspersa. Sprinkled Locust.
Light bay, sprinkled with black spots; a black line on the
head behind each eye, extending on each side of the thorax
on the lateral elevated line; wing-covers oblong-oval, pale
yellowish brown, with numerous small darker brown spots ;
wings about three twentieths of an inch long, transparent,
with dusky lines at the tip; hind shanks pale red, with the
spines black at the end. Length nearly 5% inch.
This may be merely a variety of the following species,
though very differently colored.
14. Locusta (Chloéaltis) abortiva. Abortive Locust.
Brown ; wing-covers with dark brown veins and confluent
spots, covering two thirds of the abdomen; wings three
twentieths of an inch long, transparent, with dusky lines at
the tip; hind margin of the thorax straight; hind shanks
coral-red, whitish just below the knees, the spines tipped
with black. Length nearly 3% inch.
This and the preceding locust have much the appearance
of pupz or young insects; nevertheless I believe that their
wings and wing-covers never become larger, and Mr. Leon-
ard informs me that they are found paired. I have captured
the abortive locust in pastures near the end of July.
15. Locusta (Ohloéaltis) curtipennis. Short-winged Locust.
(Plate ITT, Bigs 4)
Olive-gray above, variegated with dark gray and black;
legs and body beneath yellow; a broad black line extends
from behind each eye on the sides of the thorax; wing-cov-
THE GROUSE=LOCUSTS. 185
ers, in the male, as long as the abdomen, in the female,
covering two thirds of the abdomen; wings rather shorter
than the wing-covers, transparent, and faintly tinged with
yellow ; hinder knees black; spines on the hind shanks
tipped with black. Length from } to more than 8 inch;
exp. from 75 to nearly 1 inch.
The flight of the short-winged locust is noiseless and short,
but it leaps well. Great numbers of these insects are found
in our low meadows, in the perfect state, from the first of
August till the middle of October. They are easily distin-
guished from other locusts by their short and narrow wings,
by the yellow color of the body beneath, and by the yellow
legs and black knees.
Ill. Terrrx. Grouse-locust.
The Greeks applied the name of Tetriz to some kind of
‘grouse, probably the heath-cock of Europe, and Latreille
adopted it fora genus of locusts in which, perhaps, he fan-
cied some resemblance to the bird in question. Linnzeus
placed these locusts in a division of his genus Gryllus, which
he called Bulla, a name that ought to have been retained for
them. ‘The principal distinguishing characters of the genus
have already been given, and I will only add that the body is
broadest between the middle legs, narrows gradually to a
point behind, and very abruptly to the head, which is much
smaller than in the other locusts. The wings are large,
forming nearly the quadrant of a circle, thin and delicate,
and scalloped on the edge; when not in use they are folded
beneath the projecting thorax. The four boring appendages
of the females are notched on their edges with fine teeth, like
asaw. Latreille and Serville have stated that the antenne
consist of only thirteen or fourteen joints; but some of our
native species have twenty-two joints in the antenne. Upon
this variation I would arrange those now to be described in
two groups.
24
186 ORTHOPTERA.
I. Antenne 14-jointed ; eyes very prominent, with a project-
ng ridge between them, formed by a horizontal extension of the
flat top of the head; thorax prolonged beyond the extremity of
the body.
1. Tetrix ornata. Ornamented Grouse-locust.
Dark ash-colored ; a large white patch between four black
spots on the top of the thorax; a white spot on the top of the
hind thighs; thorax nearly or quite as long as the wings.
Length 34 to 38 inch to the apex of the thorax.
This species varies in wanting the white spot on the top of
the thorax sometimes. It was first described by Mr. Say,
under the name of Acrydium ornatum.* :
2. Tetrix dorsalis. Red-spotted Grouse-locust.
Rusty black, with ochre-yellow spots on the sides and legs,
and a large rusty-red spot on the top of the thorax ; wings
extending beyond the apex of the thorax. Length 4 inch.
3. Tetrix quadrimaculata. Four-spotted Grouse-locust.
Ash-colored or dark gray above, variegated with black ;
four velvet-black spots on the top of the thorax; wings
projecting beyond the extremity of the thorax. Length from
45 to 325 of an inch.
This is a shorter and thicker species than the ornamented
grouse-locust. It is not uncommon in pastures from the first
of May to the first of June.
4. Tetrix bilineata. Two-lined Grouse-locust.
Ash-colored ; thorax paler, with a narrow angular whitish
line, on each side, extending from the head beyond the mid-
dle; the angular portion including a long blackish patch on
each side ; wings, in the male, rather shorter than the tho-
rax, in the female longer. Length from s> to more than 3%
inch,
* American Entomology, Vol. I. Plate 5.
THE GROUSE=LOCUSTS. 187
5. Tetrix sordida. Sordid Grouse-locust.
Yellowish ash-colored ; thorax with minute elevated black
points ; wings, in both sexes, rather longer than the thorax.
Length from 3% inch to nearly 2 inch.
I have taken this species both in May and September, and
have received a specimen from Dr. D. 5. C. H. Smith, of
Sutton, Massachusetts. |
II. Antenne 22-jointed ; eyes hardly prominent, top of the
head not horizontal between them, but curving towards the front,
with a very slightly projecting ridge; wings smaller than in
those of the preceding group.
6. Tetrix lateralis. Black-sided Grouse-locust.
Pale brown; sides of the body blackish; thorax yellowish
clay-colored, shorter than the wings, but longer than the
body ; wing-covers with a small white spot at the tips; male
with the face and the edges of the lateral margins of the tho-
rax yellow. Length from 3 to 3% of an inch.
This species was first described by Mr. Say under the
name of Acrydiwm laterale.* I have taken it from the mid-
dle of April to the middle of May. It varies in being darker
above sometimes.
7. Tetrix parvipennis. (Fig. 82.) Small-winged Grouse-locust.
Dark brown; sides blackish; thorax clay-colored or pale
brown, about as long as the body; wing-covers
with a small white spot at the tips; wings much Fis: ©.
shorter than the thorax ; male with the face and
the edges of the lateral margins of the thorax
yellow. Length from 3% to more than 3 inch.”
This species is much shorter and thicker than
the Tetrix lateralis. JI have taken it in April
and May, in the perfect state, and have found
the pupe near the end of July.
* American Entomology, Vol. I. Plate 5.
[19 Color and style of marking is of very little value in separating the species
of Tetrix, and the species described by Dr. Harris are probably all referable to the
two species of Say. — UHLER.]
188 ORTHOPTERA.
The habits of the grouse-locusts are said to be absolutely
the same as those of other locusts. They seem, however, to
be more fond of heat, being generally found in grassy places,
on banks, by the sides of the road, and even on the naked
sands, exposed to the full influence of the sun throughout the
day. They are extremely agile, and consequently very diffi-
cult to capture, for they leap to an astonishing distance, con-
sidering their small size, being moreover aided in this motion
by their ample wings. The young, which are deprived of
wings, are generally found about midsummer, and are readily
distinguished by the thorax, which is somewhat like a re-
versed boat, being furnished with a longitudinal ridge or keel
from one end to the other. These little locusts are analogous
to the insects belonging to the genus Membracis in the order
Hemiptera, which also are distinguished by a very large
thorax covering the whole of the upper side of the body,
small wing-covers, and have the faculty of making great leaps.
Indeed, these two kinds of insects very naturally connect the
orders Orthoptera and Hemiptera together.
After so much space has been devoted to an account of the
ravages of grasshoppers and locusts, and to the descriptions
of the insects themselves, perhaps it may be expected that the
means of checking and destroying them should be fully ex-
plained. The naturalist, however, seldom has it in his power
to put in practice the various remedies which his knowledge
or experience may suggest. His proper province consists in
examining the living objects about him with regard to their
structure, their scientific arrangement, and their economy or
history. In doing this, he opens to others the way to a suc-
cessful course of experiments, the trial of which he is gener-
ally obliged to leave to those who are more favorably situated
for their performance. |
In the South of France the people make a business, at
certain seasons of the year, of collecting locusts and their
eggs, the latter being turned out of the ground in little masses
cemented and covered with a sort of gum in which they are.
REMEDIES. 189 -
enveloped by the insects. Rewards are offered and paid for
their collection, half a franc being given for a kilogramme
(about 2 lb. 34 oz. avoirdupois) of the insects, and a quarter
of a franc for the same weight of their eggs. At this rate
twenty thousand francs were paid in Marseilles, and twenty-
five thousand in Arles, in the year 1613; in 1824, five thou-
sand five hundred and forty-two, and in 1825, six thousand
two hundred francs were paid in Marseilles. It is stated that
an active boy can collect from six to seven kilogrammes (or
from 13\b. 30z 13.22dr. to lolb. oz. 2.09dr.) of eggs
in one day. The locusts are taken by means of a piece of
stout cloth, carried by four persons, two of whom draw it
rapidly along, so that the edge may sweep over the surface of
the soil, and the two others hold up the cloth behind at an
angle of forty-five degrees.* This contrivance seems to oper-
ate somewhat like a horse-rake, in gathering the insects into
winrows or heaps, from which they are speedily transferred
to large sacks.
A somewhat similar plan has been successfully tried in
this country, as appears by an account extracted from the
‘Portsmouth Journal,” and published in the ‘“ New Eng-
land Farmer.” { It is there stated that, in July, 1826, Mr.
Arnold Thompson, of Epsom, New Hampshire, caught, in
one evening, between the hours of eight and twelve, in his
own and his neighbor’s grain-fields, five bushels and three
pecks of grasshoppers, or more properly locusts. ‘+ His mode
of catching them was by attaching two sheets together, and
fastening them to a pole, which was used as the front part of
the drag. The pole extended beyond the width of the sheets,
so as to admit persons at both sides to draw it forward. At
the sides of the drag, braces extended from the pole to raise
the back part considerably from the ground, so that the
grasshoppers could not escape. After running the drag about
a dozen rods with rapidity, the braces were taken out, and
* See Annales de la Société Entomologique de France, Vol. II. pp. 486 - 489.
fe Vol. Vie pe 6:
190 ORTHOPTERA.
the sheets doubled over; the grasshoppers were then swept
from each end towards the centre of the sheet, where was
left an opening to the mouth of a bag which held about half
a bushel; when deposited and tied up, the drag was again
opened and ready to proceed. When this bag was filled so
as to become burdensome (their weight is about the same as
that of the same measure of corn), the bag was opened into a
larger one, and the grasshoppers received into a new deposit.
The drag can be used only in the evening, when the grass-
hoppers are perched on the top of the grain. His manner of
destroying them was by dipping the large bags into a kettle
of boiling water. When boiled, they had a reddish appear-
ance, and made a fine feast for the farmer’s hogs.”
When these insects are very prevalent on our salt-marshes,
it will be advisable to mow the grass early, so as to secure
a crop before it has suffered much loss. The time for doing
this will be determined by data furnished in the foregoing
pages, where it will be seen that the most destructive species
come to maturity during the latter part of July. If, then,
the marshes are mowed about the first of July, the locusts,
being at that time small and not provided with wings, will
be unable to migrate, and will consequently perish on the
ground for the want of food, while a tolerable crop of hay
will be secured, and the marshes will suffer less from the
insects during the following summer. ‘This, like all other
preventive measures, must be generally adopted, in order
to prove effectual; for it will avail a farmer but little to
take preventive measures on his own land, if his neighbors,
who are equally exposed and interested, neglect to do the
same.
Among the natural means which seem to be appointed
to keep these insects in check, violent winds and storms
may be mentioned, which sometimes sweep them off in
great swarms, and cast them into the sea. Vast numbers
are drowned by the high tides that frequently inundate our
marshes. They are subject to be attacked by certain thread-
NATURAL ENEMIES. 191
like brown or blackish worms (Filaria), resembling in ap-
pearance those called horse-hair eels (Gordius). I have
taken three or four of these animals out of the body of a
single locust. They are also much infested by little red
mites, belonging apparently to the genus Ocypete ; these so
much weaken the insects, by sucking the juices from their
bodies, as to hasten their death. ‘Ten or a dozen of these
mites will frequently be found pertinaciously adhering to the -
body of a locust, beneath its wing-covers and wings. Linneus.*
The Burrerrires (Papiliones) have threadlike antenne,
‘which are knobbed at the end; the fore wings in some, and
all the wings in the greater number, are elevated perpen- .
dicularly, and turned back to back, when at rest; they have
generally two little spurs on the hind legs; and they fly
by day only.
The Hawx-Morus (Sphinges) generally have the an-
tennee thickened in the middle, and tapering at each end,
and most often hooked at the tip; the wings are narrow
in proportion to their length, and are confined together by
a bristle or bunch of stiff hairs on the shoulder of each hind
wing, which is retained by a corresponding hook on the
nator side of each fore wing; all the wings, when at rest,
are more or less inclined ies a roof, the upper ones cover-
ing the lower wings ; there are two pairs of spurs on the
hind lees. A few ily by day, but the greater number inthe
morning and evening twilight.
In the Morus (Phalene’) the antennze are neither knobbed
at the end nor thickened in the middle, but taper from the
base to the extremity, and are either naked, like a bristle,
or are feathered on each side; the wings are confined to-
gether by bristles and hooks, the first pair covering the hind
wings, and are more or less sloping when at rest ; and there
are two pairs of spurs to the hind legs. These insects fly
mostly by night.
I. BUTTERFLIES. (Papiliones.)
Besides the characters already given, which distinguish
this section of the Lepidoptera, it may be stated that their
[4 Modern writers divide them into two great divisions: 1st, Rhopalocera, with
filiform antenne, terminating in a club or knob, from pdmaXov, club, and xépas,
horn; and 2d, Heterocera, with antenne of variable form, sometimes prismatic,
linear, pectinated, plumose, &c., &c., from €repos, variable, and xépas, horn. —
Morris. }
BUTTERFLIES. 4 DGS
caterpillars always have sixteen legs; namely, two, which are
tapering, jointed, and scaly, to each of the first three seg-
ments behind the head, and a pair of thick fleshy legs, with-
out joints, to all the remaining segments, except the fourth,
fifth, tenth, and eleventh.
The butterflies are divisible into two tribes ; namely, the
true butterflies, which carry all their wings upright when
at rest; and the skippers, which have only the fore wings
upright, the hind wings being nearly horizontal when at
rest.
1. BUTTERFLIES.
In these insects all the wings are erect when at rest, and
the antenns are knobbed, but never hooked, at the end.
Their caterpillars have a head of moderate size, suspend
themselves by the tail when about to transform, and are
not enclosed ‘in cocoons. Some of these butterflies have the
six legs all equally fitted for walking; their caterpillars are
more or less cylindrical, and secure themselves by a trans-
verse band, as well as by the tail, previously to their trans-
formation to chrysalids; and the latter are angular. All
these characters exist in the following species.
In the month of June there may be found on the leaves
of the parsley and carrot certain caterpillars, (Plate IV.
Fig. 6,) more commonly called parsley-worms, which are
somewhat swelled towards the fore part of the body, but
taper a little behind. When first hatched they are less than
one tenth of an inch in length, are of a black color, with
a broad white band across the middle, and another on the
tail; and the back is studded with little black projecting
points. After they have increased in size, and have cast
their coats, it is found that the white band covers only the
sixth and seventh segments, that the black projecting points
spring from spots of an orange color, and on the lower part
of the sides is a row of white spots, two more spots of the
same color on the top of the first segment, and one larger
264 LEPIDOPTERA.
spot on the tail. These caterpillars alter in color and ap-
pearance with each successive moulting, and before they
are half grown the projecting points and the white band
and spots entirely disappear, the skin becomes perfectly
smooth, and of a delicate apple-green color, rather paler
at the sides of the body and whitish beneath, and on each
seoment there is a transverse band consisting of black and
yellow spots alternately arranged. When touched, they
thrust forth, from a slit in the first segment of the body,
just behind the head, a pair of soft orange-colored horns,
growing together at the bottom, and somewhat like the letter
Y in form. The horns are scent-organs, and give out a
strong and disagreeable smell, perceptible at some distance,
and seem to be designed to defend the caterpillars from the
annoying attacks of flies and ichneumons. ‘These caterpil-
lars usually come to their full size between the 10th and
20th of July, and then measure about one inch and a half
in length. After this they leave off eating, desert the plants,
and each one seeks some sheltered spot, such as the side of
a building or fence, or the trunk of a tree, where it prepares
for its transformation. It first spins a little web or tuft of
silk against the surface whereon it is resting, and entangles
the hooks of its hindmost feet in it, so as to fix them securely
to the spot; it then proceeds to make a loop or girth of many
silken threads bent into the form of the letter U, the ends
of which are fastened to the surface on which it rests on
each side of the middle of its body; and under this, when
finished, it passes its head, and gradually works the loop
over its back, so as to support the body, and prevent it from
falling downwards. Though it generally prefers a vertical
surface on which to fasten itself in an upright posture, it
sometimes selects the under side of a limb or of a project-
ing ledge, where it hangs suspended, nearly horizontally, by
its feet and the loop. Within twenty-four hours after it has
taken its station, the caterpillar casts off its caterpillar-skin
and becomes a chrysalis, or pupa, (Plate IV. Fig. 1)) ofa
eS ee ee Se
THE ASTDRIAS BUTTERFLY. 265
pale green, ochre-yellow, or ash-gray color, with two short
ear-like projections above the head, just below which, on the
upper part of the back, is a little prominence like a pug-
nose. ‘The chrysalis hangs in the same way as the cater-
pillar, and remains in this state from nine to fifteen days,
according to the temperature of the atmosphere, cold and wet
weather having a tendency to prolong the period. When
this is terminated, the skin of the chrysalis bursts open, and
a butterfly issues from it, clings to the empty shell till its
crumpled and drooping wings have extended to their full
dimensions, and have become dried, upon which it flies away
in pursuit of companions and food.
This butterfly is the Papzlio Asterias® of Cramer. (Plate
IV. Fig. 4.) It is of a black color, with a double row of
yellow dots on the back; a broad band, composed of yellow
spots, across the wings, and a row of yellow spots near the
hind margin ; the hind wings are tailed, and have seven blue
spots between the yellow band and the outer row of yellow
spots, and, near their hinder angle, an eye-like spot of an
orange color with a black centre ; and the spots of the under
side are tawny orange. ‘The female (Plate IV. Fig. 5)
differs from the male, above described, in having only a few
small and distinct yellow spots on the upper side of the
wings. The wings of this butterfly expand from three and
a half to four inches.
During the month of July the Asterias butterflies may be
seen in great abundance upon flowers, and particularly on
those of the sweet-scented Phlox. They lay their eggs, in
this and the following month, on various umbellate plants,
placing them singly on different parts of the leaves and
stems. I have found the caterpillars on the parsley, carrot,
parsnip, celery, anise, dill, caraway, and fennel of our gar-
dens, as well as on the conium, cicuta, sium, and other
native plants of the same natural family, which originally
[5 The synonymes of P. Asterias are P. Troilus Smith Abbot, I. pl. 1; P. Ajax
Clerck, Icon., t. 3; P. polywenes Fab. — Morris. ]
9
dt
266 LEPIDOPTERA.
constituted the appropriate food of these insects, before the
exotic species furnished them with a greater variety and
abundance.
Their injury to these cultivated plants is by no means
inconsiderable ; they not only eat the leaves, but are par-
ticularly fond of the blossoms and young seeds. I have
taken twenty caterpillars on one plant of parsley, which
was going to seed. The eggs laid in July and August are
hatched soon afterwards, and the caterpillars come to their
growth towards the end of September, or the beginning of
October ; they then suspend themselves, become chrysalids,
in which state they remain during the winter, and are not
transformed to butterflies till the last of May or the begin-
ning of June in the following year.
I know of no method so effectual for destroying these
caterpillars as gathering them by hand and crushing them.
An expert person will readily detect them by their ravages
on the plants which they inhabit; and a few minutes de-
voted, every day or two, to a careful search in the garden,
during the season of their depredations, will suffice to re-
move them entirely.
There is another butterfly which bears a close resemblance
to the female of the Asterias butterfly, and is nearly of the
same size; but the blue spots on the hind wings are much
larger, and cover nearly one third of the surface; the yel-
low spots around the margin are larger and paler; the eye-
like spot near the hind angle has not a black centre, and
there is a large ordnge-colored spot near the middle of the
front margin of the same wings. This species is the Troilus
butterfly, or Papilio Troilus of Linnzeus.
The caterpillar is entirely different from that of the As-
terias butterfly. It lives on the leaves of the sassafras-tree,
upon the upper surface of which it spins a little web, and
folds over the sides of the leaf so as to form a furrow or
case, in which it resides. The fore part of its body is large
and swollen, and it tapers thence to the tail. When first |
‘V2 aa
THE TROILUS BULTEREL Y. 207
hatched it is slate-colored above, with a black spot like an
eye on each side of the third segment, below and. behind
which is a large and long white spot, and the top of the
eleventh segment is white. After changing its skin, it be-
comes of a pale brownish olive color, the white spots dis-
appear, and on the top of the back we find two rows of
minute blue dots. When fourteen or fifteen days old it
changes its skin and its colors again, the back becoming pea-
green, with blue dots, the sides yellowish, and the head,
belly, and legs pink; there is a transverse black line on
the top of the first segment, and there are two large orange-
colored spots on the fourth segment, and two of the same
color, with a black centre, on the third segment. The cat-
erpillar retains these colors from ten to sixteen days, increas-
ing greatly in size during this period, and finally attains to
the length of two inches or more. It comes to its full
growth when about four weeks old, and then eats no longer,
but, deserting its leafy habitation, it seeks a suitable place in
which to undergo its transformation, previously to which it
casts off its green coat, and appears in one of an ochre-yellow
color. It then suspends itself in the same way as the cat-
erpillar of the Asterias butterfly, and within two or three
days after its last change of skin it moults again, and be-
comes a chrysalis. |
The chrysalis is generally of a pale wood-color, smoother
than that of the preceding species, and with rather longer and
sharper ear-like projections. The chrysalids, which are pro-
duced from caterpillars hatched in August and September,
remain unchanged through the winter, and are not trans-
formed to butterflies till the middle of the following June.
It is possible that these butterflies may lay their eggs so early
as to produce a brood of caterpillars in the summer, and these
may come to their growth, and pass through their transfor-
mations, before September ; but I have only found the cater-
pillars towards the end of summer. I once discovered them
on the leaves of the lilac, on which they appeared to thrive
quite as well as on the sassafras.
268 LEPIDOPTERA.
One more butterfly is found in Massachusetts, resembling
the preceding in its larva state and in its habits. It is our
largest species, expanding from four and a half to five inches.
The prevailing color of the wings is yellow, with a broad
black margin, on which is a row of yellow spots; the fore
Fig. 97.
wings have four short black bands extending from their front
edge, and the hind wings are tailed, and are ornamented
with an orange-red spot near the hind angle. It is the
Papilio Turnus of Linneus (Fig. 97).*
The caterpillar of the Turnus butterfly (Fig. 98) lives
upon the leaves of apple
and wild-cherry trees, folding
them up in the same way
as does that of the Troilus
butterfly, which, moreover,
Fig. 93.
[* In this figure, and others which follow, the under side of the wing, detached
from the body of the insect, is represented, as well as the upper side, which in
this figure is on the left, and connected with the body. — Ep.]
ECE Wee hy BU tT RY. 269
it resembles in form. When fully grown, it measures from
two to two and a half inches in length; it is of a green color
above, with little blue dots in rows, a yellow eye-spot with
a black centre on each side of the third segment, a yellow
and black band across the fourth segment, and the head,
belly, and legs are pink. It suspends itself and becomes a
chrysalis about the first of August, and is not changed to a
butterfly till the month of June in the following summer.
Great numbers of these butterflies are sometimes seen around
puddles of water left by rain in New Hampshire, where this
species is much more common and abundant than in Massa-
chusetts. | ;
The caterpillars of the three foregoing species are the
only ones in Massachusetts which are provided with forked
scent-organs, capable of being withdrawn and _ concealed
within the first segment of the body. All which follow are
destitute of this means of defence.
In Europe there are several kinds of caterpillars which
live exclusively on the cruciferous or oleraceous plants, such
as the cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radish, turnip, and
mustard, and oftentimes do considerable injury to them.
The prevailing color of these caterpillars is green, and that
of the butterflies produced from them, white.
They belong to a genus called Pontia ; in which the hind
wings are not scalloped nor tailed, but are rounded and
entire on the edges, and are grooved on the inner edge to
receive the abdomen; the feelers are rather slender, but
project beyond the head; and the antenne have a short
flattened knob ; their caterpillars are nearly cylindrical, taper
a very little towards each end, and are sparingly clothed
with short down, which requires a microscope to be distinctly
seen; they suspend themselves by the tail and a transverse
loop; and their chrysalids are angular at the sides, and
pointed at both ends.
In the northern and western parts of Massachusetts there
is a white butterfly, which, in all its states, agrees with the
270 LEPIDOPTERA.
foregoing characters. It is the Pontia oleracea® (Fig. 99),
potherb Pontia, or white
Fig. 99.
butterfly, and was first de-
scribed by me in the year
1829, in the seventh vol-
ume of the “* New England
Farmer.”’* About the last
of May, and the beginning
of June, it is seen flutter-
Ing over cabbage, radish,
and turnip beds, and patches of mustard, for the purpose of
depositing its eggs. These are fastened to the under sides
of the leaves, and but seldom more than three or four are
left upon one leaf. The eggs are yellowish, nearly pear-
shaped, longitudinally ribbed, and are one fifteenth of an
inch in length. They are hatched in a week or ten days
after they are laid, and the caterpillars produced from them
attain their full size when three weeks old, and then measure
about one inch and a half in length. Being of a pale green
color,.they are not readily distinguished from the ribs of the
leaves beneath which they live. They do not devour the
leaf at its edge, but begin indiscriminately upon any part of
its under side, through which they eat irregular holes.
When they have completed the feeding stage, they quit
the plants, and retire beneath palings, or the edges of stones,
or into the interstices of walls, where they spin a little tuft
of silk, entangle the hooks of their hindmost feet in it, and
then proceed to form a loop to sustain the fore part of the
body in a horizontal or vertical position. Bending its head
on one side, the caterpillar fastens to the surface, beneath the
middle of its body, a silken thread, which it carries across
[® Pontia oleracea belongs to the genus Pieris Schrk. (Morris’s Catalogue).
The P. casta of Kirby, in Faun. Bor., IV. 288, is only a variety of Harris’s P.
oleracea; and Kirby’s casta is the cruciferarum of Boisd. Spec. Gen., I. 519.—
Morris.]
* Page 402. Fora figure of it, see “Lake Superior,” by Agassiz and Cabot,
pl. 7, fig. 1.
a Dee
THE WHITE UBUTTEREL Y. eT
its back and secures on the other side, and repeats this
operation till the united threads have formed a band or loop
of sufficient strength. On the next day it casts off the
caterpillar skin, and becomes a chrysalis. This is sometimes
of a pale green, and sometimes of a white color, regularly
and finely dotted with black; the sides of the body are
angular, the head is surmounted by a conical tubercle,
and over the fore part of the body, corresponding to the
thorax of the included butterfly, is a thin projection, having
in profile some resemblance to a Roman nose.
The chrysalis state lasts eleven days, at the expiration of
which the insect comes forth a butterfly. The wings are
white, but dusky next to the body; the tips of the upper
ones are yellowish beneath, with dusky veins; the under
side of the hinder wings is straw-colored, with broad dusky
veins, and the angles next to the body are deep yellow; the
back is black, and the antennz are blackish, with narrow
white rings, and ochre-yellow at the tips. The wings ex-
pand about two inches.
I have seen these butterflies in great abundance during the
latter part of July and the beginning of August, in pairs, or
laying their eges for a second brood of caterpillars. The
chrysalids produced from this autumnal brood survive the
winter, and the butterflies are not disclosed from them till
May or June. In gardens or fields infested by the cater-
pillars, boards, placed horizontally an inch or two above the
surface of the soil, will be resorted to by them when they
are about to change to chrysalids, and here it will be easy
to find, collect, and destroy them, either in the caterpillar *
or chrysalis state. The butterflies also may easily be taken
by a large and deep bag-net of muslin, attached to a handle
of five or six feet in length; for they fly low and lazily,
especially when busy in laying their eggs. In Europe the
caterpillars of the white butterflies are eaten by the larger
titmouse (Parus major), and probably our own titmouse
or chickadee, with other insect-eating birds, will be found #
equally useful, if properly protected.
aT LEPIDOPTERA.
Twice a year our pastures and road-sides are enlivened
by great numbers of the small yellow Philodice butterfly
; (Colas Philodice of Go-
Eee | _ -dart). (Fig. 100, male;
= ss = Fig. 101, female.) They
begin to appear towards
the end of April, are
common throughout the
month of May, after which
no more are seen till near
the end of July, when a
new brood begins to come
forth, and some of them
continue till late in the
autumn. Their wings are
yellow, with a black hind
border, which in the fe-
males is quite broad on
the fore wings, and spotted with yellow; the fringes of the
wings, the antenne, and the shanks are red ; the fore wings
have a small narrow black spot on both sides near the mid-
dle; the hind wings have a round orange-colored spot in
the middle of the upper side, which on the under side is
replaced by a large and a small silvery spot close together,
and surrounded by a rust-colored ring.
The males are generally smaller than the females. The
caterpillars live upon clover, medicago, and lucerne, and I
have occasionally found them on pea-vines. They are green,
slightly downy, paler or yellowish at the sides, and grow to
the length of about one inch and a half. They suspend
themselves to the stems of plants by the tail and a trans-
verse loop, in the same way as the preceding species. The
chrysalis (Fig. 102) is straw-colored, not angulated at the
sides, with a slight prominence over the thorax, and the
anterior extremity ends in a short and blunt point. The
genus Colias, to which the Philodice butterfly belongs, is
¢ =) ae
THE. LY CENTIANS. 218
distinguished by the following characters. Six legs formed
for walking; short antennz, gradually
thickened towards the end; wings entire,
hinder ones rounded, with a gutter on their
inner edge to receive the abdomen, and
the central mesh closed behind by an an-
gular vein; caterpillars cylindrical, smooth
or downy; not striped on the top of the
back ; suspending themselves by the tail
and a loop round the body ; chrysalids
somewhat gibbous or bulging, not angulated
at the sides, and conical at the upper ex-
tremity.
We have several kinds of small six-footed butterflies, some
of which are found, during the greater part of the summer,
in the fields and around the edges of woods, flying low and
frequently alighting, and oftentimes collected together in little
swarms on the flowers of the clover, mint, and other sweet-
scented plants. Their caterpillars secure themselves by the
hind feet and a loop, when about to transform; but they are
very short and almost oval, flat below and more or less
convex above, with a small head, which is concealed under
the first rmg; and the feet, which are sixteen in number,
are so short, that these caterpillars in moving seem to glide
rather than creep. The chrysalids (Fig. 103) are fig, 103.
short and thick, with the under side flat, the upper
side very convex, and both extremities rounded or
obtuse. They belong to a little group which may be called
Lycenians (Lyc#nap#), from the principal genus included
a its
Fig. 102.
The most common of these butterflies has generally been
mistaken for the European Lycena Phileas, but I am con-
vinced that it is distinct, and propose to call it the American
copper butterfly, Lycena Americana (Fig. 104). The fore
wings on the upper side are coppery red, with about eight
small square black spots, and the hind margin broadly bor-
30
214 LEPIDOPTERA.
dered with dusky brown ; hind wings with a few small black
spots on the middle, and a broad cop-
pery-red band on the hind margin.
The wings expand from 1,4, to 12
inch. This butterfly is found through-
out the summer fluttering on the
grass and other low plants. The
caterpillar is long, oval, and slightly convex above, and of
a greenish color; it probably lives, like the Phileas, on the
leaves of dock and sorrel. ‘The chrysalis, which is usually
suspended under a stone, is light yellowish-brown, and spot-
ted with black dots.
The Epixanthe butterfly, Lycaena Epixanthe (Boisduval),
resembles the preceding in form and size, but is of a dusky
brown color above, with a few black spots on the middle of
the wings, and a narrow, wavy band, or a few contiguous
spots of an orange color on the hinder margin of the pos-
terior wings. ‘This species is rather rare. The wings in
both these butterflies are entire, or not notched or tailed, and
the knobs of their antennee are short, thick, and nearly oval.
There are others with the hind wings also entire and
rounded, but the knobs of the antenne are longer and not
near so thick, and their caterpillars are shorter and very
convex above. These characters exist in the beautiful
azure-blue butterfly, Polyommatus Pseudargiolus (Boisd.),
(Fig. 105, male, Fig. 106, var. profile,) which measures
Fig. 105. Fig. 106. from i to ue inch
across the wings. These
in the male are light
blue on the upper side,
with the lustre of satin ;
the fore wings of the
female have a broad blackish outer margin, and on that of
the hind wings is a row of small blackish spots; all the
wings on the under side are pearl-gray, with little blackish
spots ; the fringes of the wings are white.
Fig. 104.
a —
TH CONN LAS UB UII ER EL Y. ito
The blue Lucia butterfly (Polyommatus Lucia of Kirby)
greatly resembles the preceding, but the black border of
the fore wings in the female is not so broad, the fringes of
the wings are spotted with black, and all the wings on the
under side are dusky gray, with larger blackish spots, and a
broad blackish border behind. Mr. Kirby has described only
the male of this butterfly, in the fourth volume of the Fauna
Boreali-Americana. It is found in April and May.
The Comyntas butterfly (Polyommatus Comyntas of Go-
dart) is readily distinguished from the foregoing by having
a little thread-like tail on the edge of the hind wings. The
wings in the males are violet blue, and in the females black-
ish glossed with blue on the upper side, with whitish fringes ;
there are several blackish spots around the hind margins,
and on the hind wings near the posterior margin two cres-
cents of a deep orange-color. ‘The under sides of all the
wings are gray, with black spots encircled with white, and
each of the two orange-colored crescents of the hind wings
encloses a deep black spot encircled with silvery blue. The
wings expand about one inch. This butterfly is found in
dry woods and pastures in July and August, and the cater-’
pillars live on the leaves of the Lespedeza, which grows in
those places. They are oval, convex, and downy, of a pale
green color with three darker green lines, the sides of the
body reddish, and the head black. The chrysalis, which is
usually fastened to a leaf, is at first pale green, but becomes
brownish afterwards; it is sparingly clothed with whitish
hairs, and there are three rows of black dots on the back.
The chrysalis state lasts from nine to eleven days.
We have several more of these small butterflies with
thread-like tails on their hind wings, but they differ from
all the preceding species in having the knobs of the antenne
longer and nearly cylindrical, the eyes covered with a very
fine down, and an oval opaque spot on the fore wings, near
the front margin in the males. They belong to the genus
Thecla. Their caterpillars are longer and flatter than those
yal ome LEPIDOPTERA.
in the genus Polyommatus, and they usually live on trees.
One of our largest kinds is the Falacer butterfly ( Zhecla
Falacer of Godart). Its wings expand from 14 inch to 145
inch, are dark brown on the upper side, with two slender
tails, one of which is very short, on each of the hind
wings ; and on the hind margin of the same wings is an
orange-colored spot, larger and more conspicuous in the
females than in the other sex; the under side of the wings
is lighter brown; and on each wing near the middle is a
dark-brown spot margined within and without with white,
and beyond the middle there are two rows of spots of the
same color, bordered on one side only with white; besides
these spots, there are on the hind wings near the margin three
or four orange-colored crescents, the inner one of which is
separated from the others by a large blue spot. This insect
is found among bushes in July and August. The caterpil-
lar is said to live upon various kinds of hawthorns.
The streaked Thecla (Thecla strigosa) has a long anda
short tail on each of the hind wings, and is of a dark-brown
color without spots on the upper side; the wings beneath are
ornamented with wavy transverse white streaks, and near
the hind margin of the posterior wings is a row of deep
orange-colored crescents, with a large blue spot near the
hindmost angle. It measures one inch and one tenth across
the wings. I took it on Blue Hill on the Ist of August. In
the markings of the under side of the wings it nearly resem-
bles ZDhecla Liparops.
The heads of the common hop are frequently eaten by the
little green and downy caterpillars of a very pretty butterfly,
which has been mistaken for the Zhecla Favonius, figured
in Mr. Abbot’s “* Natural History of the Insects of Georgia”;
but it differs from it in so many respects, that I do not
hesitate to give it another name, and will therefore call it
the hop-vine Thecla, Thecla Humuli'* (Plate IV. Fig. 3).
[7 7. Humuli is the T. melinus of Hiibner. — Morris.]
* M. Boisduval has figured and described this species under the name of Thecla.
Favonius, in his “ Histoire des Lépidopteres de l’ Amérique Septentrionale.”’
THE AUBURN THECLA. Zt
~The wings on the upper side are dusky brown, with a tint
of blue-gray, and, in the males, there is an oval darker
spot near the front edge; the hind wings have two short,
thread-like tails, the inner one the longest, and tipped with
white; along the hind margin of these same wings is a row
of little pale blue spots, interrupted by a large orange-red
crescent enclosing a small black spot, the wings beneath
are slate-cray, with two wavy streaks of brown edged on
one side with white, and on the hind wings an orange-
colored spot near the hind angle, and a larger spot of the
same color enclosing a black dot just before the tails. It
expands one inch and one tenth.
The last of these butterflies with two tails to each of the
hind wings, does not seem to have been described, unless it
is to be referred to the Simaethis of Drury, the Damon of
Cramer, or the Smilacis of Boisduval, with the descriptions
of which it does not fully agree. I propose, therefore, to call
it the Auburn Thecla ( Thecla Auburniana), from a favorite
spot near Cambridge, formerly known by the name of Sweet
Auburn, where I have repeatedly taken it before the place
was converted to a cemetery. As in the preceding species,
the outermost of the tails is very short, and often nothing
remains of it but a little tooth on the edge of the wing. It
varies considerably in color; the females are generally deep
brown above, but sometimes the wings are rust-colored or
tawny in the middle, as they always are in the males; the
oval opaque spot which characterizes the latter sex is ochre-
yellow. Upon the under side the wings in both sexes are
green, the anterior pair tinged with brown from the middle
to the inner edge; externally, next to the fringe, they are
all margined by a narrow wavy white line, bordered inter-
nally with brown; this line on the fore wings does not reach
the inner margin; on the hind wings it consists of six spots
arranged in a zigzag manner, and the last spot next to the
inner margin is remote from the rest ; besides these there are
on the same wings three more white spots bordered with
278 LEPIDOPTERA.
brown between the zigzag band and the base; and between
the same band and the margin three black spots, behind the
middle one of which is a rust-red spot with a black centre.
The wings expand from 13'; to 1; inch. This pretty species
is found on the mouse-ear (Gnaphalium plantagineum) in
May, and on the flowers of the spearmint in August.
Some kinds of Thecla have the hind edges of the wings
notched, but not tailed. This is the case with the Niphon
Fig. 107. butterfly (Thecla Niphon of Hiib-
ner), (Fig. 107,) which has been
taken at Sweet Auburn early in
May. As in the Auburn butterfly,
the wings are deep brown above,
with a large rusty space on each ;
the notches on their edges are white, and the teeth between
them are rounded and of a black color; on the under side
the wings are light brown, with dark brown wavy and zigzag
lines, two of which are bordered on one side with white.
The wings expand 13 inch.
The Mopsus butterfly ( Zhecla Mopsus of Hiibner) differs
from all the foregoing in having the hind wings entire and
not tailed; but the inner angle projects a little, as it does in
some species of Lycena. In form, and in the color and
arrangement of the spots on the under side of the wings,
it approaches to the Phlwas and Americana; but in these
species the eyes are not downy, and the males have not the
oval opaque spot near the front margin of the anterior wings.
The Mopsus butterfly is dark brown above, with a row of
seven or eight deep orange-colored spots near the margin of
the hind wings, larger and much more conspicuous on the
under than on the upper side. ‘The wings beneath are light
brown, with a row of deep orange or vermilion-colored spots
near the hind margins of all the wings, an inner and more
irregular row of small black spots encircled with white on
the same, and two more similar spots close together on the
middle of the hind wings. It expands 1,4; inch. My only
FOUR-FOOTED BUTTERFLIES. 279
specimen of this fine butterfly was taken at Sandwich, by
Mr. John Bethune.
Some butterflies have the first pair
of legs so much shorter than the oth-
ers that they cannot be used in walk-
ing, and are folded on the breast like
a tippet. Their caterpillars, when
about to transform, do not make a
loop to support the fore part of the body, but suspend them-
selves vertically by the hindmost feet. As they all secure
themselves pretty much in the same way, it may be proper
to explain the process. Having finished eating, the caterpil-
lar wanders about till it has discovered a suitable situation
in which to pass through its transformations. This may be
the under side of a branch or of a leaf, or any other hor-
izontal object beneath which it can find sufficient room for
its future operations.
Here it spins a web or tuft of silk, fastening it securely to
the surface beneath which it is resting, entangles the hooks
of its hindmost feet among the threads, and then contracts
its body and lets itself drop so as to hang suspended by the
hind feet alone, the head and fore part of the body being
curved upwards in the form of a hook. After some hours,
the skin over the bent part of the body is rent, the fore part
of the chrysalis protrudes from the fissure, and, by a wrig-
gling kind of motion, the caterpillar-skin is slipped back-
wards till only the extremity of the chrysalis remains attached
Fig 108.
Thecla Augusta.
to it. The chrysalis has now to release itself entirely from
the caterpillar-skin, which is gathered in folds around its tail,
and to make itself fast to the silken tuft by the minute hooks
with which the hinder extremity is provided. Not having
the assistance of a transverse loop to support its body while
it disengages its tail, the attempt would seem perilous in the
extreme, if not impossible. Without having witnessed the
operation, we should suppose that the insect would inevitably
fall, while endeavoring to accomplish its object. But, al-
280 LEPIDOPTERA.
though unprovided with ordinary limbs, it is not left without
the means to extricate itself from its present difficulty.
The hinder and tapering part of the chrysalis consists of
several rings or segments, so joined together as to be capable
of moving from side to side upon each other; and these
supply to it the place of hands. By bending together two
of these rings near the middle of the body, the chrysalis
seizes, in the crevice between them, a portion of the empty
caterpillar-skin, and clings to it so as to support itself while
it withdraws its tail from the remainder of the skin.
It is now wholly out of the skin, to which it hangs sus-
pended by nipping together the rings of its body; but, as
the chrysalis is much shorter than the caterpillar, it is yet
at some distance from the tuft of silk, to which it must
climb before it can fix in it the hooks of its hinder extremity.
To do this, it extends the rings of its body as far apart as
possible, then, bending together two of them above those by
which it is suspended, it catches hold of the skin higher up,
at the same time letting go below, and, by repeating this
process with different rings in succession, it at length reaches
the tuft of silk, entangles its hooks among the threads, and
then hangs suspended without further risk of falling. It
next contrives to dislodge the cast caterpillar-skin by whirl-
ing itself around repeatedly, till the old skin is finally loos-
ened from its attachment and falls to the ground. The
whole of this operation, difficult as it may seem, is performed
in the space of a very few minutes, and rarely does the in-
sect fail to accomplish it successfully and safely.
We may see the whole process in the caterpillars of the
Archippus butterfly (Danais Archippus of Fabricius), which
lives on the common silk-weed or milk-weed (Asclepias
Syriaca) in June and July. This caterpillar is cylindrical,
with a pair of thread-like black horns on the top of the
second segment, and a shorter pair on the eleventh segment,
and its body is marked with alternate transverse bands of
yellow, black, and white. It comes to its growth in about:
THE ARGCHUIP Pie (BUTTERFLY. 281
fourteen days, during which it changes its skin three times,
and finally attains to the length of nearly two inches. ‘The
chrysalis is about an inch long, but very thick, nearly cylin-
drical in the middle, and rounded at each end, with a very
slender black point, by which it is suspended. Its skin is
exceedingly thin and delicate, of a light green color, and
ornamented with golden spots and a transverse stripe of
black and gold. The chrysalis state lasts ten or twelve days,
at the expiration of which the butterfly comes forth. The
Archippus butterfly is very common on flowers, particularly
on low lands, from the middle of July to the first of Sep-
tember. The wings on the upper side are tawny orange, on
the under side deep nankin-yellow ; they are surrounded by
a black border spotted with white ; the veins are black, and
there are several yellow and white spots on the black tips of
the fore wings. ‘The males are distinguished by an elevated
black spot contiguous to one of the veins near the middle of
the hind wings. This butterfly measures across the wings
from 33 to 44 inches. The antenne in the genus Danais
have a long and curved knob; the head and thorax are
spotted: with white ; the males have an elevated spot near the
middle of the hind wings, which in both sexes are rounded,
and never tailed or indented. The caterpillars are furnished
with projecting thread-like horns in pairs, and the chrysalids
are short and thick, somewhat oval, and are ornamented with
golden spots. The other characters of the genus are the
same as those of the division to which it belongs.
We have another four-footed butterfly which closely re-
sembles the Archippus in color and markings, but differs from
it entirely in the chrysalis and caterpillar state. It is the
Disippe butterfly (Nymphalis Disippe* of Godart). (Fig.
109.) It is of a tawny yellow above, and of a paler yellow
beneath, the wings are surrounded by a broad black border
spotted with white, the veins are black, there is a triangular
patch spotted with white near the tips of the fore wings, and
* This is the J/isippus of Fabricius, but not of Linneeus.
36
982 LEPIDOPTERA.
on the hind wings a curved black band. It expands from
three to three and a half inches. The caterpillar lives on
the poplar and willow; it is of a pale brown color, more or
less variegated with white on the sides, and sometimes with
green on the back; the head is notched on the top; there is
a hump on the second segment, from which proceed two
Fig. 109.
slender blackish horns, barbed on all sides with little points ;
the third, fourth, and fifth segments are also ~somewhat
humped above, and on the tenth and eleventh are short tu-
bercles. It suspends itself by the hind feet, before chang-
ing to a chrysalis. The latter is angular, and tapers towards
the tail; it is of a pale brown or ashen-gray color, with the
sides of the back and the extremity of the body whitish ;
and there is a thin almost circular projection standing verti-
cally on its edge on the middle of the back. The butterfly
appears in September, and lays its eggs for a second brood
of caterpillars, which are transformed to chrysalids in the
autumn, and remain without further change till the following
spring, when they are changed to butterflies.
The genus Nymphalis* is readily distinguished by the
following characters. Four-footed butterflies, with a long
straight and slender knob to the antenne, the edges of the
* The name Limenitis, under which I formerly included our species, is now
appropriated by Dr. Boisduval to certain butterflies of the eastern continent, such
as the Camilla, &c.
THE EPHESTION BUTTERFLY. 283
wings, particularly of the hinder ones, scalloped but not
tailed, the inner margin grooved so as to receive and conceal
the abdomen below, no closed mesh in the middle of the
wings, and no elevated spot on them in the males; cater-
pulars and chrysalids in form like those of the Disippe, and
suspended only by the hindmost extremity.
The caterpillar of the Ephestion butterfly (Mymphalis
Ephestion of Stoll) is of a brownish color, more or less varie-
gated with white on the sides, and with green above, and,
like that of the Disippe, has two long barbed brown horns on
the second segment. I have found it on the scrub-oak
(Quercus iicifolia) in June, but Mr. Abbot says it lives on
the whortleberry-bush and the cherry-tree.
The chrysalis is not to be distinguished from that of the
Disippe in form and color, and the butterfly leaves it eleven
days after the insect has changed from a caterpillar. ‘This
butterfly is found about the middle of June; I have seen it
again in September, though rarely, and the caterpillars of
the last brood remain in the chrysalis state throughout the
winter, and are changed to butterflies in the months of April
and May following. This butterfly is of a blue-black color,
finely glossed with blue on the hinder part of the wings,
the scalloped edges of which are white, and the hind margins
bordered with three black lines; near the tips of the fore
wings are two or three white spots, and just within the
border a row of orange-colored spots; these spots are more
distinct on the under side of the fore wings, which are more
or less tinged with brown, and have near the body two large
orange-colored spots; on the under side of the hind wings
is a row of seven orange-colored spots inside of the hind
border, and three more of the same color near the shoulders
of the wings. It expands from 8 to 32 inches.
The Arthemis butterfly (Nymphalis Arthemis of Drury)
(Plate I. Fig. 7) is very rare in Massachusetts, but more
common in the hilly parts of New Hampshire. It is
smaller than the preceding, measuring from 2% to 3 inches,
O84 LEPIDOPTERA.
resembles it a good deal in form and general color, but
is readily distinguished from it, and from all the other
American butterflies, by the broad white arched band on the
wings, which, beginning just beyond the middle of the front
edge of the fore wings, curves backwards, crossing both
wings, and ends on the inner edge of the hind wings. The
male differs from the female in having a row of orange-col-
ored spots on the upper side of the hind wings next to the
border, as well as on the under side. ‘The caterpillar and
chrysalis of this species are unknown to me.
The caterpillars of many of the four-footed butterflies are
spiny, or have their backs armed with numerous projecting
points; these, in some, are short and soft, and beset all
around with very small stiff hairs, in others they are long,
hard, and sharp prickles, which generally are furnished with
little stiff branches. ‘The butterflies have the knobs of the
antennze short and broad; the feelers are rather long, and
placed close together, at the base at least; the inner margin
of the hind wings is folded downwards, and grooved for the
reception of the body; the central mesh of these wings is
not closed behind; and the uails of the four hind feet are
divided so as to appear double. This group may be called
Vanessians (VANESSADZ), and contains the genera Argyn-
nis, Melitea, Cynthia, and Vanessa.
In Argynnis the wings are never angulated or toothed,
and the hind ones are generally ornamented with silvery or
pearly spots beneath; the feelers spread apart at their points;
the caterpillars have a round head, and are furnished with
branched spines on all their segments, two of those on the
first segment being usually longer than the rest, and directed
forwards ; chrysalids somewhat angular, arched, rather thick
at both ends, with the head squared or very slightly notched,
without a prominent nose-like projection on the thorax, and
on the back are two rows of projecting points, which are
usually golden-colored. Most of the caterpillars in this
genus are observed to live on various kinds of violets, and
THE ARGYNNIG DULTERFLIES. 285
on these plants we may expect to find the caterpillars of our
native species, which as yet are mostly unknown, in the
months of May, June, and July.
Argynnis Idalia, Drury. Idalia Butterfly. (Fig. 110.)
Fore wings deep tawny orange, spotted with black, and
with a broad black hind border, around which, in the fe-
males, is a row of white spots; hind wings blue-black above,
Fig. 110.
with two rows of spots behind, both of which in the female
are cream-colored, but in the males the spots of the outer
row are deep tawny orange; all the wings on the under
side have a row of pearly-white crescents within the black
border ; and on the hind wings, which are brown, are seven-
teen more pearly-white spots; the fringes of all the wings
are spotted with white.
Expands from 84 to 3% inches or more.
This large and fine butterfly is found in meadows in the
latter part of July and beginning of August.
Argynnis Aphrodite, Fabricius. Aphrodite Butterfly. (Fig. 111.)
Wings tawny-yellow in the males, ochre-yellow in the
females, in both brownish next to the body, with a black line
near the hinder margins, within which is a row of black
crescents, and within the latter is a row of round black
286 LEPIDOPTERA.
spots; the rest of the surface is more or less covered with
large irregular black spots; beneath the tips of the fore
wings are seven or eight silvery spots, and on the under
Fig. 111.
side of the hind wings are above twenty large silvery-white
spots, six of which are near the base, and the rest are
arranged in three curved rows.
Expands from 2? to 34 inches.
Very common on flowers in low grounds in the latter part
of July and the beginning of August.
Argynnis Myrina, Cramer. Myrina Butterfly. (Fig. 112.)
Wings tawny, bordered with black above, with a row of
Fig. 112. black crescents adjoining the
border, and another of round
black spots at a distance from
it; the remainder of the sur-
face from the base to the mid-
dle with irregular black spots ;
ae under side = the hind wings
a ieuated with ho, with a few ochre-yellow spaces inter-
eal and above twenty silvery-white spots arranged in four
rows ; between the two outer rows is a series of black dots,
and between the two inner rows a single black dot encir-
cled with silvery white.
Expands from 13 to 1,8; inch.
THE MeEbiMen AO RUTTERF LIES. 287
The wings and the feelers of this and the following species
are proportionally more elongated than in the Idalia and
Aphrodite butterflies. The Myrina begins to appear about
the last of May, and may be found till the end of June; it
reappears again in August and September.
Argynnis Bellona, Fabricius. Bellona Butterfly. (Figs. 113, 114.)
Wings tawny above, with two rows of black spots around
the hind margins, at a distance from which is a row of round
spots of the same color; from the base to beyond the middle
Fig. 113. Fig. 114.
the wings are covered with blackish spots, running together
more or less, as in the preceding species; tips of the fore
wings beneath, and under side of the hind wings, brownish,
and glossed with purplish white on the posterior half of the
latter, which are variegated with dark brown lines and spots.
Expands from 12 to 1,8 inch.
Very closely resembles the Myrina in form and color of
the upper surface of the wings, but is easily distinguished
from it by the want of the silvery spots beneath. It is found
on flowers in the latter part of July.
The butterflies of the genus Melitea agree in most re-
spects with those of Argynnis, except that the under side of
the hind wings is usually checkered with various colors, but
not ornamented with silvery or pearly spots. Their cater-
pillars are very different, being covered with blunt tubercles
beset with very short stiff bristles, and most of them live on
various kinds of plantain. The chrysalids are of the same
288 LEPTDOPTOR A.
form as those of Argynnis, and spotted with black or brown,
but are not ornamented with golden spots.
Melitea Phaeton, Drury. Phaeton Butterfly. (Fig. 115.)
Wings black, with a row of orange-red crescents around
the hind margin,
within which are
from two to four
rows of cream-col-
ored spots; on the
fore wings, behind
the middle of the
front margin, are
two orange-red spots, and sometimes another of the same
color on the middle of the hind wings. All the wings are
black beneath, and spotted in the same way as on the
upper side, with the addition of several large orange-red and .
pale yellow spots between the middle and the base; the
abdomen has three rows of cream-colored dots on the top.
Expands from 2 to 24 inches or more.
This species is rare in Massachusetts; it appears in low
grounds in June. The wings are elongated, as in Argynnis
Myrina, but the feelers are short.
Melitea Ismeria? Boisduval. Ismeria Butterfly.
Wings tawny above, blotched with blackish narrow spots
at the base, the fore wings blackish on the hind margins and
tips; the hind wings veined and edged with black, with a
row of black crescents near the hind border, next to which
is a row of round black dots ; body covered with white down
beneath ; under side of the wings ochre-yellow, with a row
of pale yellow crescents edged with black near the hind
margin ; the rest of the surface of the fore wings variegated
with small black and large yellowish spots; next to the
external row of crescents of the hind wings is a row of
yellowish dots encircled with black, across the middle a
PH PHS Os! UMP RLY. 289
broad pale yellow band traversed and edged with wavy
black lines, which with the black veins divide it into a series
of checkers; on the shoulders of these wings a long pale
yellow spot surrounded with black, behind which are three
square ones of the same colors, contiguous by their sides,
and behind these two more joining each other by their
angles.
Expands 1 inch.
I think it possible that this species may be distinct from
the Lsmeria, which is known to me only by Dr. Boisduval’s
figure.* ‘The wings are short and broad, and the feelers
longer and more slender at their tips than in the Phaeton.
In the markings of the under side of its hind wings it ap-
proaches to the Maturna, Cynthia, and Ossianus of Europe.
The only specimen which I have seen was sent to me by
De DD. S. ©. H.. Smith of Sutton.
Melitea Pharos, Drury. Pharos Butterfly. (Fig. 116, male.
iio. lid, temale,)
Wings short and broad, tawny-orange above, with a broad
black hind border, on which is a row of narrow tawny cres-
cents, and before these a row of round black spots, much
Fig. 116. Fig. 117.
more distinct on the hind than on the fore wings ; the rest
of the wings, from the middle to the base, is marked with
narrow black spots, running together like network ; and
on the fore wings is a large black spot, extending nearly
half across the wing; the under side of the fore wings is
tawny, variegated with black and brown, with a buff-colored
* Hist. des Lépidopt. de I’ Amérique Septent., pl. 46.
37
290 LEPIDOPTERA.
spot at tip, and a crescent-shaped one of the same color
on the middle of the hind margin; under side of the hind
wings pale ochre-yellow or buff, variegated with brown lines
and spots, with a very large brown spot on the hinder mar- |
gin, on the middle of which is a whitish crescent, and be-
fore this a row of blackish dots.
Expands from 1,%; to 13 inch.
The chrysalis is about half an inch long, brown and sprin-
kled with white dots before, and reddish brown with black
dots behind, and three rows of minute points on the back ;
the anterior extremity is square and the top of the thorax
arched, with three little points disposed in a triangle. The
butterfly comes out about the first of June. This little and
very common butterfly varies considerably in the depth and
quantity of its dark markings. It is found on flowers in
June, July, and August.
The genus Cynthia was proposed by Fabricius to contain
certain butterflies which some entomologists now place in
Vanessa. Taken, however, in a more limited sense than
was originally intended, it may be retained for some of the
species which differ from the others in the form and coloring
of the wings, in the habits of the caterpillars, and in the
shape of the chrysalids. As thus restricted, the genus
Cynthia is distinguished by the. wings of the butterflies
included in it being more or less scalloped on the edges, but
not indented or tailed, and not marked with metallic charac-
ters beneath; their feelers are much longer than the head,
are tapering, curve upwards and are contiguous to their
extremity, giving the head of the insect, when viewed side-
ways, somewhat the form of the bows of a ship. The
caterpillars are armed with branched spines, about equal in
length on all the segments except the first and last, on
which they are often wanting, and the head is heart-shaped,
with little elevated points or short spines on the top. They
are solitary, and conceal themselves under a web, or within a
PRE LETS BUTTERY LY. 291
folded leaf, and suspend themselves by the hind feet alone
when about to transform. ‘The chrysalids are angular on
the sides, with two or three rows of sharp tubercles on the
back, the anterior extremity is nearly square, or hardly
notched, and there is a short and thick prominence on the
top of the thorax. The tubercles, and oftentimes the greater
part of the surface of the chrysalis, have the color and lustre
of burnished gold; from which originated the name chrysa-
lis, derived from the Greek name for gold, now, however,
applied to other insects in their second stage of transforma-
tion, which are not golden-colored.
Cynthia Cardui. ‘Thistle Butterfly. (Fig. 118.)
Wings tawny above, with a tinge of rose-red, spotted
with black and white; hind wings marbled beneath, with a
Fig. 118.
triancular white spot in the middle, and a row of five eye-
like spots near the hind margin. |
Expands 24 to 22 mches or more.
The caterpillars of this butterfly are found on thistles,
particularly the spear-thistle ( Cnicus lanceolatus) and cotton-
thistle ( Onopordon acanthiwm), on the leaves of the sun-
flower, hollyhock, burdock, and other rough-leaved plants, in
June and July. Though there may be several on the same
plant, they keep at some distance from each other. Each
one spins for itself a thin web on the surface of the leaf,
usually near the edge, to which it is also fastened, so as to
992 LEPIDOPTERA.
draw over a part of the leaf, and thus form a little tent
beneath which the caterpillar lives. It devours the skin and
pulpy substance of the leaf, without touching the under
skin; and, when it has exhausted the part under its tent, it
removes to another place, and makes a larger habitation as
before. Very young caterpillars, which are distinguished by
their darker color as well as their inferior size from the
older ones, cover themselves with a very small portion of the
leaf, and are principally protected by means of the silken
tent. The full-grown caterpillar is about one inch and a
half long. Its head is black, its feet reddish, its body striped
with black and yellow interrupted lines, with about seven
branched spines, of a white color tipped with black, on each
segment except the first, those on the fore part of the body
being more obscure than the rest. These caterpillars fre-
quently suspend themselves to the plants on which they live,
and they seldom wander far in search of a place wherein to
prepare for transformation. ‘The chrysalis varies in color,
being most often brown, with golden or brassy spots on the
sides and back, sometimes entirely golden, and sometimes
white with a silvery lustre. The chrysalis state lasts from
eleven to fourteen days. The butterflies appear from the
middle to the end of July, and are found on the flowers of
thistles and other plants. I have also found them early in
May, and as late as the month of August.
Cynthia Huntera, Fab. Uunter’s Butterfly. (Fig. 119.)
Wings tawny above, variegated and spotted with black and
white; hind wings marbled and streaked beneath, with two
large eye-like spots near the hind margin.
Expands from 24 to 23 inches.
The caterpillars are found on the same plants as those of
the thistle butterfly, and particularly on the burdock and
cotton-thistle in June and July. Mr. Abbot says that they
live on a species of everlasting (Gnaphalium polycephalum)
also. They, as well as the chrysalids, are very much like
THE AUNT BU her RELY. 293
those of the preceding species. The butterflies appear in
August and September.
Fig. 119.
Cynthia Lavinia,* Fab. Lavinia Butterfly.
Wings dark brown above, each with a large and a small
eye-like spot on both sides; the fore wings with two orange-
red spots near the middle of the front margin, and a large
whitish band enclosing the hinder eye-like spots ; hind wings
with a reddish band near the hind margin.
Expands from 2 to 23 inches.
The caterpillar is said to be blackish and dotted with
white, with the belly and legs tawny, and two white lines on
each side, the uppermost one of which is spotted with tawny
orange ; the spines (of which there are two short ones on the
head, besides those on the body) are black and branched.
According to Mr. Abbot, it lives on the Canada snap-dragon
(Antirrhinum Canadense), and remains in the chrysalis state
sixteen days. The chrysalis resembles in form that of the
two preceding species, but is said to be destitute of metal-
lic spots. I took one of these butterflies in a meadow in
Milton, on the 19th of August, 1827, and have never met
with it since in this State. It is very common in the South-
ern States throughout the whole of the summer.
* Dr. Boisduval has described this insect under the specific rame of Ceria.
294 LEPIDOPTERA.
Cynthia Atalanta, L. Atalanta Butterfly. (Fig. 120.)
e
Wings black above, spotted with white near the tips of
the first pair, on which is also an orange-red band across
the middle; hind wings with a marginal orange-red band,
Fig 120.
on which is a row of black dots, the two nearest to the hind
angle having a pale blue centre.
Expands from 2% to 3 inches.
The Atalanta butterfly was probably introduced into
America from Europe with the common nettle, which it in-
habits. It deposits its eggs in May upon the youngest and
smallest leaves of this plant, being cautious to drop only
one upon a single leaf. The young caterpillar is guarded
against injury from the poisonous prickles of the leaf by the
numerous branching spines with which it is covered, and
which, beg longer than the prickles, prevent its body
from coming in contact with the latter. The head is coy-
ered with a tough shell, which sufficiently protects this part,
while its strong and horny jaws are adapted for cutting
and chewing the leaves and their prickles with impunity.
As soon as the caterpillar is hatched, it spins a little web
to cover itself, securing the threads all around to the edges
of the leaf, so as to bend upwards the sides and form a
kind of trough, in which it remains concealed. One end
of the cavity is open, and through this the caterpillar thrusts
THe A aN T ABET ERE L Y- 295
its head while eating. It begins with the extremity of
the folded leaf, and eats downwards, and, as it gradually
consumes its habitation, it retreats backwards, till at last,
having, as it were, eaten itself out of house and home,
it is forced to abandon its imperfect shelter, and con-
struct a new one. ‘This is better than the first; for the
insect has become larger and stronger, and withal more
skilful from experience. ‘The sides of the larger leaf selected
for its new habitation are drawn together by silken threads,
so that the edges of the leaf meet closely and form a light
and commodious cavity, which securely shelters and com-
pletely conceals the included caterpillar. ‘This in time is
eaten like the first, and another is formed in like manner.
At length the caterpillar, having eaten up and constructed
several dwellings in succession, and changed its skin three or
four times, comes to its full size, leaves off eating, and seeks
a suitable place in which to undergo its transformations.
The young caterpillars are almost black ; the full-grown ones
measure about one inch and a half, are generally of a brown
color more or less dotted with white, with a black head,
rough with elevated white points, with white branching
spmes on the back, and on each side there is a row of
yellow crescents. The chrysalis is gray, with a whitish bloom
upon it like that on a plum, and the httle poimted tubercles
on its back are gold-colored. The chrysalis state continues
about ten days, or longer if the weather be cool and wet.
The butterflies from the first brood appear in July, and from
the second in September.
In the butterflies belonging to the genus Vanessa, the
wings are jagged or tailed on the hind edges. The under
side of the hind wings, in many, is marked with a golden or
silvery character in the middle; the feelers are long, cury-
ing, and contiguous, and form a kind of projecting beak.
The head of the chrysalis is deeply notched or furnished
with two ear-like prominences ; the sides are very angular:
on the middle of the thorax there is a thin projection, in
296 LEPIDOPTERA.
profile somewhat like a Roman nose; and on the back are
two rows of very sharp tubercles of a golden color. The
caterpillars are cylindrical, and armed with branching spines ;
they live in company, at least during the early period of their
existence, and do not conceal themselves under a web or
within a folded leaf.
Vanessa Antiopa, L. Antiopa Butterfly. (Fig. 121.)
Wings purplish brown above, with a broad buff-yellow
margin, near the inner edge of which there is a row of pale
blue spots.
Expands from 3 to 5} inches.
This butterfly passes the wintcr in some sheltered place
in a partially torpid state. I have found it in mid-winter
Fig. 121.
sticking to the rafters of a barn, and in the crevices of walls
and stone-heaps, huddled together in great numbers, with
the wings doubled together above the back, and apparently
benumbed and lifeless; but it soon recovers its activity on
being exposed to warmth. It comes out of its winter quar-
[8 This is one of the few butterflies common to this country and Europe, and
has probably been introduced here. — Morris.]
THE vane LOPAVBUIEERELY. ZT
ters very early in spring, often before the snow has entirely
left the ground, but with ragged and faded wings; and may
be seen sporting in warm and sheltered spots in the begin-
ning of March, and through the months of April and May.
Wilson, in his beautiful lines on the blue-bird, alludes to its
early coming in the spring,
‘“‘ When first the lone butterfly flits on the wing.”
The caterpillars (Fig. 122) of the Antiopa butterfly live
together in great numbers on Fig. 122.
the poplar, willow, and elm, on
which the first broods may be
found early in June. They are
black, minutely dotted with white,
with a row of eight dark brick-red spots on the top of the
back. The head is black and rough with projecting points ;
the spines, of which there are six or seven on each seoment
except the first, are black, stiff, and branched, and the inter-
mediate legs are reddish. When fully grown they measure
an inch and three quarters in length, and appear very for-
midable with their thorny armature, which is doubtless in-
tended to defend them from their enemies. It was formerly
supposed that they were venomous, and capable of inflicting
dangerous wounds ; and within my remembrance many per-
sons were so much alarmed on this account as to cut down
all the poplar-trees around their dwellings. This alarm was
unfounded ; for, although there are some caterpillars that
have the power of inflicting venomous wounds with their
spines and hairs, this is not the case with those of the An-
tiopa butterfly. The only injury which can be laid to their
charge is that of despoiling of their foliage some of our
most ornamental trees, and this is enough to induce us to
take all proper measures for exterminating the insects, short
of destroying the trees that they infest. I have sometimes
seen them in such profusion on the willow and elm, that the
limbs bent under their weight, and the long leafless branches,
38
BOS 9. LEPIDOPTERA.
which they had stripped and deserted, gave sufficient proof
of the voracity of these caterpillars. The chrysalis (Fig.
123) is of a dark brown color, with large tawny spots
around the pointed tubercles on the back. The
butterflies come forth in eleven or twelve days
after the insects have entered upon the chirysalis
state, and this occurs in the beginning of July.
A second brood of caterpillars is produced in
August, and they pass through all their changes
before winter.
Vanessa J Album. 'The White J Butterfly.
Wings pale tawny red above, each with a white spot be-
tween two black ones near the outer angle on the front
margin ; the fore wings with a larger black spot on the mid-
dle of the front edge, and five smaller roundish black spots
near the middle of the wings; hind wings with a silvery-
white character somewhat in the shape of the letter J in the
middle of the under side.
Expands from 24 to 3 inches.
The caterpillar and chrysalis of this butterfly are un-
known to me. ‘The butterfly probably survives the winter
like the Antiopa, for it has been observed late in the autumn,
and again early in the ensuing spring, sometimes in great
numbers ; but it 1s very inconstant In its appearance. It is
more common in New Hampshire than in Massachusetts.
Vanessa Interrogationis, F. Semicolon Butterfly. (Fig. 124.)
Wings on the upper side tawny orange, with brown spots
running together on the hinder part, and with black spots in
the middle ; hind wings in the male most often black above,
except at the base, and sometimes of this color in the other
sex also; the edges and the tails glossed with reddish white ;
under side of the wings in some rust-red, in others marbled
with light and dark brown, glossed with reddish white, and
[9 Vanessa Interrogationis belongs to the genus Grapta, Kirby. — Morris.]
THE SEMICOLON BUTTERFLY. 299
with a pale gold-colored semicolon on the middle of the
hinder pair.
Expands from 24 to 2% inches, or more.
The paly-gold character beneath the hind wings has much
more nearly the shape of a semicolon than of a note of
interrogation ;* for which reason I have called this the semi-
colon butterfly, instead of translating the specific name. It
first appears in May, and again in August and September,
and is frequently seen on the wing, in warm and sunny
places, till the middle of October. The caterpillars live on
the American elm and lime trees, and also on the hop-vine,
Fig. 124.
and on the latter they sometimes abound to such a degree as
totally to destroy the produce of the plant. In the latter
part of August the hop-vine caterpillars come to their full
growth, and suspend themselves beneath the leaves and
stems of the plant, and change to chrysalids. This fact
affords a favorable opportunity for destroying the insects in
this their stationary and helpless stage, at some loss, however,
of the produce of the vines, which, when the insects have
become chrysalids, should be cut down, stripped of the fruit
that is sufficiently ripened, and then burnt. There is prob-
{ * This butterfly received its name from the Greek note of interrogation, which
is identical with our semicolon. — Ep |
3000 LEPIDOPTERA.
ably an early brood of caterpillars in June or July, but I
have not seen any on the hop-vine before August ; the former
are therefore confined to the elm and other plants, in all
probability. The caterpillar is brownish, variegated with pale
yellow, or pale yellow variegated with brown, with a yel-
lowish line on each side of the body; the head is rust-red,
with two blackish branched spines on the top; and the spines
of the body are pale yellow or brownish and tipped with
black. The chrysalis is ashen brown, with the head deeply
notched, and surmounted by two conical ears, a long and thin
nose-like prominence on the thorax, and eight silvery spots
on the back. The chrysalis state usually lasts from eleven to
fourteen days; but the later broods are more tardy in their
transformations, the butterfly sometimes not appearing in
less than twenty-six days after the change to the chrysalis.
Great numbers of the chrysalids are annually destroyed by
little maggots within them, which, in due’ time, are trans-
formed to tiny four-winged flies (Pteromalus Vanesse),
which make their escape by eating little holes through the
sides of the chrysalis. ‘They are ever on the watch to lay
their eggs on the caterpillars of this butterfly, and are so
small as easily to avoid being wounded by the branching
spines of their victims.
Vanessa Comma. Comma Butterfly. (Plate IV. Fig. 1.)
Upper side tawny orange; fore wings bordered behind
and spotted with black; hind wings shaded behind with dark
brown, with two black spots on the middle, and three more
in a transverse line from the front edge, and a row of bright
orange-colored spots before the hind margin; hind edges of
the wings powdered with reddish white; under side marbled
with light and dark brown, the hinder wings with a silvery
comma in the middle.
Expands from 23 to 23 inches. |
This butterfly very closely resembles the white C (C
[ 10 1. Comma belongs to the genus Grapta Kirby. — Morris. ]
THE PROGnNhoBUrRE REL Y. 301
album) of Europe, for which it has probably been mistaken.
On aclose and careful comparison of several specimens of
both together, I am satisfied that the American Comma is a
distinct species, and the hinder edges of the wings, which are
not so deeply indented, will at once serve to distinguish it. I
have therefore now named and described it for the first time.
The caterpillar lives upon the hop, and, as nearly as I can
recollect, has a general resemblance to that of the semicolon
‘butterfly. ‘The chrysalis (Plate IV. Fig. 2, chrysalis from
which the butterfly has escaped) is brownish gray, or white
variegated with pale brown, and ornamented with golden
spots; there are two conical ear-lke projections on the top
of the head, and the prominence on the thorax is shorter and
thicker than that of the semicolon butterfly, and more like a
parrot’s beak in shape. The butterflies appear first in the
beginning of May; I have obtained them from the chrysa-
lids in the middle of July, and on the first of September.
Vanessa Progne,* Fab. Progne Butterfly.
Upper side tawny orange; fore wings bordered and spot-
ted with black; hind wings blackish on the posterior half,
with two black spots before the middle, and a row of small
orange-colored spots before the hind margin; tails and pos-
terior edges of the wings powdered with reddish white ;
under side gray, with fine blackish streaks, and an angular
silvery character somewhat in the form of the letter L on
the middle of the hind wings.
Expands from 1§ to 2% inches
This butterfly appears in August, and aan also at
other times. Though very much like the preceding in
general appearance, it is readily distinguished from it by the
darker color of the hind wings and the angular shape of the
silvery character on their under side. This character is very
* Mr. Kirby, whose work on the insects of North America abounds in mistakes,
has redescribed this old and well-known species under the name of Vanessa C.
argenteum.
302 LEPIDOPTERA.
slender, and is sometimes entirely wanting. I have raised
the Progne and Comma butterflies from caterpillars which
were so much alike, that Iam not certain to which of them
the following description belongs. ‘These caterpillars were
found on the American elm in August; they were pale
yellow, with a reddish-colored head, white branching spines
tipped with black, and a row of four rusty spots on each side
of the body. They were suspended on the 21st and 22d
of August, changed to chrysalids within twenty-four hours, —
and were transformed to butterflies sixteen days afterwards.
At another time, a Progne butterfly was obtained from a
eaterpillar, which I neglected to describe, on the 18th of
August, the chrysalis state having continued only eleven
days. The chrysalis is brownish gray, with silvery spots on
the back, a short, thick, and rounded nose-like prominence
on the thorax, and two conical double-pointed horns or
ears on the head, the outer points very short, and the inner
ones longer and curving inwards.
Vanessa Milberti,* Godart. Milbert’s Butterfly. (Fig. 125.)
Black above, with a broad orange-red band near the
hinder margin of all the
Fig. 125.
wings, behind which on
the hind wings is a row
of pale blue crescents ;
fore wings with a small
white spot near the tips,
and two orange-red spots
near the middle of the
front edge ; under side
deep brown, with a pale band near the extremity of the
wings, and no metallic characters on the hinder pair.
Expands from 24 to 22 inches.
This showy butterfly is rare in the vicinity of Boston, but
* This is the Vanessa furcillata of Mr. Say; but Godart’s name has the priority
in point of time.
THE HIPPARCHIANS. 303
abundant in the northwestern part of the State and in New
Hampshire. It appears in May, and again in July and Au-
gust. The caterpillars live together on the common nettle.
They vary in color, some being much darker than others ;
generally, however, they are pale brown, minutely dotted
with yellowish white, with a dark brown longitudinal line on
the top of the back, a whitish one on each side just above
the feet, and above this a row of brown spots; the head iss
small, black, and rough, with little black and white tuber-
cles; the: spines are blackish, short, and with very small
branches or lateral bristles. It measures when fully grown
an inch and a quarter or more in length, the chrysalis is pale
brown with golden spots, the top of the head widely but not
deeply notched, and the nose-like prominence very small.
The last of the four-footed butterflies remaining to be de-
scribed may be called Hipparchians (Aipparchiade). 'The
wings of the butterflies belonging to this group are entire,
with the veins of the first pair swelled at their origin, and
the central mesh of the second pair closed behind. Their
caterpillars are not spiny, and are of a green color, spindle-
shaped, or cylindrical, tapering at both ends, with the hinder
extremity notched or terminating in two conical points, and
the head is either rounded or notched above. They live
extlusively on various kinds of grasses, for the most part
concealing themselves during the day among the stubble,
and suspend themselves by the hindmost feet alone when
about to transform.
The chrysalis is either oblong and somewhat angular at
the sides, with the head notched and two rows of pointed
tubercles on the back, or short and rounded, with the head
obtuse; but never ornamented with metallic spots. The
small size and uniformly green color of the caterpillars of
our native species, and the obscurity in which they gener-
ally live, render it very difficult to discover them; and
hence they rarely pass under our observation. This being
304 LEPIDOPTERA.
the case, and not haying much to communicate respecting
the habits of individual species, I shall confine my further
remarks to a description of the insects in their final state,
when they are exposed to view, and attract our notice by
their neat and modest coloring, and their graceful and gentle
motions. They are mostly found in thickets and woods, and
more rarely in places more open and exposed.
Lipparchia semidea, Say. ‘The Mountain Butterfly. (Fig. 126.)
Wings dusky brown above, thin, delicate, and almost
transparent, in the male
paler, and with more of an
ochre-yellow tint; fringes
black, barred with ochre-
yellow, and a row of faint
ochre-yellow spots near
the hind margin of the
second pair; the under
side of these wings and of the tips of the fore wings is mar-
bled with black and white, a portion of the white forming
an irregular band beyond the middle of the hind wings.
Expands 1,8; inch to 2 inches.
This butterfly has hitherto been taken only on the summit
of the White Mountains of New Hampshire in June and
July. It was observed in great abundance flying about on
the top of Mount Washington on the 29th of July last. It
has also been seen on the Monadnoc Mountain, and will
probably be discovered on the tops of the high mountains in
our own State, if looked for at the proper season. It closely
resembles the Fortunatus of Lapland, with which I have
compared it, and find it to be specifically distinct. Mr. Say
was the first describer of it, and it is well figured in his
American Entomology. Dr. Boisduval has since re-described
and figured it under the name of Chionabas Also.*
Fig. 126.
* Icones Lépidopt. Nouv., I. p. 197, Pl. 40, fig. 1, 2, and Lépidopt. Amer., I
’
BOISDUVAL’S BUTTERFLY. 305
Hipparchia Alope, Fab. Alope Butterfly. (Fig. 127.)
Dark brown; fore wings with a broad ochre-yellow band
beyond the middle, enclosing two round black spots, with a
sky-blue centre ; hind wings notched behind, with from one
to three eye-like spots of a black color, with a blue centre
on the upper side, and
four or five of the same
kind, but of unequal
size, beneath ; the under
side of the wings is pale
brown, with numerous
dark brown streaks. The
eye-spots on the hind
wings are sometimes
wanting in the males. ial mes
Expands from 2 to 24 inches. In the Southern States
individuals are found measuring three inches.
The Alope butterfly is found from the first of July to the
middle of September in open woods and in orchards. The
caterpillar is pale green with dark green stripes; the head is
round, and the tail ends in a short fork. The chrysalis is
elongated, roundish at the sides, with the head notched.
Fig. 197.
Hipparchia Boisduvallii. Boisduval’s Butterfly. (Fig. 128.)
Pale yellowish-brown; the fore wings upon both sides
have four eye-like, blackish
spots, with a white centre,
and the hind wings have
six, the external spot re-
mote from the others, and
the two next to the hind
angle very small and close
together. In some _indi-
viduals the white centre is
wanting in some of the eye-spots on the upper side of the
wings.
Fig. 128.
39
306 LEPIDOPTERA.
Expands 2 inches or more.
This butterfly is figured in Dr. Boisduval’s Histoire des
Lépdoptéeres de (Amérique, under the name of Satyrus
Canthus ; but as it does not agree with the descriptions of the
Canthus of Linnzeus and of Fabricius, in both of which there
are no eye-spots on the upper side of the wings, I have
thought it entitled to a new name, and am happy to dedicate
it to one of the most accomplished entomologists now living.
This delicate butterfly delights in open and elevated situa-
tions, and is found in July on the sides of the highest hills,
and in the mountain meadows of the northwestern parts of
this State.
Hipparchia Eurytris, Fab. Eurytris Butterfly. (Fig. 130.)
Dark brown above, paler beneath, with two longitudinal
dusky stripes; on the upper
side of the wings are two
Fig. 129.
black eye-spots, enclosed in
an ochre-yellow ring, with
two lead-colored dots in the
centre of each spot; on the
hind wings there is another
smaller spot, with a lead-col-
ored centre, near the hinder angle ; all these spots are found
on the under side of the wings, and between them are in-
terposed the same number of small lead-colored spots.
Expands 1 inch and 6 or 7 tenths.
This butterfly is found
in June and July among
bushes and in the paths
of woods, seeking the
shade rather than the
sunshine. The caterpil-
lar resembles that of the
Alope butterfly, but the
chrysalis is shorter, with
the head obtuse.
Fig. 180.
Il:pparchia Nephele.
THE SKIPPERS. 307
2. SKiepers. (/esperiade.)
The butterflies of this tribe frequent grassy places, and
low bushes and thickets, flying but a short distance at a time,
with a jerking motion, whence they are called skippers by
English writers. When they alight, they usually keep the
hind wings extended horizontally, and the fore wings some-
what raised, but spreading a little, and not entirely closed,
as in other butterflies; some of them, however, have all the
_wings spread open when at rest, and there are others in
which they are all elevated. Notwithstanding this difference
in the position of the wings, the Hesperians all have certain
characters in common, by which they are readily distin-
guished from other butterflies. Their bodies are short and
thick, with a large head, and very prominent eyes; the
feelers are short, almost square at the end, and thickly
clothed with hairs, which give them a clumsy appearance ;
the antennze are short, situated at a considerable distance
from each other, and in most of these insects with the knob
at the end either curved like a hook, or ending with a lit-
tle point bent to one side; the legs are six in number, and
the four hinder shanks are armed with two pairs of spurs.
Their caterpillars are somewhat spindle-shaped, cylindrical
in the middle, and tapering at each extremity, without spines,
and generally naked or merely downy, with a very large
head and asmall neck. They are solitary in their habits,
and many of them conceal themselves within folded leaves,
like the caterpillars of the thistle and nettle butterflies ( Cyn-
thia Cardut and Atalanta), and undergo their transforma-
tions within an envelope of leaves or of fragments of stubble
gathered together with silken threads. Their chrysalids are
generally conical or tapering at one end, and rounded, or
more rarely pointed, at the other, never angular or orna-
mented with golden spots, but most often covered with a
bluish-white powder or bloom. They are mostly fastened
by the tail and a few transverse threads, within some folded
308 LEPIDOPTERA.
leaves, which are connected together by a loose internal
web of threads, forming a kind of imperfect cocoon.
fleteropterus marginatus. ordered Skipper. (Fig. 131.)
Fore wings tawny yellow above, shaded with brown be-
hind, and with an indistinct brownish
streak in the middle; beneath, brown,
with the front and hind margin broadly
bordered with tawny yellow; hind wings
tawny yellow, with a broad brownish
outer margin above, and without a bor-
der beneath ; antenne and legs ringed with black and white ;
body slender, longer than the hind wings, which are hori-
zontal in repose, and the fore wings raised and spread a
little.
Expands about § of an inch.
This pretty species does not appear to have been described
before. The chrysalis from which it was obtained, on the
20th of July, is rather long, nearly cylindrical, but tapering
at the hinder extremity, and with an obtusely rounded head.
It is reddish ash-colored, minutely sprinkled with brown
dots. Iam not sure that this skipper belongs to the genus
Heteropterus, but have placed it in this genus on account
of the antennz, which are not hooked at the end, but ter-
minate much like those of the genus Polyommatus.
Fig. 1381.
In the greater number of our skippers the antennz are
curved or hooked at the end. This is the case in the kinds
belonging to the genus Z’hanaos, which have the knobs of
the antennz long, tapering, and curved, the body thick, and
shorter than the wings; the latter are generally spread in
repose, and the fringes are of one uniform color, or not
spotted. The males are distinguished by having the middle
of the front edge of the fore wings doubled back on the
upper surface.
——————
Tie PRR oO. SKIP PER. 309
Thanaos Juvenalis, Fab. Juvenal’s Skipper.
Smoky brown on both sides ; fore wings variegated above
with gray; with transverse rows of dusky spots, and six or
seven small semi-transparent white spots near the tips ; six
of these spots are disposed in a transverse row, but the two
hindmost are separated from the others by a considerable
interval, and the seventh spot, which is sometimes wanting,
is placed nearer the middle of the wing; hind wings with a
row of blackish spots near the hind margin.
Expands 1, inch.
There is a local variety of this skipper, that is much more
common in Massachusetts than the preceding, of inferior
size, seldom expanding more than 1445 ich, in which the
white spots are smaller, and the seventh is wanting near
the middie of the fore wing. This skipper is found in
meadows in May, and again in Aueust. The caterpillar
lives on various pea-blossomed plants, such as the Glycine,
or groundnut, the Lathyrus, or vetchling, &c. It is green,
with pale stripes, and a heart-shaped brown head. The
chrysalis is rather long and tapering, according to Mr. Ab-
bot of a green color, and is enclosed in a cocoon of leaves
and threads; in my specimens pale yellowish brown, with
a few minute hairs on the body, and with the tongue-case
prominent and projecting beyond the middle of the breast ;
and the cocoon was composed of stubble. Mr. Abbot in-
forms us that in summer the skipper leaves the chrysalis in
nine days; but the autumnal brood continues in the chrysalis
state throughout the winter.
Thanaos Brizo. Brizo Skipper. (Fig. 182.)
Dark brown ; fore wings almost black on the upper side,
and variegated with gray externally; near their hind mar-
gin is a row of gray dots, within which is a transverse band,
composed of another row of oval gray spots, between two
slender black: zigzag lines, and across the middle is another
band of the same kind; on the hind wings are two wavy
wT
310 LEPIDOPTERA.
rows of ochre-yellow dots near the hind margin; all the
wings beneath have two rows of dots of the same color
behind. :
Expands from 145 to 154 inch.
This skipper* has not been
described before, but is figured
in Dr. Boisduval’s work under
the name above given. It is
found in the same places and
at the same times as the pre-
ceding species, to which also it
bears a close resemblance in the caterpillar and chrysalis
states, and lives on the same kind of plants.
Fig. 182.
In the skippers which Dr. Boisduval arranges under the
name of Hudamus, the knobs of the antennez are very long,
gradually taper to a point, and are suddenly bent like a hook
in the middle; the front edge of the fore wings, in the
males, is doubled over; the hind wings are often tailed, or
are furnished with a little projection on the hinder angle;
the fringes are spotted ; and all the wings are raised when
at rest.
Eudamus Tityrus, Fab. Tityrus Skipper.t! (Plate V. Fig. 1.)
Wings brown; first pair with a transverse semi-transparent
band across the middle, and a few spots towards the tip, of
a honey-yellow color; hind wings with a short rounded tail
on the hind angles, and a broad silvery band across the
middle of the under side.
Expands from 2 to 24 inches.
This large and beautiful insect makes its appearance, from
the middle of June till after the beginning of July, upon
sweet-scented flowers, which it visits during the middle of
the day. Its flight is vigorous and rapid, and its strength is"
* It is figured in Abbot’s Insects of Georgia as one of the sexes, or a variety,
of the Juvenalis; but the sexes of both of these species are known to me.
[11 Ludamus Tityrus belongs to the genus Goniloba Doubleday. — Morris. ]
THE Gly RUS SKIPPER. S11
so great that it cannot be captured without danger of its
being greatly defaced in its struggles to escape. ‘The females
lay their eggs, singly, on the leaves of the common locust-
tree (Robinia pseudacacia), and on those of the viscid locust
(Robinia viscosa), which is much cultivated here as an
ornamental tree. The caterpillars are hatched in July, and
when quite small conceal themselves under a fold of the
edge of a leaf, which is bent over their bodies and secured by
means of silken threads. When they become larger they
attach two or more leaves together, so as to form a kind of
cocoon or leafy case to shelter them from the weather, and
to screen them from the prying eyes of birds. The full-
grown caterpillar (Fig. 183), which Fig. 138.
attains to the length of about two. HIMTAT
inches, is of a pale green color, trans-
versely streaked with darker green,
with a red neck, a very large head roughened with minute
tubercles, slightly indented or furrowed above, and of a dull
red color, with a large yellow spot on each side of the
mouth. Although there may be and often are many of these
caterpillars on the same tree and branch, yet they all live
separately within their own cases. One end of the leafy
case is left open, and from this the insect comes forth to feed.
They eat only, or mostly, in the night, and keep themselves
closely concealed by day. These caterpillars are very clean-
ly in their habits, and make no dirt in their habitations, but
throw it out with a sudden jerk,
so that it shall fall at a consider-
able distance. They frequently
transform to chrysalids within the
same leaves which have served
them for a habitation, but more
often quit the trees and construct
in some secure place a cocoon
(Fig. 134) of leaves or fragments
of stubble, the interior of which is lined with a loose web
312 LEPIDOPTERA.
of silk. They remain in their cocoons without further
change throughout the winter, and are transformed to but-
terflies in the following summer. The viscid locust-tree is
sometimes almost completely stripped of its leaves by these
insects, or presents only here and there the brown and
withered remains of foliage, which has served as a tempo-
rary shelter to the caterpillars.
Eudamus Bathyllus, Smith. Bathyllus Skipper. (Fig. 135.)
In Massachusetts we have what I suppose to be only a
local variety of the Bathyllus
skipper, differmg from South-
ern specimens in the inferior
size of the white spots on the
fore wings, the less prominent
hind angle of the hind wings,
: and the darker color of the
fringes. It is of a dark brown color; on the fore wings is
a row of small white spots across the middle, and another
shorter row of only three or four contiguous spots between
the first and the tip; the wings beneath are light brown,
shaded at the base with dark brown; the hinder pair with
a slightly prominent posterior angle, and two dark brown
transverse bands.
Expands from 1 to 1,4 inch.
This species is found on flowers in June and July; in the
Southern States it appears also in March and April. The
caterpillar is very similar to that of the Tityrus skipper, and
is found on various kinds of Glycine, Hedysarum, &ce., in
May and June.
Fig. 135.
The rest of our skippers belong to the old genus Hesperia
of Fabricius, which, as now restricted by the French ento-
mologists, very nearly coincides with Pamphila of the Eng-
lish writers. The American species are quite numerous,
and moreover vary a good deal; which, with the difference
existing between the sexes, renders it quite difficult to deter-
THE HESPERIANS. 313
mine and characterize them. In the distribution of the
Hesperians, by far the largest portion of the family or group
seems to have been assigned to the Western Continent; and
it is probable that New England, or perhaps Massachusetts
alone, contains a larger number of species than the whole of
Europe. The insects of this group recede in many striking
characters, and in their general habits, from the true butter-
flies, and seem to form the connecting link between the latter
and the sphinges or hawk-moths. ‘Those belonging to the
genus Hesperia delight in cool and shady places, and mest
commonly appear on the wing towards the evening, which
led Fabricius to give them a generic name indicative of this
circumstance. ‘Their antenne are considerably shorter than
in those included in Thanaos and Hudamus, and the knob at
the end, which is thick and oblong oval, terminates suddenly
in a little point directed to one side. The upper wings are
raised and the lower are expanded when at rest; and the
fringes are not spotted. The body is thick, and about as long
as the hind wings. Most of the males are distinguished by
an oblique black dash near the middle of the fore wings.
The caterpillar lives chiefly on low herbaceous plants. The
chrysalis (Fig. 136) is described as being conical,
with a pointed head, and a long tongue-case, Ms: 186.
folded on the breast, but not confined at the point. ——
The transformation takes place in a slight cocoon
of stubble or grass, connected by a few threads
within. These skippers frequent meadows, and
other grassy and somewhat shady places, during
the middle and latter part of summer. They are
of smaller size than the preceding Hesperians, and are much
more common and abundant. ‘Their flight, though short
‘and intermitting, is exceedingly swift, and they possess a
great deal of muscular strength.
Hesperia Hobomok. Wobomok Skipper. (Fig. 137.)
Dark brown above ; on each of the wings a large tawny-
40
314 LEPIDOPTERA.
yellow spot occupying the greater part of the middle, four
or five minute spots of the same color near the tips of the
fore wings, on which is also a short brownish line at the
outer extremity of the central mesh ;
under side of the fore wings similar
to the upper, but paler ; hind wings
brown beneath, with a yellow spot
Fig. 187.
near the shoulder, and a very broad
deep yellow band, which does not
attain the inner margin, and has a
soralike projection extending towards the hinder edge.
The male has not the usual dietnewishing oblique dash on
the fore wings, which differ from those of the female only
in the greater size of the tawny portion, which extends to
the front margin.
Expands from 13% to 145 inch.
This skipper comes very near to the Otho of Smith and
Abbot (which is not the same as the Otho of Boisduval), and
also approaches closely to a species that is figured in Dr.
Boisduval’s work under the name of Zadbulon; but does not
sufficiently agree with either of them, and, in the belief that
it has not been described before, I have given it the name
of one of our celebrated Indian chiefs. It is found in June
and July.
Hesperia Leonardus. Leonard’s Skipper. (Fig. 138.)
Dark brown above ; fore wings of the male tawny yellow
on the front margin from the
base to beyond the middle ;
behind this tawny portion is
a short black line, and be-
hind the latter a row of con-
tiguous tawny spots, extend-
ing from the middle of the
inner edge towards the tip ;
the spots at this extremity small and separated from the oth-
Fig. 188.
PECK’S SKIPPER. oL>5
ers ; fore wings in the female without the tawny front edge
and black line; hind wings, in both sexes, with a central,
curved, tawny-yellow band; wings beneath bright red-
brown ; the first pair blackish from the middle to the inner
edge, and spotted as on the upper side; hind wings with a
yellow dot in the middle, and a curved row of seven bright
yellow spots behind it.
Expands from 135 to 13 inch.
This very distinct and strongly marked skipper does not
seem to have been described before. For a specimen of the
male I am indebted to the Rev. L. W. Leonard, to whom I
have dedicated the species. ‘The females I have taken in the
beginning of September.
Hesperia Sassacus. Sassacus Skipper.
Dark brown above; all the wings with a tawny-yellow
spot occupying the greater part of the middle of each, and
with two or three little detached spots of the same color near
the extremity of the first pair; beneath ochre-yellow, with
small pale yellow spots near the tip, corresponding to those
on the upper side of the fore wings; and on the hind wings
seven small, square, pale yellow spots, namely, one before the
middle and the others in pairs behind it.
Expands 14 inch.
Of this skipper I have seen only the female, which was
taken in Cambridge in the month of June. Its upper side
is very much like that of the Hobomok skipper, but it differs
from it in the color and markings of the under side, and
seems not to have been described before. I have therefore
given it, as a new species, the name of an Indian warrior.
Flesperia Peckius, Kirby. Peck’s Skipper. (Fig. 139.)
Dark brown above ; fore wings with a row of contiguous
tawny-yellow spots, extending from the middle of the inner
margin towards the tip, where the spots are more distant,
and a tawny line from the base to the middle, behind which,
316 LEPIDOPTERA.
in the male, is a short, curved, deep black line ; hind wings
with an indented tawny band, or row of unequal spots,
behind the middle, which, in the male, are very indistinct ;
beneath, light brown ; fore wings
marked with bright yellow spots ;
hind wings with a very large, irreg-
ular, bright yellow spot, covering
nearly the whole under surface, and
almost divided in two near the middle.
Expands from 15 to 13% imch.
This skipper was named by Mr. Kirby in honor of the
late Professor Peck of Cambridge, and is figured and de-
scribed in the fourth volume of the ** Fauna Boreali Ameri-
cana.” The upper surface of the female resembles that
of the same sex of the Phyleus of Drury or Vitellius of
Fabricius ; but the under side is different. It is found on
flowers in meadows in the latter part of July and in August.
Fig. 139.
Hesperia Cernes? Boisduval. Cernes? Skipper.
Dark brown above, fore wings of the male with a large
brassy-yellow spot, extending from the front edge beyond the
middle, and an oblique wavy black line; hind wings with a
brassy gloss; under side of the fore wings tawny yellow
before, dusky behind, with a pale yellow oblique spot near
the middle, and two or three minute spots of the same color
near the front margin; hind wings dusky ochre-yellow be-
neath, with a transverse row of four small paler yellow
almost obsolete spots; head and body glossed with green
above, yellowish white beneath.
Expands 1,3; inch.
In one individual from the Southern States there are two
or three minute yellow dots on the fore wings between the
oblique line and the tip. I think it probable that this may
be the species figured, but not described, by Dr. Boisduval,
under the above name. It is found in the latter part of
July, but seems to be rare, and the female is unknown to
me.
THE AHATON SKIPPER. Bi et
Hesperia Metacomet. Metacomet Skipper.
Dark brown, slightly glossed with greenish yellow above,
the male with a short, oblique black line on the middle of
the fore wings, on both sides of which, in the female, are two
yellowish dots on the middle, and two more near the front
margin and tip; hind wings beneath with a transverse row
of four very faint yellowish dots, which, however, are often
wanting.
Expands 1,3; inch.
It resembles the preceding in some respects, but is of a
uniform dark color above, and is probably a distinct species.
It appears in July. Metacomet was the Indian name of the
celebrated King Philip.
Hesperia Ahaton. Ahaton Skipper. (Fig. 140.)
Dark brown above ; fore wings in the male tawny before
the middle from the base nearly to Fig. 140.
the tip, the tawny portion ending ex-
ternally in three minute wedge-shaped
spots; on the middle an oblique vel-
vet-black line, near the outer extrem-
ity of which are two or three small
tawny spots ; under side spotted as above ; hind wings with-
out spot above; of a greenish or dusky yellow tinge below,
with a transverse curved row of four minute yellowish dots,
which are often very faint or entirely wanting. In the fe-
male there is a tawny dash along the front margin of the
fore wings, and the oblique black line is wanting, but the
other spots are larger and more distinct.
Expands from 1 inch to 144.
The markings on the fore wings somewhat resemble those
of H. Leonardus, but in other respects it is different, and is
much inferior in size. It was captured many years ago in
Milton, and I have given it the name of an Indian from that
vicinity.
318 LEPIDOPTERA.
Flesperia Wamsutta. Wamsutta Skipper. (Fig. 141.)
Dark brown above; fore wings with a broken row of
small tawny spots towards the tip, and in the males a large
tawny patch covering the whole of the fore part of the wings
Fig. 141. from the base to the middle, and an
oblique curved black line behind it;
hind wings with a small tawny dot
before the middle, and an indented
mS tawny band, or row of contiguous
tia ial spots; under side of the fore wings light brown,
and with larger yellow spots than on the other side, hind
wings light. brown, with two large irregular bright yellow
spots connected in the middle and covering nearly the
whole surface.
Expands from > of an inch to nearly an inch.
This species hardly differs from Peck’s skipper, except
in being uniformly smaller. It is a very common kind,
and is found in meadows in the latter part of summer,
particularly through the month of August. Wamsutta,
whose name I have given it, was the oldest son of the
Sachem Massasoit.
There are a few more skippers in my collection, which
were taken in Massachusetts, but some of them are not suffi-
ciently perfect to be described, and of the others I have
only one sex.
Il. HAWK-MOTHS. (Sphinges*)
Linnzus was led to give the name of Sphinx to the
insects in his second group of the Lepidoptera, from a
fancied resemblance that some of their caterpillars, when at
rest, have to the Sphinx of the Egyptians. The attitude
of these caterpillars is indeed very remarkable. Supporting
themselves by their four or six hind legs, they elevate the
~-
* See page 262.
Sonmrel del,
PLATE
v,
HAWK-MOTHS. 519
fore part of the body, and remain immovably fixed in this
posture for hours together. In the winged state, the true
Sphinges are known by the name of humming-bird moths,
from the sound which they make in flying, and hawk-moths,
from their habit of hovering in the air while taking their
_ food. These humming-bird cr hawk moths may be seen
during the morning and evening twilight, flymg with great
swiftness from flower to flower. Their wings are long,
narrow, and pointed, and are moved by powerful muscles,
to accommodate which their bodies are very thick and ro-
bust. Their tongues, when uncoiled, are, for the most part,
excessively long, and with them they extract the honey from -
the blossoms of the honeysuckle and other tubular flowers,
while on the wing. Other Sphinges fly during the daytime
only, and in the brightest sunshine. Then it is that our
large clear-winged Sesiz: make their appearance among the
flowers, and regale themselves with their sweets. The
fragrant Phlox is their especial favorite. From their size
and form and fan-like tails, from their brilliant colors, and
the manner in which they take their food, poised upon
rapidly vibrating wings above the blossoms, they might
readily be mistaken for humming-birds. The Aigerians are
also diurnal in their habits. Their flight is swift, but not
prolonged, and they usually alight while feeding. In form
and color they so much resemble bees and wasps as hardly
to be distinguished from them. The Smerinthi are heavy
and sluggish in their motions. They fly only during the
night, and apparently, in the winged state, take no food,
for their tongues are very short, and indeed almost invisible.
The Glaucopidians, or Sphinges with feathered antenna,
fly mostly by day, and alight to take their food, like many
moths, which some of them resemble in form, and in their
transformations. The caterpillars of the Sphinges have six-
teen legs, placed in pairs beneath the first, second, third,
sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and last segments of the body ;
all of them, except the /gerians and Glaucopidians, have
320 LEPIDOPTERA.
either a kind of horn or a tubercle on the top of the last
segment, and, when at rest, sit with the fore part of the body
elevated.
Having devoted a large portion of this treatise to a de-
scription of the spinning-moths, my observations on the
other insects of this order must be brief, and confined
to a.few species, which are more particularly obnoxious
on account of their devastations in the caterpillar state.
Those persons who are curious to know more about the
Sphinges than can be included in this essay, are referred
to my descriptive catalogue of these insects, contained in
the thirty-sixth volume of Professor Silliman’s “ Journal
of Science.’ . .
Every farmer’s boy knows the potato-worm, as it is com-
monly called; a large green caterpillar (Fig. 142), with a
kind of thorn upon the tail, and oblique whitish stripes on
the sides of the body. This insect, which devours the leaves
of the potato, often to the great injury of the plant, grows
to the thickness of the fore-finger, and the length of three
inches or more. It attains its full size from the middle of
August to the first of September, then crawls down the stem
of the plant and buries itself in the ground. Here, in a few
days, it throws off its caterpillar-skin, and becomes a chrysa-
lis (Fig. 143), of a bright brown color, with a long and
slender tongue-case, bent over from the head so as to touch
the breast only at the end, and somewhat resembling the
handle of a pitcher. It remains in the ground through the
winter, below the reach of frost, and in the following sum-
mer the chrysalis-skin bursts open, a large moth crawls out
of it, comes to the surface of the ground, and, mounting
upon some neighboring plant, waits till the approach of
evening invites it to expand its untried wings and fly in
search of food. This large insect has generally been con-
[12 A more complete monograph of the Sphinges has been lately published in
the Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 1859, Art. V.,
p- 97, by Dr. Brackinridge Clemens, of Easton, Penn. —Morris.]
LHe PIE Se Orth SPHIN Xx. 321
Be LEPIDOPTERA.
Fig. 145.
y ‘
Z \
oN \
"
H
rs:
‘S v4
i
founded with the Carolina Sphinx (Sphinx Carolina of Lin-
neus, Fig. 145, Fig. 146, larva, Fig. 147, pupa), which it
Fig. 146.
closely resembles. It measures across the wings about five
inches ; is of a gray color, variegated with blackish lines
and bands ; and on each
side of the body there are
five round, orange-colored
spots encircled with black.
Hence it is called by Eng-
lish entomologists Sphina quinquemaculatus (Fig. 144), the
five-spotted Sphinx. Its tongue can be unrolled to the
Fig. 147.
THE FOUR-HORNED CERATOMIA. oe
length of five or six inches, but, when not in use, is coiled
like a watch-spring, and is almost entirely concealed be-
tween two large and thick feelers, under the head.
Among the numerous insects that infest our noble elms,
the largest is a kind of Sphinx, which, from the four short
horns on the fore part of the back, I have named Ceratomia*
guadricornis (Fig. 148), or four-horned Ceratomia. On
Fig. 148.
some trees these Sphinges exist in great numbers, and their
ravages then become very obvious; while a few, though
capable of doing considerable injury, may escape notice
among the thick foliage which constitutes their food, or will
only be betrayed by the copious and regularly formed pellets
of excrement beneath the trees. They are very abundant
during the months of July and August on the large elms
which surround the northern and eastern sides of the Com-
mon in Boston; and towards the end of August, when they
descend from the trees for the purpose of going into the
ground, they may often be seen crawling in the Mall in
considerable numbers. These caterpillars (Fig. 149), at
this period of their existence, are about three inches and a
* Ceratomia, derived from the Greek, means having horns on the shoulders, a
peculiarity which I have not observed in any other Sphinx.
o2A LEPIDOPTERA.
half in length, are of a pale green color, with seven oblique
white lines on each side of the body, and a row of little
notches, like saw-teeth, on the back. The four short horns
Fig. 149.
on their shoulders are also notched, and, like most other
Sphinges, they have a long and stiff spe on the hinder
extremity of the body. They enter the earth to become
chrysalids, and pass the winter, and come forth in the
winged state in the month of June following, at which time
the moths may often be found on the trunks of trees, or
on fences in the vicinity. In this state their wings expand
nearly five inches, are of a light brown color, variegated
with dark brown and white, and the hinder part of the body
is marked with five longitudinal dark brown lines. A young
friend of mine, in Boston, once captured on the trunks of
the trees a large number of these moths during a morning’s
walk in the Mall, although obliged to be on the alert to
escape from the guardians of the Common, whose duty it
was to prevent the grass from being trodden down. Nearly
all of these specimens were females, ready to deposit their
egos, with which their large bodies were completely filled.
Cn being taken they made scarcely any efforts to escape,
and were safely carried away. It would not be difficult,
by such means, very considerably to reduce the number of
these destructive insects; in addition to which it might be
expedient, during the proper season, for our city authorities
to employ persons to gather and kill every morning the cat-
erpillars which may be found in those public walks where
they abound.
From the genus Sphinx I have separated another croup
GRAPE-VINE SPHINGES. 320
to which I have given the name of Philampelus,* from the
circumstance that the larve or caterpillars live upon the
erape-vine. When young they have a long and slender tail
recurved over the back like that of a dog; but this, after
one or two changes of the skin, disappears, and nothing
remains of it but a smooth, eye-like, raised spot on the top
of the last segment of the body. Some of these caterpillars
are pale green and others are brown, and the sides of their
body are ornamented by six eream-colored spots, of a broad
oval shape, in the species which produces the Satellitia of
Linneeus ; narrow oval and scalloped, in that which is trans-
formed to the species called Achemon (Fig. 150) by Drury.”
They have the power of withdrawing the head and the first
three seoments of the body within the fourth segment, which
gives them a short and blunt appearance when at rest. As
they attain to the length of three inches or more, and are
thick in proportion, they consume great quantities of leaves ;
and the long leafless branches of the vine too often afford
evidence of their voracity. They also devour the leaves
of the common creeper (Ampelopsis quinquefolia), which,
with those of our indigenous vines, were their only food till
the introduction and increased cultivation of foreign vines
afforded them an additional supply. They come to their
growth during the month of August, enter the earth to
transform, and appear in the winged or moth state the
following summer, in June and July. The Satellitia Hawk-
moth (Plate V. Fig. 2) expands from four to five inches,
* The literal signification of this word is, Z love the vine.
[18 P. achemon is Sphine crantor Cramer and Hiibner, — Mornts.]
326 LEPIDOPTERA.
and is of a light olive color, variegated with patches of dark-
er olive. The Achemon (Plate V. Fig. 3; Fig. 151, pupa)
expands from three to four
inches, is of a reddish ash-
color, with two triangular
patches of deep brown on
the thorax, and two square
ones on each fore wing; the hind wings are pink, with a
deeper red spot near the middle, and a broad ash-colored
border behind.
The grape-vine suffers still more severely from the ray-
ages of another kind of Sphinx caterpillars, smaller in size
than the preceding, and like them solitary in their habits,
but more numerous, and, not content with eating the leaves
alone, in their progress from leaf to leaf down the stem,
they stop at every cluster of fruit, and, either from stupidity
' or disappointment, nip off the stalks of the half-grown grapes,
and allow them to fall to the ground untasted. I have
gathered under a single vine above a quart of unripe grapes
thus detached during one night by these caterpillars.
They are naked and fleshy, like those of the Achemon
and WSatellitia, and are generally of a pale green color
(sometimes, however, brown), with a row of orange-colored
spots on the top of the back, six or seven oblique darker
green or brown lines on each side, and a short spine or horn
on the hinder extremity. The head is very small, and, with
the fore part of the body, is somewhat retractile, but not so
completely as in the two preceding species. The fourth and
fifth segments being very large and swollen, while the three
anterior segments taper abruptly to the head, the fore part
of the body presents a resemblance to the head and snout
of a hog. This suggested the generical name of Chero-
campa, or hog-caterpillar, which has been applied to some
of these insects. (Fig. 152, caterpillar covered with cocoons
of a parasitic Hymenopterous insect; Fig. 153, the parasite,
natural size and magnified.)
THE APPLEETREHOSMERINTHAUS. aot
The species under consideration is found on the vme and
the creeper in July and August; when fully grown, it de-
scends to the ground, conceals itself under fallen leaves,
Fig. 152. Fig. 153.
which it draws together by a few threads so as to form a
kind of cocoon, or covers itself with grains of earth and
rubbish in the same way, and under this imperfect cover
it changes to a pupa or chrysalis
(Fig. 154), and finally appears in
the winged state in the month of
July of the following year. The
Fig. 154.
moth, to which Sir James Edward Smith gave the name
of Pampinatric * (Plate V. Fig. 4), from its living on the
shoots of the vine, expands from two and.a half to three
inches, is of an olive-gray color, except the hind wings,
which are rust-colored, and the fore wings and shoulder-
covers are traversed with olive-green bands.
Among the Sphinges of Massachusetts may be mentioned
those belonging to the genus Smerinthus, whose tongue is
very short and scarcely visible, and whose fore wings are
generally scalloped on the outer edge. Their caterpillars
are rough or granulated, with a stout thorn on the tail, and
a triangular head, the apex of the triangle corresponding
to the crown. The blind-eyed Smerinthus CS. excecata,
Fig. 155) is fawn-colored, clouded with brown, except
the hind wings, which are rose-colored in the middle, and
ornamented with an eye-like black spot having a pale blue
centre. The caterpillar lives on the apple-tree, but is not
[14 C. pampinatrix is Sphine myron Cramer, and Sphinze cnotus Hiibner. —
Morris. ]
328 LEPIDOPTERA.
common enough to prove seriously injurious. The same
observation will apply to that of the chocolate brown-eyed
Sphinx (Smerinthus myops), which lives on the wild-cherry-
Fig. 155.
tree, and to the walnut Sphinx (Smerinthus Juglandis),
which lives on the black walnut and butternut. The latter
species is destitute of eye-like spots on the hind wings.
Of those belonging to the genus Sphinx proper, that
which bears the specific name drupiferarum inhabits the
hackberry (Celtis occidentalis) and the plum-tree ; Sphinz
Kalmie inhabits the broad-leaved laurel (Kalmia latifolia) ;
the caterpillar of the Gordius is found on the apple-tree;
that of the great ash-colored Sphinx (CS. cinerea) on the
lilac ; Hyleus on the black alder (Prinos glaber, &c.)
and whortleberry ; and the curiously checkered caterpillar
of Sphinx coniferarum on pines. Of the hog-caterpillars,
those of Charocampa cherilus and versicolor may be found
on swamp pinks (Azalea viscosa and nudiflora). ‘The cater-
pillar of the white-lined morning Sphinx (Deilephila lineata)
feeds upon purslane and turnip leaves; and that of Deile-
phila Chamenerii on the willow-herb (Epilobium angusti-
folium). The clear-winged Sphinges, Sesia pelasgus® (Fig.
156) and diffinis, are distinguished by their transparent
wings and their fan-shaped tails. They hover over flowers,
[15 S. pelasgus is S. thishe Fab. = 8. cimbiciformis Stephens = S. ruficaudis
Kirby. — Morris.]
THE EGERIANS. 329
like humming-birds, Fig. 156.
during the daytime,
in the months of July
and August. Their
caterpillars bear a
general resemblance
to those of the genus
Sphinx, and, as far
as they are known,
seem to possess the
same habits.
The Aigerians (AXGERIADE£) constitute a very distinct
group among Sphinges. ‘They are easily recognized, in the
perfected or winged state, by their resemblance to bees,
hornets, or wasps, by their narrow wings, which are mostly
transparent, and by the tufts or brush at the end of the
body, which they have the power of spreading out like a fan
at pleasure. ‘They fly only in the daytime, and frequently
alight to bask in the sunshine. Their habits, in the cater-
pillar state, are entirely different from those of the other
Sphinges ; the latter living exposed upon plants whose
leaves they devour, while the caterpillars of the A®¢erians
are concealed within the stems or roots of plants, and
derive their nourishment from the wood and pith. Hence
they are commonly called borers, a name, however, which
is equally applicable to the larvee or young of many insects
of other orders.
The caterpillars of the /E¢erians are whitish, soft, and
slightly downy. Like those of other Sphinges they have
sixteen feet, but they are destitute of a thorn or prominence
on the last segment of the body. When they have come
to their full size, they enclose themselves in
oblong oval cocoons (Fig. 157), made of
fragments of wood or bark cemented by a
oummy matter, and within these are trans-
formed to chrysalids. The latter are of a shining bay color,
42
Fig. 157.
330 LEPIDOPTERA.
and the edges of the abdominal segments are armed with
transverse rows of short teeth. By means of these little
teeth, the chrysalis, just before it is about to be transformed
to a winged insect, works its way out of
Fig. 158.
the cocoon, and partly through the hole, in
the stem or root, which the caterpillar had
previously made; and the shell of the chrys-
alis (Fig. 158) is left half emerging from the
orifice, after the moth has escaped from it.
The ash-tree suffers very much from the attacks of borers
of this kind, which perforate the bark and sap-wood of
the trunk from the roots upwards, and are also found in
all the branches of any considerable size. The trees thus
infested soon show symptoms of disease, in the death of
branches near the summit; and, when the insects become
numerous, the trees no longer increase in size and _ height,
and premature decay and death ensue. ‘These borers as-
sume the chrysalis form in the month of June, and the
chrysalids may be seen projecting half-way from the round
holes in the bark of the tree in this and the following
month, during which time their final transformation is ef-
fected, and. they burst open and escape from the shells
of the chrysalis in the winged or moth state. Under this
form this insect was described, in my paper in Professor
Silliman’s “ Journal of Science,” by the name of Trochi-
lium * denudatum; as the habits of the larva are now
ascertained, we may call it the ash-tree Trochilium. Its
general color is brown; the edges of the collar and of
the abdominal rings, the shins, the feet, and the under
side of the antenne are yellowish. The hind wings are
transparent; the fore wings are opaque and brown, varie-
gated with rust-red ; they have a transparent space near the
tips, and expand about an inch and a half.
* The word Trochilium is derived from .Trochilus, the scientific name of the
humming-bird genus; and these insects are sometimes called humming-bird
moths.
THE PEACH-TREE BORER. elk
During the month of August, the squash and other
cucurbitaceous vines are frequently found to die suddenly
down to the root. The cause of this premature death is
a little borer (Fig. 159, larva), which be- Fig. 159.
gins its operations near the ground, per- 220s
forates the stem, and devours the interior.
It afterwards enters the soil, forms a cocoon (Fig. 160,
cocoon containing chrysalis) of a gummy
substance covered with particles of earth,
changes to a chrysalis, and comes forth
the next summer a winged insect. This
is conspicuous for its orange-colored body, spotted with
black, and its hind legs fringed with long orange-colored
and black hairs. ‘The hind wings only are transparent, and
the fore wings expand from one inch to one inch and a half.
It deposits its eggs on the vines close to the roots, and may
be seen flying about the plants from the 10th of July till
the middle of August. This insect, which may be called
the squash-vine A‘geria, was first described by me in the
year 1828, under the name of geria’® Cucurbite (Plate
V. Fig. 8), the trivial name indicating the tribe of plants
on which the caterpillar feeds.*
The pernicious borer (Fig. 161, larva)
Fig. 161.
which, during many years past, has proved
very destructive to peach-trees throughout
the United States, is a species of geria,
named exitiosa (Plate V. Fig. 6, male), or
the destructive, by Mr. Say, who first scientifically described
it in the third volume of the “ Journal of the Academy of
Natural Sciences of Philadelphia,” and subsequently gave
a representation and account of it in his “ American En-
[16 The genus Ageria Fab. is now rejected by the best authorities, and all
the species are put under Trochiliwm Scopoli, which has the priority by thirty
years. — Morris. ]
* See New England Farmer, Vol. VIII. p. 38; my Discourse before the
Massachusetts Horticultural Society, in 1832, p. 26; and Silliman’s Journal,
Vol. XXXVI. p. 810.
332 LEPIDOPTERA.
tomology.” In the fifth volume of the “New England
Farmer” I have given the history of this insect, have men-
tioned the principal authors who have noticed it, and rec-
ommended preventive measures, which have been found
effectual in protecting the peach-tree from its most serious
attacks.
The eges, from which these borers are hatched, are
deposited, in the course of the summer, upon the trunk
of the tree near the root; the borers penetrate the bark,
and devour the inner bark and sap-wood. The seat of
their operations is known by the castings and gum which
issue from the holes in the tree. When these borers are
nearly one year old, they make their cocoons either under
the bark of the trunk or of the root, or in the earth and
gum contiguous to the base of the trees; soon afterwards
they are transformed to chrysalids (Fig. 162),
(Plate V. Fig. 7, chrysalis from which the moth
has escaped,) and finally come forth in the
winged state, and lay the eggs for another generation of
borers. The last transformation takes place from June to
October, most frequently, however, during the month of
July, in the State of Massachusetts. Here, although there
are several broods produced by a succession of hatches, there
is but one rotation of metamorphoses consummated within
a year. Hence borers, of all sizes, will be found in the
trees throughout the year, although it seems to be necessary
that all of them, whether more or less advanced, should
pass through one winter before they appear in the winged
State.
Under its last form, this insect is a slender, dark-blue,
four-winged moth, having a slight resemblance to a wasp
or ichneumon-fly, to which it is sometimes likened. The
two sexes differ greatly from each other, so much so as to
have caused them to be mistaken for two distinct species.
The male (Plate V. Fig. 6), which is much smaller than
the female, has all the wings transparent, but bordered
THE PEACH-TREE BORER. 333
and veined with steel-blue, which is the general color of
the body in both sexes; the palpi or feelers, the edges
of the collar, of the shoulder-covers, of the rings of the
abdomen, and of the brush on the tail, are pale yellow,
and there are two rings of the same yellow color on the
shins. It expands about one inch. The fore wings of the
female are blue, and opaque, the hind wings transparent,
and bordered and veined like those of the male, and the
middle of the abdomen is encircled by a broad orange-
colored belt. It expands an inch and a half, or more.
This insect does not confine its attacks to the peach-tree.
I have repeatedly obtained both sexes from borers inhabit-
ing the excrescences which are found on the trunks and
limbs of the cherry-tree; and, moreover, I have frequently
taken them in connection on the trunks of cherry and of
peach trees. They sometimes deposit their -eggs in the
erotches of the branches of the peach-tree, where the borers
will subsequently be found; but the injury sustained by
their operations in such parts bears no comparison to that
resulting from their attacks at the base of the tree, which
they too often completely girdle, and thus cause its prema-
ture decay and death.
The following plan, which was recommended by me in
the year 1826, and has been tried with complete success
by several persons in this vicinity, will effectually protect
the neck, or most vital part of the tree, from injury. Re-
move the earth around the base of the tree, crush and
destroy the cocoons and borers which may be found in it,
and under the bark, cover the wounded parts with the
common clay composition, and surround the trunk with
a strip of sheathing-paper eight or nine inches wide, which
should extend two inches below the level of the soil, and
be secured with strings of matting above. Fresh mortar
should then be placed around the root, so as to confine
the paper and prevent access beneath it, and the remaining
cavity may be filled with new or unexhausted loam. This
334 LEPIDOPTERA.
operation should be performed in the spring, or during the
month of June. In the winter the strings may be removed,
and in the following spring the trees should again be exam-
ined for any borers that may have escaped search before,
and the protecting applications should be renewed.
In Europe there is a species of geria, named by Lin-
neeus tipuliformis, which has long been known to inhabit
the stems of the currant-bush. This, or an insect closely
resembling it, is far too common in America, in the culti-
vated currant, with which it may have been introduced from
Europe. ‘The caterpillars are produced from eggs laid sin-
gly, near the buds; when hatched, they penetrate the stem
to the pith, which they devour, and thus form a burrow
of several inches in leneth in the interior of the stem.
As the borer increases in size, it enlarges the hole com-
municating with its burrow, to admit of the more ready
passage of its castings, and to afford it the means of escape
when it is transformed to a moth. ‘The inferior size of
the fruit affords an indication of the operations of the
borers; and the perforated stems frequently break off at
the part attected, or, if of sufficient size still to support the
weight of the foliage and fruit, they soon become sickly,
and finally die.
In some gardens, nearly every currant-bush has been
attacked by these borers; and instances are known to me
wherein all attempts to raise currant-bushes from cuttings _
ME,
have been patieds during the second or third year of the
growth of the plants, by the ravages of these insects. They —
complete their transformations, and appear in the moth state,
about the middle of June. iW
The moth is of a blue-black color; its wings are trans-
parent, but veimed and fringed with black, aot ACTOSS. - the
tips of the anterior pair there is a broad band, which is
more or less tinged with copper-color; the under side of
the feelers, the collar, the edges of. the shoulder-covers,
and three very narrow rings on the abdomen, are golden
ig
THE PERAR-TREE. BORER. 335
yellow. The wings expand three quarters of an inch, or a
little more.
Some years ago, it was ascertained that a species of
Avgeria inhabited the pear-tree in this State; and it is said
that considerable injury has resulted from it. An infested
tree may be known by the castings thrown out of the
small perforations made by the borers, which live under
the bark of the trunk, and subsist chiefly upon the imner
bark. They make their cocoons under the bark, and change
to chrysalids in the latter part of summer. The winged
insects appear in the autumn, having, like others of this
kind, left their chrysalis-skins projecting from the orifice
of the holes which they had previously made. In its winged
form, this A‘%geria is very much lke that which inhabits
the currant-bush; but it is a smaller species. It was
described by me in the year 1830, under the name of
Aigeria Pyri (Plate V. Fig. 5), the pear-tree AXgeria ;
and my account of it will be found on the second page
of the ninth volume of the ‘* New England Farmer.”
Its wings expand rather more than half an inch; are
transparent, but veimed, bordered, and fringed with purplish
black, and across the tips of the fore wings is a broad dark
band glossed with coppery tints; the prevailing color of the
upper side of the body is purple-black ; but most of the
under side is golden yellow, as are the edges of the collar, of
the shoulder-covers, and of the fan-shaped brush on the tail,
and there is a broad yellow band across the middle of the
abdomen, preceded by two narrow bands of the same color.
There are several more insects * belonging to this group
in Massachusetts, one of which lives in the stems of the
lilac, and another inhabits those of the wild currant, Rides
floridum. The winged male of the latter species is remarka-
ble for the very long, slender, and cylindrical tuft or pencil
at the extremity of the body. Of the rest, there is nothing
particularly worthy of note.
* See Silliman’s Journal, Vol. XXXVI. pp. 309 to 313.
336 LEPIDOPTERA.
The Glaucopidians,* so named from the glaucous or bluish-
green color of some of the species, are distinguished from
the other Sphinges by their antenne, which, in the males
at least, and sometimes in both sexes, are feathered, or
furnished on each side with little slender branches, parallel
to each other like the teeth of a comb. In scientific works
such antenne are called pectinated, from pecten, the Latin
for comb.
The caterpillars of the Glaucopidians have sixteen feet,
are slender, and cylindrical, with a few hairs scattered
generally over the surface of the body, or arranged in
little tufts arising from minute warts, and are without a
horn on the hinder extremity. They devour the leaves
of plants, and make for themselves cocoons of coarse silk,
in which they undergo their transformations. The chrysa-
lids are oblong oval, rounded at one end, tapering at the
other, and are not provided with transverse rows of teeth
on the surface of the body. In the caterpillar and winged
states, in the nature of their transformations, and in their
habits, these insects approach very closely to the Phalene,
or moths, forming the third division of Lepidopterous in-
sects, among which they are arranged by some naturalists.
There are not many of them in Massachusetts, and only
one species requires to be noticed here.
This is the Procris Americana (Fig. 163), a small moth
of a blue-black color, with a saffron-
colored collar, and a notched tuft on
the extremity of the body. The wings,
which are very narrow, expand nearly
one inch. ‘This little insect is the
American representative of the Procris vitis or ampelophaga
of Europe, which, in the caterpillar state, sometimes proves
very injurious to the grape-vine. The habits of our spe-
cies are exactly the same; but have been overlooked, or
* See additional observations on page 819.
} For the other species see Silliman’s Journal, Vol. XXXVI. pp. 315 to 819.
PH. CL MOC OrPIDELANS. al
very rarely observed, in this vicinity. The caterpillars
are gregarious, that is, considerable numbers of them live
and feed together, collected side by side on the same leaf,
and only disperse when they are about to make their co-
coons. ‘They are of a yellow color, with a transverse
row of black velvety tufts on each ring, and a few con-
spicuous hairs on each extremity of the body. They are
hatched from eggs, which are laid in clusters of twenty or
more together on the lower sides of the leaves of the grape-
vine and creeper; and they come to their growth from the
middle to the end of August. They then measure six tenths
or rather more than one half of an inch in length. Their
feet are sixteen in number, and rather short, and their mo-
tions are sluggish. When touched, they curl their bodies
sidewise and fall to the ground, or, more rarely, hang sus-
pended from the leaves by a silken thread. When young,
they eat only portions of the surface of the leaf; but as they
grow older, they devour all but the stalk and principal veins,
and, passing from leaf to leaf, thus strip whole branches of
their foliage. When numerous, they do much damage to
the vines and fruit, by stripping off the leaves in midsum-
mer, when most needed. I have found them in Massachu-
setts on the grape-vine and on the common creeper, or Ampe-
lopsis quinquefolia, and conjecture that the latter constitutes
their natural food.
About the year 1830, Professor Hentz found them in
swarms upon cultivated grape-vines at Chapel Hill, in North
Carolina; and constant care was required to ‘check their
ravages there, during several successive years. Several
broods appeared there in the course of the summer; but
hitherto, only one annual brood has been observed in
‘Massachusetts, although two or more broods may occasion-
ally be produced. When about to make their cocoons,
the caterpillars leave the vines, and retire to some sheltered
spot. They then enclose themselves, each in a very thin,
but tough, oblong oval cocoon, and soon afterwards are
43
338 LEPIDOPTERA.
transformed to shining brown chrysalids. Early in July,
and in the middle of the day, I have seen the moths flying
about grape-vines and creepers, at which time, also, they
pair and lay their eggs. A more full account of this insect,
illustrated by figures, will be found in Hovey’s Magazine,
for June, 1844.
Ill. MOTHS. (Phalene.)*
The third great section of the Lepidoptera, which Lin-
neus named Phalena, includes a vast number of insects,
sometimes called millers, or night-butterflies, but more fre-
quently moths. The latter term, thus applied, comprehends
not only those domestic moths which, in the young or
caterpillar state, devour cloth, but all other insects belone-
ing to the order Lepidoptera which cannot be arranged
among the butterflies and hawk-moths.
These insects vary greatly in size, color, and structure.
Some of them, particularly those with gilded wings, are
very minute; while the Atlas-moth of China (Aftacus
Atlas), when its wings are expanded, covers a space meas-
uring nearly nine inches by five and a half; and the owl-
moth (£rebus Strix) has wings which, though not so broad,
expand eleven inches. Some female moths are destitute
of wings, or have but very small ones, wholly unfitted
for flight; and there are species whose wings are longitu-
dinally cleft into several narrow rays, resembling feathers.
The stalk of the antenne of moths generally tapers from
the base to the end. These parts sometimes resemble
simple or naked bristles, and sometimes they are plumed
on each side of the stalk, like feathers. There is often a
good deal of difference in the antennz, according to the
sex; feathered or pectinated antenne being generally nar-
rower in the females than in the males; and there are
some moths the males of which have feathered antenne,
* See page 320.
MOTHS. 339
while those of the other sex are not feathered at all, or
only furnished with very short projections, like teeth, at the
sides. Most moths have a sucking-tube, commonly called
the tongue, consisting of two hollow and tapering threads,
united side by side, and when not in use rolled up in a
spiral form; but in many this member is very short, and
its two threads are not united ; and in some it is en-
tirely wanting, or is reduced to a mere point. Two palpi
or feelers are found in most moths. They grow from the
lower lip, generally curve upwards, and cover the face on
each side of the tongue. Some have, besides these, another
pair, which adhere to the roots of the tongue. Many moths
are said to have no feelers; these parts being in them very
small, and invisible to the naked eye.
The caterpillars of. these msects differ more from each
other than the moths. In general they are of a cylindrical
shape, and are provided with sixteen legs; there are many,
however, which have only ten, twelve, or fourteen legs ;
and in a few the legs are so very short as hardly to be
visible, so that these caterpillars seem to glide along in the
manner of slugs. Some caterpillars are naked, and others
are clothed with hairs or bristles, and the hairs are either
uniformly distributed, or grow in tufts. Sometimes the
surface of the body is even and smooth; sometimes it is
covered with little warts or tubercles; or it is beset with
prickles and spines, which not unfrequently are compound
or branched.
Many caterpillars, previous to their transformation, en-
close themselves in cocoons, composed entirely of silk, or
of silk interwoven with hairs stripped from their own bodies,
or with fragments of other substances within their reach.
Some go into the ground, where they are transformed
without the additional protection of a cocoon; others change
to chrysalids in the interior of the stems, roots, leaves,
or fruits of plants. ‘The chrysalids of moths are generally
of an elongated oval shape, rounded at one end, and tapering
340 LEPIDOPTERA.
almost to a point at the other; and they are destitute of
the angular elevations which are found on the chrysalids
of butterflies.
These brief remarks, which are necessarily of a very
general nature, and comprise but a few of the principal
differences observable in these insects, must suffice for the
present occasion.
Linneus divided the Moths into eight groups; namely,
Attaci, Bombyces, Noctue, Geometre, Tortrices, Pyralides,
Tineew, and Alucite ; and these (with the exception of the
Attaci, which are to be divided between the Bombyces and
Noctue) have been recognized as well-marked groups, and
have been adopted by some of the best entomologists * who
succeeded him.
1. Spinners. (Lombyces.)
The Bompyces, so called from Bombyx, the ancient name
of the silk-worm, are mostly thick-bodied moths, with anten-
ne in the greater number feathered or pectinated, at least
in the males, the tongue and feelers very short or entirely
wanting, the thorax woolly, but not crested, or very rarely,
and the fore legs often very hairy. Their caterpillars have
sixteen legs, are generally spinners, and, with few excep-
tions, make cocoons within which they are transformed.
This tribe has been subdivided into a number of lesser
groups or families ; but naturalists are not at all agreed upon
the manner in which these should be arranged. We might
place at the head of the tribe those large moths, whose
Sphinx-like caterpillars are naked and warty, and which,
in the winged state, are ornamented with eye-like spots
like the Smerinthi; or we might place first in the series
the moths whose caterpillars are wood-eaters, with the habits
* It is hardly necessary to say that among these are Denis and Schiffermiiller,
the authors of the celebrated Vienna Catalogue, besides Latreille, Leach, Ste-
phens, and others, whose classifications of the Moths, how much soever varied,
enlarged, or improved, are essentially based on the arrangement proposed by
Linnzeus.
ponrel del,
La Sagar pes eh
DEHN EOS DANS. 341
and transformations of the Agerians ; or we may begin
with the smaller species, with hairy caterpillars, whose hab-
its and transformations are like those of the Glaucopidians,
and which resemble the latter closely in the winged state ;
and thus the series, from Procris and other moth-like
Sphinges to the true Moths, will be uninterrupted. The
latter, on the whole, seems to be the most natural course,
and it agrees with the arrangement of Dr. Boisduval, which
I shall follow, with some slight changes only.
Agreeably to this arrangement the first family of the Bom-
byces will be the Lithosians (LirHosiapz), so named from
two Greek words,* meaning a stone, and to live; for the
caterpillars of many of these insects live in stony places,
and devour the lichens growing on rocks. (Such also are
the habits of Glaucopis Pholus
(Fig. 164), one of the Glaucopid-
ians.) On this account they are
not properly subjects for notice in
this essay; but as some of the
larger species are grass-eaters, are
conspicuous for their beauty, and naturally conduct to
another family particularly obnoxious to the cultivators of
the soil, it may be interesting to point out their distinguish-
ing traits.
The Lithosians are slender-bodied moths, mostly of small
size, whose rather narrow upper or fore wings, when at
rest, generally lie flatly on the top of the back, crossing
or overlapping each other on their imner margins, and
entirely covering the under wings, which are folded longi-
tudinally, and, as it were, moulded around the body ; more
rarely the wings slope a little at the sides, and cover the
back like a low roof. The antenne are rather long, and
bristle-formed ; sometimes naked in both sexes, more often
shehtly feathered with a double row of short hairs beneath,
Fig. 164.
* This is the derivation given by M. Godart, Hist. Nat. Lépidopt. de France,
Vol. V. p: 10°
342 LEPIDOPTERA.
in the males. The tongue and one pair of feelers are
very distinct and of moderate length. The back is smooth,
neither woolly nor crested, but thickly covered with short
and close feather-like scales. The wings of many of the
Lithosians are prettily spotted, and they frequently fly in
the daytime like the Glaucopidians. Their caterpillars are
sparingly clothed with hairs, growing in little clusters from
minute warts on the surface of the body. They enclose
themselves in thin oblong cocoons of silk interwoven with
their own hairs. The rings of their chrysalids are gen-
erally so closely joined as not to admit of motion.
Of about a dozen kinds inhabiting Massachusetts, I shall
describe only two. ‘The first of these may be called Gno-
phria vittata,* the striped Gnophria. It is of a deep
scarlet color; its fore wings, which expand one inch and
one eighth, have two broad stripes, and a short stripe
between them at the tip, of a lead-color, and the hind
wings have a very broad lead-colored border behind; the
middle of the abdomen and the joints of the legs are also
lead-colored. The caterpillar lives upon lichens, and may
be found under loose stones in the fields in the Spring.
It is dusky, and thinly covered with stiff, sharp, and barbed
black bristles, which grow singly from small warts. Early
in May it makes its cocoon, which is very thin and silky;
and twenty days afterwards is transformed to a moth.
By far the most elegant species is the Deiopeia bella
(Plate VI. Fig. 3), the beautiful Deiopeia. This moth
has naked bristle-formed antenne; its fore wings are deep
yellow, crossed by about six white bands, on each of which
is a row of black dots; the hind wings are scarlet red,
with an irregular border of black behind: the body is
* This moth has all the essential characters of the European Gnophria rubri-
collis, an insect closely resembling in its colors the Procris Americana. The name
of the genus is derived from a Greek word signifying dusky, in allusion to the
dark colors of the insects.
[27 Gnophria vittata is Lithosia miniata Kirby. — Morris. ]
THE ARCTIANS. 342
white, and the thorax is dotted with black. It expands
from one inch and a half to one and three quarters. Its
time of appearance here is from the middle of July till
the beginning of September. The caterpillar is unknown
to me; but Drury states that he was informed it was of
the same color as the fore wings of the moth, (that is, yel-
low and white dotted with black,) and that it feeds upon
the blue lupines.* The European Deiopeia pulchella, which
is very much like our species, feeds, in the caterpillar state,
on the leaves of the mouse-ear, Myosotis arvensis and palus-
tris; and it is probable that ours may be found on plants
of the same kind here.
Some of the large and richly colored Lithosians resemble,
in many respects, the insects in the next family, called,
by the English, tiger and ermine moths. The caterpillars
of most of these tiger-moths are thickly covered with hairs,
whence they have received the name of woolly bears, and
the family, including them, that of Arcriapm, or Arctians,
from the Greek word for bear. The Arctians, or tiger-
moths, have shorter and thicker feelers than the Lithosians ;
their tongue is also for the most part very short, not
extending, when unrolled, much beyond the head; their
antennz, with few exceptions, are doubly feathered on the
under side; but the feathering is rather narrow, and is
hardly visible in the females; their wings are not crossed
on the top of the back,f but are roofed or slope downwards
on each side of the body, when at rest; the thorax is thick,
and the abdomen is short and plump, and generally orna-
mented with rows of black spots. Their fore wings are
often variegated with dark-colored spots on a light ground,
or light-colored veins on a dark ground; and the hind
wings are frequently red, orange, or yellow, spotted with
black or blue. They fly only in the night. Their caterpil-
* Drury’s Illustrations, Vol. I. p. 52, pl. 24, fig. 3.
{+ To this character there is an exception in the Lophocampa tessellaris, the
wings of which are closed like those of Lithosia quadra.
344 LEPIDOPTERA.
lars are covered with coarse hairs, spreading out on all
sides like the bristles of a bottle-brush, and growing in -
clusters or tufts from little warts regularly arranged in
transverse rows on the surface of the body. They run
very fast, and when handled roll themselves up almost
into the shape of a ball. Many of them are very destruc-
tive to vegetation, as, for example, the salt-marsh caterpil-
lar, the yellow bear-caterpillar of our gardens, and the fall
web-caterpillar. When about to transform, they creep into
the chinks of walls and fences, or hide themselves under
stones and fallen leaves, where they enclose themselves in
rough oval cocoons, made of hairs plucked from their own
bodies, interwoven with a few silken threads. The chrysalis
is smooth, and not hairy, and its joints are movable.
Some of the slender-bodied Arctians, with bristle-formed
antennee, which are not distinctly feathered in either sex,
and having the feelers slender, and the tongue longer than
the others, come so near to the Lithosians that naturalists
arrange them sometimes among the latter, and sometimes
among the Arctians. They belong to
Latreille’s genus Callimorpha* (meaning
beautiful form), one species of which in-
habits Massachusetts, and is called Cal-
limorpha militaris (Fig. 165), the soldier-
-moth, in my Catalogue. Its fore wings
expand about two inches, are white, al-
most entirely bordered with brown, with
an oblique band of the same color from
the inner margin to the tip; and the
Fig. 165.
* The French naturalists, whom I have followed, include in this genus the Eu-
ropean moths called Hera, Dominula, Donna, Jacobee, &c. Closely allied to the
Hera, and still more so to the militaris, is a large and fine species, which inhabits
the Southern States, and which I have named Callimorpha Carolina. It differs
from the militaris in being larger, measuring across the wings two inches and a
quarter, or more, and in having the hind wings of a deep Indian-yellow or ochre
color, with one or two black spots near the hind margin; the abdomen also is
ochre-yellow. Itis possible that this may be the Clymene of Esper and Ochsen-
heimer, or the Colona of Hiibner, whose works I have not seen.
TIpEr ke BR MOLES. 345
brown border on the front margin generally has two short
angular projections extending backwards on the surface of
the wing. The hind wings are white, and without spots.
The body is white ; the head, collar, and thighs, buff-yellow ;
and a longitudinal brown stripe runs along the top of the
back from the collar to the tail. This is a very variable
moth; the brown markings on the fore wings being some-
times very much reduced in extent, and sometimes, on the
contrary, they run together so much that the wings appear
to be brown, with five large white spots. This latter variety
is named Callimorpha Leconter by Dr. Boisduval. ‘The cat-
erpillar is unknown to me. ‘The caterpillars of the Calli-
morphas are more sparingly clothed with hairs than the
other Arctians ; and they are generally dark-colored, with
longitudinal yellow stripes. They feed on various herba-
ceous and shrubby plants, and conceal themselves in the
daytime under leaves or stones.
Most of the other tiger and ermine moths of Massachusetts
may be arranged under the general name of Arctia.* The.
first of them would probably be placed by Mr. Kirby in Cai-
Limorpha,t from which, however, they differ in their shorter
and more robust antennze, always very distinctly feathered,
at least in the males. ‘They are distinguished from the rest
by having two black spots on the collar, and three short
black stripes on the thorax. The largest and most rare of
these moths is the Arctica virgo, or virgin tiger-moth. On
account of the peculiarly strong and disagreeable odor which
it gives out, 1t might with greater propriety have been named
the stinking tiger-moth. It is a véry beautiful insect. Its
* Chelonia of the French, Euprepia of the Germans (from a Greek word sig-
nifying pre-eminent beauty), and subdivided, by the English entomologists, into
many genera, founded on minute differences in the length of the joints of the feel-
ers, &c., which it is unnecessary to regard in this treatise.
+ Mr. Kirby’s Callimorpha parthenice and virguncula closely resemble the first
two or three species which follow. The European pudica, and probably also the
Nemeophila plantaginis belong to the same group. See Fauna Boreali Americana,
Vol. IV. pp. 304, 305, pl. 4, fig. 6.
44
346 LEPIDOPTERA.
fore wings expand from two inches to two and a half, are
flesh-red, fading to reddish buff, and covered with many
stripes and lance-shaped spots of black; the hind wings are
vermilion-red, with seven or eight large black blotches ; the
under side of the body is black, the upper side of the abdo-
men vermilion-red, with a row of black spots close together
along the top of the back. The caterpillar is brown, and
pretty thickly covered with tufts of brown hairs. The moth
appears here in the latter part of July and August.
The Arge tiger-moth resembles the preceding, but is
smaller, and not so highly colored, and the black markings
on the fore wings are smaller, and separated from each other
by wider spaces. Its general tint is a light flesh-color, fading
to nankin ; the fore wings are marked with streaks and small
triangular spots of black; the hind wings are generally deeper-
colored than the fore wings, and have from five to seven or
eicht black spots of different sizes upon them ; there are two
black spots on the collar, and three on the thorax, as in the
preceding species ; the abdomen is of the color of the hind
wings, with a longitudinal row of black dots on the top,
another on each side, and two rows of larger size beneath.
The wings expand from one inch and three quarters to two
inches. JI have taken this moth from the 20th of May till the
middle of July. The caterpillar appears here sometimes in
large swarms in the month of October, having then become
fully grown, measuring about one inch and a half in length,
and being at this time in search of proper winter quarters
wherein to make their cocoons. They are of a dark green-
ish-oray color, but appear almost black from the black spots
with which they are thickly covered; there are three longi-
tudinal stripes of flesh-white on the back, and a row of
kidney-shaped spots of the same color on each side of the
body. The warts are dark gray, and each one produces a
thin cluster of spreading blackish hairs. They eat the leaves
of plantain and of other herbaceous plants, and it is stated*
* Abbot's Insects of Georgia, p. 125, pl. 63.
THE TIGER-MOTHS. 347
that they sometimes make great devastation among young
Indian corn in the Southern States.
A much more abundant species in Massachusetts is that
which has been called the harnessed moth, Arctia phalerata
(ig. 166) of my Cataloguc.
It makes its appearance from
the end of May to the middle
of August, and probably breeds
throughout the whole summer.
It is of a pale buff or nankia
color; the hind wings next to
the body, and the sides of the body, are reddish ; on the fore
wings are two longitudinal black stripes and four triangular
black spots, the latter placed near the tip; and these stripes
and spots are arranged so that the butf-colored spaces be-
tween them somewhat resemble horse-harness ; the hind
wings have several black spots near the margin; there are
two dots on the collar, three stripes on the thorax, and a
stripe along the top of the back, of a black color ; the under
side of the body and the legs are also black. The wings ex-
pand from one inch and a half to one inch and three quar-
ters. The caterpillar is not yet known tome. This moth,
in many respects, resembles one called Phyllira* by Drury,
rarely found here, but abundant in the Southern States ; the
fore wings of which are black, with one longitudinal line, two
transverse lines, and near the tip two zigzag lines forming a
W, of a buff color.
The feelers and toneue of the foregoing moths, though
short, are longer than in the following species, which have
these parts, as well as the head, smaller and more covered
with hairs. Some of the latter may be said to occupy the
centre or chief place among the Arctians, exceeding all the
rest in the breadth of their wings, the thickness of their
bodies, and the richness of their colors. Among these is
the great American tiger-moth, Arctia Americana, an unde-
* More properly Philyra.
348 LEPIDOPTERA.
scribed species, which some of the French entomologists *
have supposed to be the same as the great tiger, Arctia Caja,
of Europe. Of this fine insect I have a specimen, which was
presented to me by Mr. Edward Doubleday, who obtained it,
with several others, near Trenton Falls in New York. It
has not yet been discovered in Massachusetts, but will proba-
bly be found in the western part of the State. The fore
wings of the Arctia Americana expand two inches and a half
or more ; they are of a brown color, with several spots and
broad winding lines of white, dividing the brown surface into
a number of large irregular blotches; the hind wings are
ochre-yellow, with five or six round blue-black spots, three
of them larger than the rest; the thorax is brown and woolly;
the collar edged with white before, and with crimson behind;
the outer edges of the shoulder-covers are white ; the abdo-
men is ochre-yellow, with four black spots on the middle of
the back ; the thighs and fore legs are red, and the feet dark
brown. ‘This moth closely resembles the European Caja, and
especially some of its varieties, from all of which, however,
it is essentially distinguished by the white edging of the col-
lar and shoulder-covers, and. the absence of black lines on the
sides of the body. It is highly probable that specimens may
occur with orange-colored or red hind wings like the Caja,
but I have not seen any such. ‘The caterpillar of our species
probably resembles that of the Caja, which is dark chestnut-
brown or black, clothed with spreading bunches of hairs, of
a foxy-red color on the fore part and sides of the body, and
black on the back; but the clusters of hairs, though thick,
are not so close as to conceal the breathing holes, which form
a distinct row of pearly-white spots on each side of the body.
These caterpillars eat the leaves of various kinds of gar-
den plants without much discrimination, feeding together in
considerable numbers on the same plant when young, but
scattering as they grow older.
* Godart. Lépidopt. de France, Tom. IV. p. 308. It is figured in the “ Lake
Superior’ of Agassiz and Cabot, pl. 7, fig. 5.
THE VIRGINIA ERMINE-MOTH. 349
The largest of the American Arctians is the Seribonia, or
great white leopard-moth, which varies in expansion from
two and a half to three and a half inches, the females being
invariably much larger than the males. It is of a white color;
the fore wings and thorax are ornamented with many small
oval black rings, the hind wings are more or less spotted
with black ; and the abdomen is yellow, with rows of large
blue-black spots on the back and sides.
The caterpillar, as represented by Mr. Abbot,* is the
counterpart of that of the Hebe of Europe, being chestnut-
brown with transverse red bands between the rings, and is
clothed with clusters of dark brown hairs. It is said to
eat the leaves of the wild sunflower and of various other
plants. It has been confidently reported to me that the
great leopard-moth has been seen in Brookline; but it must
be very rare here, for I have never heard of its being taken
in any part of New England. Specimens of this fine insect
would be a very acceptable addition to any collection of such
objects.
Of all the hairy caterpillars frequenting our gardens, there
are none so common and troublesome as that which I have
called the yellow-
bear (Tig. 167).
Like most of its
genus, it is a very
general feeder, de-
vouring almost all
kinds of herbaceous plants with equal relish, from the broad-
leaved plantain at the door-side, the peas, beans, and even
the flowers of the garden, and the corn and coarse grasses
of the fields, to the leaves of the vine, the currant, and the
gooseberry, which it does not refuse when pressed by hunger.
This kind of caterpillar varies very much in its colors; it is
perhaps most often of a pale yellow or straw color, with a
black line along each side of the body, and a transverse line
* Insects of Georgia, p. 187, pl. 69.
350 LEPIDOPTERA.
of the same color between each of the segments or rings, and
it is covered with long pale yellow hairs. Others are often
seen of a rusty or brownish yellow color, with the same black
lines on the sides and between the rings, and they are clothed
with foxy-red or light brown hairs. The head and ends of
the feet are ochre-yellow, and the under side of the body
is blackish in all the varieties. ‘They are to be found of
different ages and sizes from the first of June till October.
When fully grown they are about two inches long, and then
creep into some convenient place of shelter, make their co-
coons, in which they remain in the chrysalis state during the
winter, and are changed to moths in the months of May or
June following. Some of the first broods of these caterpil-
lars appear to come to their growth early in summer, and are
transformed to moths by the end of July or the beginning of
August, at which time I have repeatedly taken them in the
winged state; but the greater part pass through their last
change in June. ‘The
moth (Fig. 168) is fa-
miliarly known ‘by the
Fig. 168.
name of the white mil-
ler, and is often seen
about houses. Its sci-
entific name is Arctia
Virginica,® and, as it
nearly resembles the insects commonly called ermine-moths *
in England, we may give to it the name of the Virginia
ermine-moth. It is white, with a black point on the middle
of the fore wings, and two black dots on the hind wings, one
on the middle and the other near the posterior angle, much
more distinct on the under than on the upper side; there is
a row of black dots on the top of the back, another on each
side, and between these a longitudinal deep yellow stripe;
the hips and thighs of the fore legs are also ochre-yellow.
[18 Arctia Virginica belongs to the genus Spilosoma. — Morris.]
* Tt is most like the Arctia Urtice, but is cf a much purer white color.
THE SALT-MARSH CATERPILLAR. 351
It expands from one inch and a half to two inches. Its eggs
are of a golden-yellow color, and are laid in patches upon the
leaves of plants. In some parts of France, and in Belgium,
the people have been required by law to écheniller, or uncat-
erpillar, their gardens and orchards, and have been punished
by fine for the neglect of the duty. Although we have not
yet become so prudent and public-spirited as to enact similar
regulations, we might find it for our advantage to offer a
bounty for the destruction of caterpillars ; and though we
should pay for them by the quart, as we do for berries, we —
should be gainers in the end, while the children whose idle
hours were occupied in the picking of them would find this a
profitable employment.
The salt-marsh caterpillar (Fig. 169), an insect by far too
well known on our seaboard, and now getting to be common
in the interior of the
State, whither it has
probably been intro-
duced, while under
the chrysalis form,
with the salt hay an-
nually carried from the coast by our inland farmers, closely
resembles the yellow bear in some of its varieties. The
history of this insect forms the subject of a communication
Fig. 169.
made by me to the Agricultural Society of Massachusetts, in
the year 1823, and printed in the seventh volume of the
*“¢ Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal,” with
figures representing the insect in its different stages. At
various times and intervals since the beginning of the present
century, and probably before it also, the salt marshes about
Boston have been overrun and laid waste by swarms of cater-
pillars. These appear towards the end of June, and grow
rapidly from that time till the first of August. During this
month they come to their full size, and begin to run, as the
phrase is, or retreat from the marshes, and disperse through
the adjacent uplands, often committing very extensive ravages
Boe LEPIDOPTERA.
in their progress. Corn-fields, gardens, and even the rank
weeds by the way-side, afford them temporary nourishment
while wandering in search of a place of security from the
tide and weather. ‘They conceal themselves in walls, under
stones, in hay-stacks and mows, in wood-piles, and in any
other places in their way, which will afford them the proper
degree of shelter during the winter. Here they make their
coarse hairy cocoons, and change to chrysalids, in which form
they remain till the following summer, and are transformed
to moths in the month of June.
In those cases where, from any cause, the caterpillars,
when arrived at maturity, have been unable to leave the
marshes, they conceal themselves beneath the stubble, and
there make their cocoons. Such, for the most part, is the
course and duration of the lives of these insects in Massa-
chusetts ; but in the Middle and Southern States two broods
are brought to perfection annually, and even here some of
them run through their course sooner, and produce a second
brood of caterpillars in the same season ; for I have obtained
the moths between the loth and 20th of May, and again be-
tween the Ist and the 10th of August. Those which were
disclosed in May passed the winter in the chrysalis form,
while the moths which appeared in August must have been
produced from caterpillars that had come to their growth and
gone through all their transformations during the same sum-
mer. This, however, in Massachusetts, is not a common
occurrence ; for by far the greater part of these insects
appear at one time, and require a year to complete their
several changes.
The full-grown caterpillar measures one inch and three
quarters or more in length. It is clothed with long hairs,
which are sometimes black and sometimes brown on the back
and fore part of the body, and of a lighter brown color on
the sides. The hairs, like those of the other Arctians, grow
in spreading clusters from warts, which are of a yellowish
color in this species. The body, when stripped of the hairs,
THE SARE MARSH CATERPILLAR. ao
is yellow, shaded at the sides with black, and there is a
blackish line extending along the top of the back. The
breathing-holes are white, and very distinct even through
the hairs. These caterpillars, when feeding on the marshes,
are sometimes overtaken by the tide, and when escape be-
comes impossible they roll themselves up in a circular form,
as 1s common with others of the tribe, and abandon them-
selves to their fate. The hairs on their bodies seem to have
a repelling power, and prevent the water from wetting their
skins, so that they float on the surface, and are often carried
by the waves to distant places, where they are thrown on
shore and left in winrows with the wash of the sea. After
a little time, most of them recover from their half-drowned
condition, and begin their depredations anew. In this way,
these insects seem to have spread from the places where they
first appeared to others at a considerable distance.
From the marshes about Cambridge they were once, it is
said, driven in great numbers by a high tide and strong wind
upon Boston Neck, near to Roxbury line. Thence they seem
to have migrated to the eastern side of the Neck, and, follow-
ing the marshes to South Boston and Dorchester, they have
spread in the course of time to those which border upon
Neponset River and Quincy. How far they have extended
north of Boston I have not been able to ascertain; but I
believe that they are occasionally found on all the marshes
of Chelsea, Saugus, and Lynn. Although these insects do
not seem ever entirely to have disappeared from places where
they have once established themselves, they do not prevail
every year in the same overwhelming swarms; but their
numbers are increased or lessened at irregular periods from
causes which are not well understood.
These caterpillars are produced from eggs, which are laid
by the moths on the grass of the marshes about the middle
of June, and are hatched in seven or eight days afterwards ;
and the number of eggs deposited by a single female is, on an
average, about eight hundred. The moths themselves vary
45
Sab LEPIDOPTERA.
in color. In the males (Plate VI. Fig. 9), the thorax and
upper side of the fore wings are generally white, the latter
spotted with black ; the hind wings and abdomen, except the
tail, deep ochre-yellow, the former with a few black spots
near the hind margin, and the abdomen with a row of six
black spots on the top of the back, two rows on the sides,
and one on the belly; the under side of all the wings and the
thighs are deep yellow. It expands from one inch and seven
eighths to two inches and a quarter. The female (Plate VI.
Fig. 10) differs from the male either in having the hind wings
white, instead of ochre-yellow, or in having all the wings
ashen-gray with the usual black spots. It expands two in-
ches and three eighths or more. Sometimes, though rarely,
male moths occur with the fore wings ash-colored or dusky.
Professor Peck called this moth pseuderminea, that is, false
ermine, and this name was adopted by me in my communi-
cation to the Agricultural Society. Professor Peck’s name,
however, cannot be retained, inasmuch as the insect had been
previously named and described. Drury, the first describer
of the moth, called the male Caprotina, and the female Acrea,*
supposing them to be ditcerent species ; but the latter name
alone has been retained for this species by most naturalists.
In order to lessen the ravages of the salt-marsh caterpil-
lars, and to secure a fair crop of hay when these insects
abound, the marshes should be mowed early in July, at
which time the caterpillars are small and feeble, and, being
unable to wander far, will die before the crop is gathered in.
In defence of early mowing, it may be said that it is the only
way by which the grass may be saved in those meadows
where the caterpillars have multiplied to any exent ; and if
the practice is followed generaliy, and continued during sey-
eral years in succession, it will do much towards extermi-
nating these destructive insects.
By the practice of late mowing, where the caterpillars
abound, a great loss in the crop will be sustained, immense
* The proper orthography is Acrea.
DO
Oo
DHE ISBELL A TIGHR-MOTH. Z
numbers of caterpillars and grasshoppers will be left to grow |
to maturity and disperse upon the uplands, by which means
the evil will go on increasing from year to year; or they will
be brought in with the hay to perish in our barns and stacks,
where their dead bodies will prove offensive to the cattle, and
occasion a waste of fodder. To get rid of “the old fog” or
stubble, which becomes much thicker and longer in conse-
quence of early mowing, the marshes should be burnt over in
March. ‘ithe roots of the grass will not be injured by burn-
ing the stubble, on the contrary they will be fertilized by the
ashes ; while great numbers of young grasshoppers, cocoons
of caterpillars, and various kinds of destructive insects, with
their eges, concealed in the stubble, will be destroyed by the
{xe. In the Province of New Brunswick, the benefit arising
from burning the stubble has long been proved; and this
practice is getting into favor here.
During the autumn there may be seen in our gardens and
fields, and even by the way-side, a kind of caterpillar (Fig.
170) whose pecnliar appearance
Fig. 170.
must frequently have excited at-
tention. It is very thickly clothed
with hairs, which are stiff, short,
and perfectly even at the ends, like
the bristles of a brush, as if they
had all been shorn otf with the shears to the same length.
The hairs on the first four and last two rings are black; and
those on the six intermediate rmgs of the body are tan-red.
The head and body of the caterpillar are also black. When
one of these insects is taken up, it immediately rolls itself into
a ball, like a hedge-hog, and, owing to its form and to the elas-
ticity of the diverging hairs with which it is covered, it read-
ily shdes from the fingers and hand of its captor. It eats
the leaves of the clover, dandelion, narrow-leaved plantain,
and of various other herbaceous plants, and on the approach
of winter creeps under stones, rails, or boards on the ground,
where it remains in a half+torpid state till spring. In April
356 LEPIDOPTERA.
or May it makes an oval, blackish cocoon, composed chiefly
of the hairs of its body, and comes forth in the moth state
in June or July.
My specimens remained in the chrysalis form five weeks;
but Mr. Abbot* states that a caterpillar of this kind, which
made its cocoon in Georgia on the 24th of June, was trans-
formed to a moth on the oth of July, having remained only
eleven days in the chrysalis state. ‘The moth is the Arctia
Isabelia, or Isabella tiger-moth, and it differs essentially from
those which have been described in the antennze, which are
not feathered, but are merely covered on the under side with
a few fine and short hairs, and even these are found only in
the males. Its color is a dull grayish tawny-yellow ; there
are a few black dots on the wings, and the hinder pair are
frequently tinged with orange-red ; on the top of the back is
a row of about six black dots, and on each side of the body
a similar row of dots. ‘The wings expand from two inches
to two inches and three eighths. The specific name, which
was first given to this moth by Sir James Edward Smith, is
expressive of its peculiar shade of yellow.
We have a much smaller tiger-moth, with naked antenne
like those of the Jsabella. Its wings are so thinly covered
with scales as to be almost transpar-
ent. It has not yet been described,
and it may be called the ruddle tiger-
moth, Arctia rubricosa (Fig. 171).
Its fore wings are reddish-brown,
with a small black spot near the
middle of each ; its hind wings are dusky, becoming blacker
behind Gmore rarely red, with a broad blackish border be-
hind), with two black dots near the middle, the inner margin
next to the body, and the fringe, of a red color; the thorax
is reddish-brown ; and the abdomen is cinnabar-red, with a
row of black dots on the top, and another row on each side.
It expands about one inch and one quarter. This moth is
Fig. 171.
* Insects of Georgia, p. 131, pl. 66.
THE FALL WEB-WORM. 357
rare ; and it appears here in July and August. It closely
resembles the ruby tiger-moth, Arctia fuliginosa, of Europe,
the wings of which are not so transparent, and have two
black dots on each of them, with a distinct row of larger
black spots around the outer margin of the hind pair. The
caterpillar of our moth is unknown to me; it will probably
be found to resemble that of the ruby tiger, which is black-
ish, and thickly covered with reddish-brown or reddish-gray
hairs. It eats the leaves of plantain, dock, and of various
other herbaceous plants, grows to the length of one inch and
three eighths, passes the winter concealed beneath stones, or
in the crevices of walls, and makes its cocoon in the spring.
The caterpillars of all the foregommg Arctians live almost
entirely upon herbaceous plants; those which follow (with
one exception only) devour the leaves of trees. Of the latter,
the most common and destructive are the little caterpillars
known by the name of fall web-worms, whose large webs,
sometimes extending over entire branches with their leaves,
may be seen on our native elms, and also on apple and other
fruit trees, in the latter part of summer. The eggs, from
which these caterpillars proceed, are laid by the parent moth
in a cluster upon a leaf near the extremity of a branch; they
are hatched from the last of June till the middle of August,
some broods being early and others late, and the young cat-
erpillars immediately begin to provide a shelter for them-
selves by covering the upper side of the leaf with a web,
which is the result of the united labors of the whole brood.
They feed in company beneath this web, devouring only the
upper skin and pulpy portion of the leaf, leaving the veins
and lower skin of the leaf untouched. As they increase in
size they enlarge their web, carrying it over the next lower
leaves, all the upper and pulpy parts of which are eaten in
the same way, and thus they continue to work downwards,
till finally the web covers a large portion of the branch with
its dry, brown, and filmy foliage, reduced to this unseemly
condition by these little spoilers. These caterpillars (Plate
358 LEPIDOPTERA.
VII. Fig. 12, young caterpillar), when fully grown, measure
rather more than one inch in length; their bodies are more
slender than those of the other Arctians, and are very thinly
clothed with hairs of a grayish color, intermingled with a few
which are black. The general color of the body is greenish
yellow dotted with black; there is a broad blackish stripe
along the top of the back, and a bright yellow stripe on each
side. The warts, from which the thin bundles of spreading,
silky hairs proceed, are black on the back, and rust-yellow or
orange on the sides. ‘The head and feet are black.
I have not observed the exact length of time required by
these insects to come to maturity ; but towards the end of
August and during the month of September they leave the
trees, disperse, and wander about, eating such plants as hap-
pen to lie in their course, till they have found suitable places
of shelter and concealment, where they make their thin and
almost transparent cocoons (Plate VU. Fig. 10; Fig. 11, pu-
pa), composed of a sheht web of silk intermingled with a few
hairs. They remain in the cocoons in the chrysalis state
through the winter, and are transformed to moths in the
months of June and July. ‘These moths are white and
without spots; the fore thighs are tawny yellow, and the
feet blackish. Their wings expand from one inch and a
quarter to one inch and three eighths. Their antennz and
feelers do not differ essentially from those of the majority of
the Arctians, the former in the males being doubly feathered
beneath, and those of the females having two rows of minute
teeth on the under side. This species was first described by
me in the seventh volume of the New England Farmer,
page 35, where I gave it the name of Arctia textor, the weav-
er, from the well-known habits of its caterpillar. Should it
be found expedient to remove it from the genus Arctza, I
propose to call the genus which shall include it Hyphantria,
a Greek name for weaver, and place in the same genus the
many-spotted ermine-moth, Arctia punctatissima™ of Sir J.
[29 Arctia punctatissima is Spilosoma cunea Drury. — Morris. |
THE MILK-WEED CATERPILLAR. 359
E. Smith, which is found in the Southern States, and agrees
with our weaver in habits. From the foregoing account of
the habits and transformations of the fall web-worm, or
Hyphantria textor,” it is evident that the only time in which
we can attempt to exterminate these destructive insects with
any prospect of success is when they are young and just be-
ginning to make their webs on the trees. So soon, then, as
the webs begin to appear on the extremities of the branches,
they should be stripped off, with the few leaves which they
cover, and the caterpillars contained therein, at one grasp,
and should be crushed under foot.
There are many kinds of hairy caterpillars in Massachu-
setts, differing remarkably from those of the other Arctians,
and resembling in some respects
those belonging to the next tribe,
with which they appear to con-
nect the true Arctians. ‘The first =
of these are little party-colored
tufted caterpillars (Fig. 172),
which may be found in great plenty on the common milk-
weed, Asclepias Syriaca, during the latter part of July and
the whole of August. Although the plants on which these
Fig. 172.
isects live are generally looked upon as weeds and cumber-
ers of the soil, yet the insects themselves are deserving of
notice, on account of their singularity, and the place that
they fill m the order to which they belong. They keep to-
gether in companies, side by side, beneath the leaves, their
heads all turned towards the edge of the leaf while they are ©
eating, and when at rest they arch up the fore part of the
body and bend down the head, which is then completely con-
cealed by long overhanging tufts of hairs, and if disturbed
they jerk their heads and bodies in a very odd way. These
harlequin caterpillars have sixteen legs, which, with the head,
are black. Their bodies are black also, with a whitish line
on each side, and are thickly covered with short tufts of hairs
[2° Hyphantria textor is Spilosoma textor. — Morrts.]
360 LEPIDOPTERA.
proceeding from little warts. Along the top of the back is a
row of short black tufts, and on each side, from the fifth to
the tenth ring inclusive, are alternate tufts of orange and of
yellow hairs, curving upwards so as nearly to conceal the
black tufts between them; below these, along the sides of the
body, is a row of horizontal black tufts; on the first and
second rings are four long pencil-like black tufts extending
over the head, on each side of the third ring is a similar black
pencil, and two, which are white, placed in the same manner
on the sides of the fourth and of the tenth rings. About the
last of August,’ and during the month of September, these
caterpillars leave the milk-weed, disperse, conceal themselves,
and make their cocoons (Fig. 173), which mostly consist of
hairs. The chrysalis (Fig. 174)
is short, almost egg-shaped, being
quite blunt and rounded at the
hind end, and is covered with lit-
tle punctures like those on the head of a thimble, only much
smaller. The chrysalids are transformed to moths between
the middle of June and the beginning of July. These moths,
though not so slender as the Callimorphas, are not so thick
and robust as the Arctias, their antennze resemble those of
the latter, but are rather longer, the feelers are also longer,
and spread apart from each other, and the tongue is but little
longer than the head, when unrolled. The wings are rather
long, thin, and delicate, of a bluish-gray color, paler on the
front edge, and without spots; the head, thorax, under side
of the body, and the legs are also gray ; the neck is cream-
colored ; the top of the abdomen bright Indian-yellow, with
a row of black spots, and two rows on each side. It expands
Fig. 174.
from one inch and three quarters to nearly two inches. This
moth was figured and described many years ago by Drury,
who named it Hgle. Though marked and colored like some
of the Arctias (for example, the luctifera of Europe), it
cannot with propriety be included in the same genus, and
therefore I have proposed to call it Huchetes Kgle; the first
THE HICKORY TUSSOCK-MOTH. 361
name, signifying fine-haired, or having a flowing mane, is
given to it on account of the long tuft of hairs overhanging
the fore part of the caterpillar like a mane. ‘This moth, in
some of its characters, approaches to the Lithosians, but
seems, in others, too near to the Arctians to be removed
from the latter tribe, and it is evidently, in the caterpillar
state, nearly allied to the following insects, which are un-
doubtedly Arctians, but lead apparently to the Liparians.
If our Arctians are grouped in a circle, with the larger kinds,
such as the great American tiger and leopard moths in the
middle, and the others arranged around them, then will these
species, which are here described last, be brought round to
the Callimorphas, with which the series began, and thus a
natural order of succession will be preserved.
During the months of August and September there may be
seen on the hickory, and frequently also on the elm and ash,
troops of caterpillars (Plate VI. Fig. 1), covered with short
spreading tufts of white hairs, with a row of eight black tufts
on the back, and two long, slender, black pencils on the
fourth and on the tenth rng. The tufts along the top of the
back converge on each side, so as to form a kind of ridge or
crest ; and the warts, from which these tufts proceed, are
oblong-oval and transverse, while the other warts on the
body are round. ‘The hairs on the fore part of the body are
much longer than the rest, and hang over the head; the
others are short, as if sheared off, and spreading. The head,
feet, and belly are black; the upper side of the body is white,
sprinkled with black dots, and with black transverse lines
between the rmgs. These neat and pretty caterpillars, when
young, feed in company on the leaves ; while not engaged in
eating, they bend down the head and bring over it the long
hairs on the fore part of the body ; and, if disturbed or han-
dled, they readily roll up like the other Arctiang. When
fully grown, they are nearly one inch and a half long. They
leave the trees in the latter part of September, secrete them-
selves under stones and in the chinks of .walls, and make
AG
362 LEPIDOPTERA.
their cocoons (Plate VI. Fig. 2), which are oval, thin, and
hairy, like those of the other Arctians. The chrysalis is
short, thick, and rather blunt, but not rounded at the hinder
end, and not downy. The moths, which come out of the
cocoons during the month of June, are of a very light ochre-
yellow color; the fore wings are long, rather narrow, and
almost pointed, are thickly and finely sprinkled with little
brown dots, and have two oblique brownish streaks passing
backwards from the front edge, with three rows of white
semi-transparent spots parallel to the outer hind margin ; the
hind wings are very thin, semi-transparent, and without spots ;
and the shoulder-covers are edged within with light brown.
They expand from one inch and seven eighths to two inches
and a quarter or more. The wings are roofed when at
rest; the antennz are long, with a double, narrow, feathery
edging, in the males, and a double row of short, slender teeth
on the under side, in the females; the feelers are longer
than in the other Arctians, and not at all hairy; and the
tongue is short, but spirally curled. This kind of moth does
not appear to have been described before, and it cannot be
placed in any of the modern genera belonging to the Arcti-
ans ; for this reason I pro-
pose to call it Lophocam-
ga Carye (Fig. 175); the
first name meaning crested
caterpillar, and the second
being the scientific name
of the hickory, on which
it lives. In England, the moths that come from caterpillars
having long pencils and tufts on their backs are called tus-
sock-moths ; we may name the one under consideration the
hickory tussock-moth.
In August and September I have seen on the black wal-
nut, the butternut, the ash, and even on the oak, caterpillars
exactly resembling the foregoing in shape, but differing in
[21 Lophocampa is Halesidota Walker. — Morrts.]
\
THE CHEGKERED TUSSOCK-MOTH. 363
color, being covered, when young, with brownish-yellow
tufts, of a darker color on the ridge of the back, and having
four long white and two black pencils extending over the
head from the second ring, and two black pencils on the
eleventh ring; when they are fully grown they are covered
with ash-colored tufts, those on the ridge blackish ; the head
is black, the body black or greenish black above, and whit-
ish beneath, and the legs are rust-yellow. This is evidently
a different species or kind from the hickory tussock, being
differently colored, and having the two hindmost pencils
placed on the eleventh, and not on the tenth ring. I have
not yet succeeded in keeping these caterpillars alive until
they had finished their transformations.
In my collection are specimens of a moth closely resem-
bling the hickory tussock in everything except size and color.
It may be named Lophocampa maculata, the spotted tussock-
moth. It is of a light ochre-yellow color, with large irreou-
lar light brown spots on the fore wings, arranged almost
in transverse bands. It expands nearly one inch and three
quarters. The caterpillar, as far as [ can judge from a
shrivelled specimen, was covered with whitish tufts forming
a crest on the back, in which were situated eight black tufts ;
there was a black pencil on each side of the fourth and of
the tenth ring, and a quantity of long white hairs overhang-
ing the head and the hinder extremity ; the head was black ;
but the color of the body cannot be ascertained.
A fourth kind of Lophocampa, or crested caterpillar, re-
mains to be described. It is very common, throughout
the United States, on the buttonwood or sycamore, upon
which it may be seen in great numbers in July and August.
The tufts on these caterpillars are light yellow or straw-
colored, the crest being very little darker; on the second
and third rings are two orange-colored pencils, which are
stretched over the head when the insect is at rest, and
before these are several long tufts of white hairs ; on each
side of the third ring is a white pencil, and there are two
364 LEPIDOPTERA.
pencils, of the same color, directed backwards, on the eley-
enth ring. The body is yellowish white, with dusky warts,
and the head is brownish yellow. ‘These caterpillars leave
the trees towards the end of August, and conceal themselves
In crevices of fences, and under stones, and make their
cocoons, which resemble those of the hickory tussock ; and
from the middle of June to the end of July the moths come
forth. These moths are faintly tinged with ochre-yellow ;
their long, narrow, delicate, and semi-transparent wings lie
almost flatly on the top of the back; the upper pair are
checkered with dusky spots, arranged so as to form five
irregular transverse bands; the hind edge of the collar, and
the inner edges of the shoulder-covers, are greenish blue, and
between the latter are two short and narrow deep yellow
stripes ; the upper side of the abdomen and of the legs are
deep ochre-yellow. ‘The wings expand about two inches.
The name of this beautiful and delicate moth is Lophocampa
tessellaris, the checkered tussock-moth. It is figured and
described in Smith and Abbot’s ‘“ Insects of Georgia,’”’ where,
however, the caterpillar is not correctly represented. Mr.
Abbot’s figure of the caterpillar has been copied in the illus-
trations accompanying Cuvier’s last edition of the “* Régne
Animal,” and is there referred to Latreille’s genus Sericaria.
This includes, besides various other insects having no re-
semblance to the foregoing, the true tussock caterpillars be-
longing to the next group; but from these the caterpillars
of all the kinds of Lophocampa differ essentially, in being
much more hairy, in not having the warts on the sides of
the first ring longer than the rest, and in being destitute
of the little retractile vesicles on the top of the ninth and
tenth rings ; moreover, their chrysalids are not covered with
short hairs in clusters or ridges. On the other hand, they
agree with the Arctians in being covered with warts and
spreading bunches of hairs, in rolling’ up like a ball when
handled, and in the form and structure of their cocoons.
The position of the wings of the checkered tussock-moth,
THE DIPARIANS. 365
when at rest, is almost exactly like that of some of the
Lithosians ; but the other kinds of Lophocampa do not
cross the inner edges of the wings; and the bodies of all
of them are much thicker and more robust than those of
the Lithosians.
The third group or family of Bombyces may be called
Liparians (Liparip“*). Of the moths bearing this name,
the females have remarkably thick bodies, and are sometimes
destitute of wings, while the males are generally slender, and
have rather broad wings. ‘Their feelers are very hairy, and
for the most part are rather longer than those of the Arctians.
Their tongues are very short, and invisible or concealed.
Their antennz are short, and bent like a bow, and doubly
feathered on the under side, the feathering of those of the
males being very wide, and of the females mostly narrow.
When at rest, these moths stretch out their hairy fore legs
before their bodies, and keep their upper and lower wings
together over their backs, sloping a very little at the sides,
and covering the abdomen like a low or flattened roof. The
females, even of those kinds that are provided with wings,
are very sluggish and heavy in their motions, and seldom
go far from their cocoons; the males frequently fly by day
in search of their mates. The caterpillars of most of the
Liparians are half naked, their thin hairs growing chiefly
on the sides of their bodies; the warts which furnish them
being only six or eight in number on each ring; and they
have two little soft and reddish warts (one on the top of the
ninth, and the other on the tenth ring), which can be drawn
in and out at pleasure. Some of them have four or five
short and thick tufts, cut off square at the ends, on the top
of the back, two long and slender pencils of hairs extending
forwards, like antenne, from the first rmg, sometimes two
* From Liparis, more properly Liparus, the name of a genus of moths belong-
ing to this group. This name means fat or gross, and was probably assigned to
the genus on account of the thickness of the bodies of some of these moths.
+ The Arctians have ten or more warts on each ring,
366 LEPIDOPTERA.
more pencils on the fifth ring, and a single pencil on the
top of the eleventh ring. The warts which produce these
pencils are more prominent or longer than the rest. These
caterpillars are called tussocks in England, from the tufts
on their backs. ‘They live upon trees and shrubs, and,
when at rest, they bend down the head, and bring over it
the long plume-like pencils of the first rmg. Their cocoons
are large, thin, and flattened, and consist of a soft kind of
silk, intermixed with which are a few hairs. ‘The chrysalids
are covered with down or short hairs, and end at the tail
with a long projecting point. In Europe there are many
kinds of Liparians, some of them at times exceedingly injuri-
ous to vegetation, their caterpillars devouring the leaves of
fruit-trees, and not unfrequently extending their devastations
to the hedges, and even to the corn and grass.* There do
not appear to be many kinds in the United States, and they
never swarm to the same extent as in Europe.
During the months of July and August, there may be
found on apple-trees and rose-bushes, and sometimes on
other trees and shrubs, little slender caterpillars (Plate VII.
Fig. 1), of a bright yellow color, sparingly clothed with
long and fine yellow hairs on the sides of the body, and
having four short and thick brush-like yellowish tufts on the
back, that is on the fourth and three following rings, two
long black plumes or pencils extending forwards from the
first ring, and a single plume on the top of the eleventh ring.
The head, and the two little retractile warts on the ninth
and tenth rings, are coral-red; there is a narrow black or
brownish stripe along the top of the back, and a wider
dusky stripe on each side of the body. These pretty cater-
pillars do not ordinarily herd together, but sometimes our
* These destructive kinds are the caterpillars of the brown-tailed moth (Por-
thesia auriflua), of the golden-tailed moth (Porthesia chrysorrhea), of the gypsy-
moth (Hypogymna dispar), and of the black arches-moth (Psilura monacha). The
first of these abounded to such an extent in England, in the year 1782, that
prayers were ordered to be read in all the churches, to avert the destruction
which was anticipated from them.
THE WHITE-MARKED ORGYIA. 367
apple-trees are much infested by them, as was the case in
the summer of 1828. In the summers of 1848, 1849, and
1850, they were very numerous on trees in Boston, both in
private yards and on the common, where the horse-chestnuts,
which seem ordinarily to escape the attacks of insects, were
almost entirely stripped of their leaves by these isects.
When they have done eating, they spin their cocoons on the
leaves, or on the branches or trunks of the trees, or on fences
in the vicinity. The chrysalis is not only beset with little
hairs or down, but has three oval clusters of branny scales
on the back. In about eleven days after the change to the
chrysalis is effected, the last transformation follows, and the
insects come forth in the adult state, the females wingless,
and the males with large ashen-gray wings, crossed by wavy
darker bands on the upper pair, on which, moreover, is a
small black spot near the tip, and a minute white crescent
near the outer hind angle. The body of the male is small
and slender, with a row of little tufts along the back, and
the wings expand one inch and three eighths. The females
(Plate VII. Figs. 2 and 8) are of a lighter gray color than
the males, their bodies are very thick, and of an oblong oval
shape, and, though seemingly wingless, upon close examina-
tion tivo little scales, or stinted winglets, can be discovered
on each shoulder. These females lay their eggs upon the
top of their cocoons (Plate VII. Fig. 5), and cover them
with a large quantity of frothy matter, which on drying
becomes white and brittle. Different broods of these insects
appear at various times in the course of the summer, but
the greater number come to maturity and lay their eggs in
the latter part of August and the beginning of September,
and these egos are not hatched till the following summer.
The name of this moth is Orgyia* leucostigma (Plate VII.
* This name is derived from a word which signifies to stretch out the hands,
and it is applied to this kind of moth on account of its resting with the fore legs
extended. The Germans call these moths streckfiissige Spinner ; the French, pattes
étendues; and the English, vaporer-moths; the latter probably because the males
are seen flying about ostentatiously, or vaporing, by day, when most other moths
keep concealed.
368 LEPIDOPTERA.
Fig. 4, male), the white-marked Orgyia or tussock-moth.
It is to the eggs of this insect that the late Mr. B. H. Ives,
of Salem, alludes, in an article on ‘insects which infest
trees and plants,” published in Hovey’s “ Gardener’s Maga-
zine.” * Mr. Ives states, that, on passing through an apple
orchard in February, he “perceived nearly all the trees
speckled with occasional dead leaves, adhering so firmly to
the branches as to require considerable force to dislodge
them. Each leaf covered a small patch of from one to two
hundred eggs, united together, as well as to the leaf, by a
gummy and silken fibre, peculiar to the moth.” In March,
he ‘* visited the same orchard, and, as an experiment, cleared
three trees, from which he took twenty-one bunches of eggs.
The remainder of the trees he left untouched until the 10th
of May, when he found the caterpillars were hatched from
the egg, and had commenced their slow but sure ravages.
He watched them from time to time, until many branches
had been spoiled of their leaves, and in the autumn were
entirely destitute of fruit, while the three trees which had
been stripped of the eggs were flush with foliage, each limb,
without exception, ripening its fruit.” These pertinent re-
marks point out the nature and extent of the evil, and sug-
gest the proper remedy to be used against the ravages of
these insects. ro
In the New England States there is found a tussock or
vaporer moth, seemingly the same as the Orgyia antigua, the
antique or rusty vaporer-moth of Europe, from whence possi-
bly its eggs may have been brought with imported fruit-trees.
The male moth is of a rust-brown color, the fore wings are
crossed by two deeper brown wavy streaks, and have a white
crescent near the hind angle. They expand about one inch
and one eighth. The female is gray, and wingless, or with
only two minute scales on each side in the place of wings,
and exactly resembles in shape the female of the foregoing
species. The caterpillar is yellow on the back, on which
* Vol. I. p. 62.
THE LASIOCAMPIANS. 369
are four short square brush-like yellow tufts; the sides are
dusky and spotted with red ; there are two long black pencils
or plumes on the first ring, one on each side of the fifth ring,
and one on the top of the eleventh ring; the head is black;
and the retractile warts on the top of the ninth and tenth
rings are red. These caterpillars live on various trees and
shrubs, and are stated by Miss Dix, in Professor Silliman’s
‘*¢ Journal of Science,” * to have been ‘“ very destructive to
the thorn hedges in Rhode Island,” ‘ appearing very early
im summer, and not disappearing till late in November.”
The cocoons resemble those of the white-marked vaporer
( Orgyia leucostigma), and the females, after they have come
forth, never leave the outside of their cocoons, but lay their
egos upon them and die there.
The next group may be called Lasiocampians (LAstocam-
PAD#), after the principal genus} included in it, the name
of which signifies hairy caterpillar. The Lasiocampians are
woolly and very thick-bodied moths, distinguished by the
want of the bristles and hooks that hold together the fore
and hind wings of other moths, by the wide and turned-up
fore edge of the hind wings, which projects beyond that of
the fore wings when at rest, and by their caterpillars, which
(with few exceptions) are not warty on the back, and are
sparingly clothed with short, soft hairs, mostly placed along
the sides of the body, and seldom distinctly arranged in
spreading clusters or tufts. These moths fly only by night,
and both sexes are winged. Their antennz generally bend
downwards near the middle, and upwards at the points, are
longer than those of the Liparians, but not so widely feath-
ered in the males, and very narrowly feathered beneath in
the females. The feelers of some are rather longer than
common, and are thrust forward like a beak; but more
* Vol. XIX. p. 62.
t To Lasiocampa belong the European moths called Rubi, Trifolii, Quercus,
Roboris, Dumeti, &. I have not seen any insects like these in Massachusetts,
and believe that such are seldom if ever to be found in the United States.
47
510 LEPIDOPTERA.
often they are very short and small. The tongue, for the
most part, is invisible. Their wings cover the back like a
steep roof; the under pair, being wider than common, are
not entirely covered by the upper wings, but project beyond
them at the sides of the body when closed. Their cater-
pillars live on trees and shrubs, and some kinds herd together
in considerable numbers or swarms ; they make their cocoons
mostly or entirely of silk. The winged insect is assisted
in its attempts to come forth, after its last change, by a
reddish-colored liquid, which softens the end of its cocoon,
and which, as some say, is discharged. from its own mouth,
or, as others with greater probability assert, escapes from
the inside of the chrysalis the moment that the included
moth bursts the shell.
To this group belong the caterpillars that swarm in the
unpruned nurseries and neglected orchards of the slovenly
and improvident husbandman, and hang their many-coated
webs upon the wild cherry-trees that are suffered to spring
up unchecked by the wayside and encroach upon the borders
of our pastures and fields. The eggs, from which they are
hatched, are placed around the ends of the branches, forming .
a wide kind of ring or bracelet, consisting of three or four
hundred eggs, in the form of short cylinders standing on
their ends close together, and covered with a thick coat of
brownish water-proof varnish (Plate VII. Fig. 16).* The
caterpillars come forth with the unfolding of the leaves of
the apple and cherry tree, during the latter part of April
or the beginning of May. The first signs of their activity
appear in the formation of a little angular web or tent, some-
what resembling a spider’s web, stretched between the forks
of the branches a little below the cluster of eges. Under the
shelter of these tents, in making which they all work togeth-
er, the caterpillars remain concealed at all times when not
engaged in eating. In crawling from twig to twig and from
* A good figure of a cluster of these eggs may be seen in the Boston Cultiva-
tor, Vol. X. No. 10, for March 4, 1848.
THE AMERICAN LACKEY-CATERPILLAR. ee fl
leaf to leaf, they spm from their mouths a slender silken
thread, which is a clew to conduct them back to their tents ;
and as they go forth and return in files, one after another,
their pathways in time become well carpeted with silk, which
serves to render their footing secure during their frequent
and periodical journeys, in various directions, to and from
their common habitation. As they increase in age and size,
they enlarge their tent, surrounding it, from time to time,
with new layers or webs, till at length it acquires a diam-
eter of eight or ten inches. They come out together at
certain stated hours to eat, and all retire at once when their
regular meals are finished; during bad weather, however,
they fast, and do not venture from their shelter. These
caterpillars (Plate VII. Fig. 13) are of a kind called lackeys
in England, and hvrées in France, from the party-colored
livery in which they appear. When fully grown, they
measure about two inches in length. Their heads are black ;
extending along the top of the back, from one end to the
other, is a whitish line, on each side of which, on a yellow
ground, are numerous short and fine crinkled black lines,
that, lower down, become mingled together, and form a
broad longitudinal black stripe, or rather a row of long black
spots, one on each ring, in the middle of each of which is a
small blue spot; below this is a narrow wavy yellow line,
and lower still the sides are variegated with fine mtermingled
black and yellow lines, which are lost at last in the general
dusky color of the under side of the body; on the top of
the eleventh ring is a small blackish and hairy wart, and
the whole body is very sparingly clothed with short and
soft hairs, rather thicker and longer upon the sides than
elsewhere. ‘The foregoing description will serve to show
that these insects are not the same as either the Neustria *
* Neustria was the ancient name of Normandy, from whence this European
species was first introduced into England. The Neustria caterpillar has a bluish
head, on which, as also on the first ring, are two black dots; the back is tawny-
red, with a central white and two black lines from one end to the other; the sides
372 LEPIDOPTERA.
r the camp * lackey-caterpillars of Europe, for which they
have been mistaken. From the first to the middle of June
they begin to leave the trees upon which they have hitherto
lived in company, separate from each other, wander about
awhile, and finally get into some crevice or other place of
shelter, and make their cocoons (Plate VII. Fig. 15).
These are of a regular long oval form, composed of a thin
and very loosely woven web of silk, the meshes of which
are filled with a thin paste, that on drying is changed to a
yellow powder, like flour of sulphur in appearance. Some
of the caterpillars, either from weakness or some other
cause, do not leave their nests with the rest of the swarm,
but make their cocoons there, and when the webs are opened
these cocoons may be seen intermixed with a mass of
blackish grains, like gunpowder, excreted by the caterpillars
during their stay. From fourteen to seventeen days after
the insect has made its cocoon and changed to a chrysalis,
it bursts its chrysalis-skin, forces its way through the wet
and softened end of its cocoon, and appears in the winged
or miller form. Many of them, however, are unable to fin-
ish their transformations by reason of weakness, especially
those remaining in the webs. Most of these will be found
to have been preyed upon by little maggots living upon the
fat within their bodies, and finally changing to small four-
winged ichneumon wasps, which in due time pierce a hole
in the cocoons of their victims, and escape into the air.
The moth (Plate VII. Fig. 14 male, Fig. 17 female)
of our American lackey-caterpillar is of a rusty or reddish-
brown color, more or less mingled with gray on the middle
and base of the fore wings, which, besides, are crossed by
are blue, with a narrow red stripe; on the top of the eleventh ring is a little
blackish wart; and the belly is dusky.
* The castrensis, or camp-caterpillar, has a narrow broken white line on the
top of the back, separating two broad red stripes, which are dotted with black;
the sides are blue, with two or three narrow red stripes; the head and first ring
are not marked with black dots; there is no wart on the top of the eleventh ring;
and the belly is white, marbled with black.
THE AMERICAN LACKEY-CATERPILLAR. 3193
two oblique, straight, dirty white lines. It expands from
one inch and a quarter to one inch and a half, or a little
more. This moth* closely resembles the castrensis, and
still more the Neustria of Europe, from both of which,
however, it is easily distinguished by the oblique lines on
the fore wings, which are not wavy as in the foreign spe-
cies. Moreover, the caterpillar is very different from both
of the European lackeys ; and it does not seem probable that
either of them, if introduced into this country, could have
so wholly lost their original characters. Our insect belongs
to the same genus, or kind, now called Clistocampa, or
tent-caterpillar, from its habits; and I propose to distin-
guish it furthermore from its near allies by the name of
Americana, the American tent-caterpillar or lackey. The
moths appear in great numbers in July, flying about and
often entering houses by night. At this time they lay their
egos, selecting the wild cherry, in preference to all other
trees, for this purpose, and, next to these, apple-trees, the
extensive introduction and great increase of which, in this
country, afford an abundant and tempting supply of food
to the caterpillars, in the place of the native cherry-trees
that formerly, it would seem, sufficed for their nourishment.
These insects, because they are the most common and most
abundant in all parts of our country, and have obtained
such notoriety that in common language they are almost
exclusively known among us by the name of the caterpil-
lars, are the worst enemies of the orchard. Where proper
attention has not been paid to the destruction of them, they
prevail to such an extent as almost entirely to strip the
apple and cherry trees of their foliage, by their attacks
* A short but very accurate account of this insect may be found in the late
Professor Peck’s ‘Natural History of the Canker-Worm,’ printed at Boston,
among the papers of the Massachusetts Society for promoting Agriculture, in
the year 1796. Professor Peck seems to have been aware that it was not identical
with the Neustria, but he forbore to give it another scientific name. It is figured,
in its different forms, in Mr. Abbot’s “‘ Natural History of the Insects of G eorgia,”
where it is named castrensis by Sir J. E. Smith, the editor of the work.
314 LEPIDOPTERA.
continued during the seven weeks of their life in the cater-
pillar form. The trees, in those orchards and gardens where
they have been suffered to breed for a succession of years,
become prematurely old, in consequence of the efforts they
are obliged to make to repair, at an unseasonable time, the
loss of their foliage, and are rendered unfruitful, and con-
sequently unprofitable. But this is not all; these pernicious
insects spread in every direction, from the trees of the care-
less and indolent to those of their more careful and indus-
trious neighbors, whose labors are thereby greatly increased,
and have to be followed up year after year, without any
prospect of permanent relief.
Many methods and receipts for the destruction of these
insects have been published and recommended, but have
failed to exterminate them, and indeed have done but little
to lessen their numbers, as, indeed, might be expected from
the tenor of the foregoing remarks. In order to be com-
pletely successful, they must be universally adopted. ‘These
means comprehend both the destruction of the eggs and of
the caterpillars. The eggs are to be sought for in the win-
ter and the early part of spring, when there are no leaves
on the trees. They are easily discovered at this time, and
may be removed with the thumb-nail and forefinger. Nur-
series and the lower limbs of large trees may thus be entirely
cleared of the clusters of eggs during a few visits made at
the proper season. It is well known that the caterpillars
come out to feed twice during the daytime,-namely, in the
forenoon and afternoon, and that they rarely leave their nests
before nine in the morning, and return to them again at
noon. During the early part of the season, while the nests
are small, and the caterpillars young and tender, and at
those hours when the insects are gathered together within
their common habitation, they may be effectually destroyed
by crushing them by hand in the nests. A brush, somewhat
like a bottle-brush, fixed to a long handle, as recommended
by the late Colonel Pickering, or, for the want thereof, a
Rie TEN EJCATERPILLAR. 8375
dried mullein head and its stalk fastened to a pole, will be
useful to remove the nests, with the caterpillers contained
therein, from those branches which are too high to be reached
by hand. Instead of the brush, we may use, with nearly
equal success, a small mop or sponge, dipped as often as
necessary into a pailful of refuse soapsuds, strong whitewash,
or cheap oil. The mop should be thrust into the nest and
turned round a little, so as to wet the caterpillars with the
liquid, which will kill every one that it touches. These
means, to be effectual, should be employed during the proper
hours, that is, early in the morning, at midday, or at night,
and as soon in the spring as the caterpillars begin to make
their nests; and they should be repeated as often, at least,
as once a weck, till the imsects leave the trees. Early
attention and perseverance in the use of these remedies will,
in time, save the farmer hundreds of dollars, and abundance
of mortification and disappointment, besides rewarding him
with the grateful sight of the verdant foliage, snowy blos-
soms, and rich fruits of his orchard in their proper seasons.
Another caterpillar, whose habits are similar to those of
the preceding, is now and then met with in Massachusetts,
upon oak and walnut trees, and more rarely still upon apple-
trees and cherry-trees. According to Mr. Abbot, “it is
sometimes so plentiful in Virginia as to strip the oak-trees
bare”; and I may add, that it occasionally proves very in-
jurious to orchards in Maine. It may be called Clisiocampa
silvatica, the tent-caterpillar of the forest (Plate VII. Fig.
19). With us it comes to its full size from the 10th to
the 20th of June, and then measures about two inches in
length. There are a few short yellow hairs scattered over
its body, particularly on the sides, where they are thickest.
The general color of the whole body is light blue, clear on
the back, and greenish at the sides; the head is blue, and
without spots; there are two yellow spots, and four black
dots on the top of the first ring ; along the top of the back
is a row of eleven oval white spots, beginning on the second
376 LEPIDOPTERA.
ring, and two small elevated black and hairy dots on each
ring, except the eleventh, which has only one of larger size;
on each side of the back is a reddish stripe bordered by
slender black lines; and lower down on each side is another
stripe of a yellow color between two black lines; the under
side of the body is blue-black. This kind of. caterpillar lives
in communities of three or four hundred individuals, under
a common web or tent, which is made against the trunk or
beneath some of the principal branches of the trees. When
fully grown they leave the trees, get into places sheltered
from rain, and make their cocoons, which exactly resemble
those of the apple-tree tent-caterpillars in form, size, and
materials. The moths (Plate VII. Fig. 18) appear in six-
teen or twenty days afterwards. ‘They are of a brownish
yellow or nankin color ; the hind wings, except at base, are
light rusty-brown; and on the fore wings are two oblique
rust-brown and nearly straight parallel lines. A variety is
sometimes found with a broad red-brown band across the fore
wings, occupying the whole space which in other individ-
uals intervenes between the oblique lines. The wings ex-
pand from one inch and one quarter to one inch and three
quarters. The great difference in the caterpillar will not
permit us to refer this species to the Weustria of Europe, for
which Sir J. E. Smith* mistook it, or to the castrensis,
which it more closely resembles in its winged form.
Most caterpillars are round, that is, cylindrical, or nearly
so; but there are some belonging to this group that are very
broad, slightly convex above, and perfectly flat beneath.
They seem indeed to be much broader and more flattened
than they really are, by reason of the hairs on their sides,
which spread out so as nearly to conceal the feet, and form
a kind of fringe along each side of the body. These hairs
grow mostly from horizontal fleshy appendages or long warts,
somewhat like legs, hanging from the sides of every ring;
those on the first ring being much longer than the others,
* See Abbot’s ‘Insects of Georgia,” where it is figured.
Somrel del.
THE -AMERECAN. LSE PET-MOTH. ayer
which progressively decrease in size to the last. On the
fore part of the body one or two velvet-like and highly col-
ored bands may be seen when the caterpillar is in motion ;
and on the top of the eleventh ring there is generally a long
naked wart. When these singular caterpillars are not eat-
ing, they remain at rest, stretched out on the limbs of trees,
and they often so nearly resemble the bark in color as to
escape observation. From the lappets, or leg-like appen-
dages, hanging to their sides, they are called lappet-caterpil-
lars by English writers.
Twice I have found, on the apple-tree, in the month of
September, caterpillars of this kind, measuring, when fully
grown, two inches and a half in length, and above half an
inch in breadth. ‘The upper side was gray, variegated with
irregular white spots, and sprinkled all over with fine black
dots ; on the fore part of the body there were two transverse
velvet-like bands of a rich scarlet color, one on the hind part
of the second, and the other on the third ring, and on each
of these bands were three black dots; the under side of the
body was orange-colored, with a row of diamond-shaped
black spots; the hairs on the sides were gray, and many of
them were tipped with a white knob. The caterpillar eats
the leaves of the apple-tree, feeding only in the night, and
remaining perfectly quiet during the day. The moth pro-
duced from it was supposed by Sir J. E. Smith * to be the
same as the European Jlicifolia,
or holly-leaved lappet-moth, from
which, however, it differs in so
many respects that I shall ven-
ture to give it another name. It
belongs to the genus Crastropa-
cha, so called from the very
thick bodies of the moths ; and the present species may be
named Americana, the American lappet-moth (Fig. 176).
Fig. 176.
* See Abbot’s “Insects of Georgia,” p. 101, pl. 51.
[22 Gastropacha Americana is G. occidentalis Walker. — Mornts.]
48
378 LEPIDOPTERA.
Were it not for its regular shape, it might, when at rest,
very easily be mistaken for a dry, brown, and crumpled
leaf. The feelers are somewhat prominent, like a short
beak ; the edges of the under wings are very much notched,
as are the hinder and inner edges of the fore wings, and
these notches are white ; its general color is a red-brown ;
behind the middle of each of the wings is a pale band,
edged with zigzag dark brown lines, and there are also two
or three short irregular brown lines running backwards from
the front edge of the fore wings, besides a minute pale cres-
cent, edged with dark brown, near the middle of the same.
In the females the pale bands and dark lines are sometimes
wanting, the wings being almost entirely of a red-brown
color. It expands from one inch and a half to nearly two
inches. Mr. Abbot, who has figured it, states that the
caterpillar lives on the oak and the ash, that it spun itself
up in May among the leaves in a gray-brown cocoon, in
which the chrysalis was enveloped with a pale brown pow-
der, and that the moth came out in February. My speci-
mens, on the contrary, as above stated, were found on
apple-trees, made their cocoons in thé autumn, and ap-
peared in the winged form in the early part of the following
summer.
The foregoing is the only American lappet-moth, with
notched wings, which
Fig. 177.
is known to me; but
we have another much
larger one, with en-
tire wings. It is the
Velleda (Fig. 177) of
Stoll, so named after
, a celebrated German
female, commemorated by the ancient historian Tacitus.
This moth has a very large, thick, and woolly body, and
is of a white color, variegated or clouded with blue-gray.
On the fore wings are two broad dark gray bands, inter-
ee Pe ee
» Oe ns
THE VELEEDM DAPPET-MOTH. 319
vening between three narrow wavy white bands, the latter
bemg marked by an irregular gray line; the veins are
white, prominent, and very distinct; the hind wings are
gray, with a white hind border, on which are two inter-
rupted gray Imes, and across the middle there is a broad,
faint, whitish band; on the top of the thorax is an oblong
blackish spot, widening behind, and consisting of long black
and pearl-colored erect scales, shaped somewhat like. the
handle of a spoon. There is a great disparity in the size
of the sexes, the males measuring only from one inch and
a half to one inch and three quarters across the wings,
while the females expand from two and a quarter to two
inches. and three quarters or more.
The caterpillar (Fig. 178, young
caterpillar) of this fine moth I
have never seen alive; but one
Was sent to me, in the autumn
of 1828, by the late T. G. Fes-
senden, Esq., who received it from Newburyport, from a
correspondent, by whom it was found on the th of August,
sticking so fast to the limb of an apple-trec, that at first
it was mistaken for a cankered spot on the bark.* It was
said to have measured two inches and a half in length, but
when it came into my hands it had spun itself up in its
cocoon. A caterpillar of the same kind, found also on an
apple-tree, has been described by Miss Dix in Professor
Silliman’s “Journal of Science.” + This observing lady
states, that ‘when at rest the resemblance of its upper sur-
face was so exact with the young bark of the branch on
which it was fixed, that its presence might have escaped
the most accurate investigation ; and this deception was the
more complete from the unusual shape of the caterpillar,
which might be likened to the external third of a cylinder.
The sides of the body were cloaked and fringed with hairs.
* See “New England Farmer,” Vol. VII. p. 88.
t Vol. XIX. pp. 62 and 63.
380 LEPIDOPTERA.
It was of a pale sea-green color above, marked with ash,
blended into white ; and beneath of a brilliant orange, spotted
with vivid black. When in motion its whole appearance
was changed, it extended to the length of two inches, and
two thirds of an inch in breadth, its colors brightened, and
a transverse opening was disclosed on the back, two thirds
of an inch from the head, of a most rich velvet-black color.
It was sluggish and motionless during the day, and active
only at night.” Mr. Abbot found the caterpillar of the
Velleda lappet-moth on the willow-oak and on the persim-
mon; and in his figure it is represented of a dark ashen-
gray color, with a velvet-like black band across the upper
part of the third ring.* The cocoon of the specimen sent
to me by Mr. Fessenden resembled grocers’ soft brownish-
gray paper in color and texture, with a very few blackish
hairs interwoven with the silk of which it was made. It
was an inch and a half long, and half an inch wide, bor-
dered on all sides by a loose web, which made it seem of
larger dimensions ; its shape was oval, convex above, and
perfectly flat and very thin on the under side. The moth
came forth from this cocoon on the 15th of September, or
about forty days after the cocoon was spun.
The Chinese silk-worm and its moth, Bombyx mori, the
Bombyx of the mulberry, should follow these insects in a
natural arrangement; for the former is slightly hairy when
first hatched from the egg, and, though naked afterwards, it
has, like the lappet-caterpillars, a long fleshy wart on the top
of the eleventh ring. The history of the silk-worm, how-
ever, does not belong to the subject of this treatise.
There are several kinds of caterpillars in the United
States whose cocoons are wholly made of a very strong and
durable silk, fully equal to that obtained in India from the
tusseh and arrindy silk-worms. These insects, together with
some others, whose cocoons are much thinner, and consist
more of gummy matter than of silk, belong to a family called
* Insects of Georgia, p. 103, pl. 52.
THE SATURNIANS. 381
Saturnians (SATURNIAD#), from Saturnia, the name of a
genus included’in this group. The caterpillars are naked,
are generally short, thick, and clumsy, cylindrical, but fre-
quently hunched on the back of each ring, especially when
at rest, and are furnished with a few warts, which are either
bristled with little points or very short hairs, or are crowned
with sharp and branching prickles. They live on trees or
shrubby plants, the leaves of which they devour; some of
them, when young, keep and feed together in swarms, but
separate as they become older. When fully grown and
ready to make their cocoons, some of them draw together a
few leaves so as to form a hollow, within which they spin
their cocoons; others fasten their cocoons to the stems or
branches of plants, often in the most artful and imgenious
manner; and a very few transform upon or just under the
surface of the ground, where they cover themselves with
leaves or grains of earth stuck together with a little gummy
matter. The escape of the moth from its cocoon is rendered
easy by the fluid which is thrown out and softens the threads.
The chrysalis offers no striking peculiarities, being smooth,
not hairy, and not provided with transverse notched ridges.
This group contains some of the largest insects of the order ;
moths distinguished by great extent and breadth of wings,
thick and woolly bodies, and antennz which are widely
feathered on both sides, from one end to the other, in the
males at least, and often in both sexes. The tongue and feel-
ers are extremely short and rarely visible. The wings are
generally spread out when at rest, so as to display both pairs,
and they are held either horizontally, or more or less elevated
above the body ; a very few, however, turn the fore wings
back, so as to cover the hind wings and the body in repose.
There are no bristles and hooks to keep the fore hind wings
together. In the middle of each wing there is generally a
conspicuous spot of a different color from the rest of the
surface, often like the eyé-spot on peacocks’ feathers, some-
times with a transparent space like tale or isinglass in the
382 LEPIDOPTERA.
middle, and sometimes kidney-shaped and opaque. ‘These
moths commonly fly towards the close of the day, and in the
evening twilight. Their eggs are very numerous, amount-
ing to several hundreds from a single individual.
Although the injuries committed by the caterpillars of the
Saturnians are by no means very great, the magnitude and
beauty of the moths render them very conspicuous and wor-
thy of notice. The largest kinds belong to that division of
the Bombyces called Attacus by Linneus. They are dis-
tinguished from the rest of the Saturnians by having wide
and flat antenne, like short oval feathers, in both sexes, and
- by the fleshy warts on the backs of their caterpillars, wlich
are richly colored, and tipped with minute bristles. Pre-
eminent above all our moths in queenly beauty is the Atta-
cus Luna (Fig. 179), or Luna moth, its specific name being
the same as that given by the Romans to the moon, poetically
styled ‘“‘ fair empress of the night.” The wings of this fine
insect are of a delicate light-green color, and the hinder
angle of the posterior wings is prolonged, so as to form a
tail to each, of an inch and a half or more in length; there
is a broad purple-brown stripe along the front edge of the
fore wings, extending also across the thorax, and sending
backwards a little branch to an eye-like spot near the middle
of the wing; these eye-spots, of which there is one on each
of the wings, are transparent in the centre, and are encircled
by rings of white, red, yellow, and black; the hinder borders
of the wings are more or less edged or scalloped with purple-
brown ; the body is covered with a white kind of wool; the
antenne are ochre-yellow; and the legs are purple-brown.
The wings expand from four inches and three quarters to
five inches and a half. The caterpillar of this moth lives on
the walnut and hickory, on which it may be found, fully
grown, towards the end of July and during the month of
August. It is of a pale and very clear bluish-green color ;
there is a yellow stripe on each "side of the body, and the
back is crossed, between the rings, by transverse lines of
383
MOTH.
THE LUNA
2
384 LEPIDOPTERA.
the same yellow color; on each of the rings are about six
minute pearl-colored warts, tinged with purple or rose-red,
and furnishing a few little hairs ; and at the extremity of the
body are three brown spots, edged above with yellow. When
this insect is at rest it is nearly as thick as a man’s thumb,
its rings are hunched, and its body is shortened, not measur-
ing, even when fully grown, above two inches in length;
but, in motion, it extends to the length of three inches or
more. When about to make its cocoon, it draws together,
with silken threads, two or three leaves of the tree, and
within the hollow thus formed
spins an oval and very close
and strong cocoon (Fig. 180),
about one inch and three quarters
long, and immediately afterwards
changes to a chrysalis. The co-
coons fall from the trees in the
Fig. 180.
they are enveloped ; and the moths make their escape from
them in June.
A caterpillar, closely resembling that of the Luna moth,
may be found on oaks, and sometimes also on elm and lime
trees, in August and September. Its sides are not striped
with yellow, and there are no transverse yellow bands on the
back; the warts have a pearly lustre, more or less tinted
with orange, rose-red, or purple, and between the two lower-
most on the side of each ring is an oblique white line; the
head and the feet are brown; and the tail is bordered by a
brown V-shaped line. These caterpillars, im repose, cling
to the twigs of the trees, with their backs downwards,
contract their bodies in length, and hunch up the rings even
more than those of the Luna moth, which, when fully grown,
they somewhat exceed in size. They make their cocoons
upon the trees in the same manner, with an outer covering
of leaves, which fall off in the autumn, bearing the enclosed
tough oval cocoons to the ground, where they remain through
autumn with the leaves in which
THE ATTACUS. CEGROPIA. 385
the winter, and the moths come out in the month of June
following. Notwithstanding the great similarity of the cater-
pillar and its cocoon to those of the Luna, the moth is en-
tirely different. Its hind wings are not tailed, but are cut
off almost square at the corners. It is of a dull ochre-yel-
low color, more or less clouded with black in the middle of
the wings, on each of which there is a transparent eye-like
spot, divided transversely by a slender line, and encircled
by yellow and black rings; before and adjoining to the eye-
spot of the hind wings is a large blue spot shading into
black ; near the hinder margin of the wings is a dusky band,
edged with reddish white behind; on the front margin of the
fore wings is a gray stripe, which also crosses the fore part
of the thorax; and near the base of the same wings are two
short red lines, edged with white. It expands from five and
a quarter to six inches. ‘This moth, on account of its great
size, is called Polyphemus (Fig. 181), the name of one of
the giants in mythology.
Attacus Cecropia* (Fig. 182) is a still larger insect, ex-
panding from five inches and three quarters to six inches and
a half. ‘The hind wings are rounded, and not tailed. The
ground-color of the wings is a grizzled dusky brown, with
the hindér margins clay-colored ; near the middle of each of
the wings there is an opaque kidney-shaped dull red spot,
having a white centre and a narrow black edging; and be-
yond the spot a wavy dull red band, bordered internally
with white ; the fore wings, next to the shoulders, are dull
red, with a curved white band; and near the tips of the
same is an eye-like black spot, within a bluish-white cres-
cent ; the upper side of the body and the legs are dull red ;
the fore part of the thorax and the hinder edges of the
rings of the abdomen are white; and the belly is checkered
with red and white. This moth makes its appearance dur-
ing the month of June. The caterpillar (Fig. 183) is
* Cecropia was the ancient name of the city of Athens; its application, by
Linneeus, to this moth is inexplicable.
49
386
g. 181,
on
Mh
L}
ve y He,
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LEPIDOPTERA.
THE ATTACUS CECROPIA. 387
W
WN \\\)
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o
338 LEPIDOPTERA.
found on apple, cherry, and plum trees, and on currant and
barberry bushes in July and August. When young it is
of a deep yellow color, with rows of minute black warts on
its back. It comes to its full size by the first of September,
Fig. 183.
and then measures three inches or more in length, and is
thicker than a man’s thumb. It is then entirely of a fine,
clear, light green color; on the top of the second ring are
two large globular coral-red warts, beset with about four-
teen very short black bristles; the two warts on the top
of the third ring are like those on the second, but rather
larger ; on the top of the seven following rings there are
two very long egg-shaped yellow warts, bristled at the end,
and a single wart of larger size on the eleventh ring; on
each side of the body there are two longitudinal rows of
long light blue warts, bristled at the end, and an additional
short row, below them, along the first five rings. This cat-
erpillar does not bear confinement well ; but it may be seen
spinning its cocoon, early in September, on the twigs of the
trees or bushes on which it lives. The cocoon (Fig. 184,
Fig. 184.
hz)
Rees
Fig. 185, pupa) is fastened longitudinally to the side of a
wig. It is, on an average, three inches long, and one inch
THE ATTACUS CECROPIA. 889
in diameter at the widest part. Its shape is an oblong oval,
pointed at the upper end. It is double, the outer coat being
wrinkled, and resembling strong
Fig. 185.
brown paper in color and thick-
ness ; when this tough outer coat
is cut open, the inside will be
seen to be lined with a quantity
of loose, yellow-brown, strong
silk, surrounding an inner oval cocoon, composed of the
same kind of silk, and closely woven like that of the silk-
worm. ‘The insect remains in the chrysalis form through
the winter. The moth, which comes forth in the following
summer, would not be able to pierce the inner cocoon, were
it not for the fluid provided for the purpose of softening the
threads ; but it easily forces its way through the outer cocoon
at the small end, which is more loosely woven than else-
where, and the threads of which converge again, by their
own elasticity, so as almost entirely to close the opening
after the insect has escaped.
A few brown and curled leaves may frequently be seen
hanging upon sassafras-trees during the winter, when all
the other leaves have fallen off. If one of these leaves is
examined, it will be found to be retained by a quantity of
silken thread, which is wound or woolded round the twig
to the distance of half an inch or more on each side of the
leaf-stalk, and is thence carried downwards around the stalk
to an oval cocoon, that is wrapped up by the sides of the
leaf. The cocoon itself is about an inch long, of a reoular
oval shape, and is double, like that of the Cecropia cater-
pillar; but the outer coat is not loose and wrinkled, and the
space between the outer and inner coats is small, and does
not contain much floss silk. So strong is the coating of silk
that surrounds the leaf-stalk, and connects the cocoon with
the branch, that it cannot be severed without great force ;
and consequently the chrysalis swings securely within its
leaf-covered hammock through all the storms of winter.
590 LEPIDOPTERA.
Cocoons of the same kind are sometimes found suspended
to the twigs of the wild cherry-tree, the Azalea, or swamp-
pink, and the Cephalanthus, or button-bush, but not so
often as on the sassafras-tree. Two of them, hanging close
together on one twig, were once brought to me, and a male
and a female moth were produced from these twin cocoons
in July, the usual time for these insects to leave their winter
quarters. Drury called this kind of moth Promethea, a
mistake probably for Prometheus,* the name of one of the
Titans, all of whom were fabled to be of gigantic size. The
color of Attacus Promethea differs according to the sex.
The male (Fig. 186) is of a deep smoky brown color on the
Fig. 186.
ait Wits
upper side, and the female (Fig. 187) light reddish brown ;
in both, the wings are crossed by a wavy whitish line near
the middle, and have a wide clay-colored border, which is
marked by a wavy reddish line; near the tips of the fore
wings there is an eye-like black spot within a bluish-white
erescent ; near the middle of each of the wings of the female
there is an angular reddish-white spot, edged with black ;
these angular spots are visible on the under side of the wings
* Atlas was the brother of Prometheus, and this name, it will be recollected,
has been given to another of the Bombyces, an immensely large moth from China.
THe ATMeOus 2POMET HEA. 391
of the male, but are rarely seen on their upper side; the
hind wings in both are rounded and not tailed. These motlis
expand from three inches and three quarters to four inches
and a quarter. The female deposits her eggs on the twigs
of the trees, in little clusters of five or six together, and
these are hatched towards the end of July or early in Au-
gust. The caterpillars usually come to their full size by the
beginning of September, and then measure two inches or
more in length, when extended, and about half an inch in
diameter. The body of the caterpillar is very plump, and
but very little contracted on the back between the rings.
It is of a clear and pale bluish-green color; the head, the
Fig. 187.
feet, and the tail are yellow; there are about eight warts on
each of the rmgs; the two uppermost warts on the top of
the second and of the third rings are almost cylindrical,
much longer than the rest, and of a rich coral-red color ;
there is a long yellow wart on the top of the eleventh ring ;
all the rest of the warts are very small, and of a deep blue
color. Before making its cocoon the caterpillar instinctively
fastens to the branch the leaf that is to serve for a cover
to its cocoon, so that it shall not fall off in the autumn, and
then proceeds to spin on the upper side of the leaf, bending
392 LEPIDOPTERA.
over the edges to form a hollow, within which its cocoon
is concealed.
The Luna, Polyphemus, Cecropia, and Promethea moths
are the only native insects belonging to the genus Attacus
which are known to me. Their large cocoons, consisting
entirely of silk, the fibres of which far surpass those of the
silk-worm in strength, might perhaps be employed in the
formation of fabrics similar to those manufactured in India
from the cocoons of the tusseh and arrindy silk-worms, the
durability of which is such, that a garment of tusseh silk
‘Cis scarcely worn out in the lifetime of one person, but
often descends from mother to daughter ; and even the coy-
ers of palanquins made of it, though exposed to the influ-
ence of the weather, last many years.””’ The method em-
ployed by the inhabitants of India for unwinding the cocoons
of their native silk-worms would probably apply equally
well to those of our country, which have not yet, that I am
aware of, been submitted to the same process. It is true
that experiments, upon a very limited scale, have been made
with the silk of the Cecropia, which has been carded and
spun and woven into stockings, that are said to wash like
linen. The Rey. Samuel Pullein was among the first to
attempt to unwind the cocoons of the Cecropia moth, an
account of which is contained in the ‘‘ Philosophical Trans-
actions of the Royal Society of London,” for the year 1759.*
Mr. Pullein ascertained that twenty threads of this silk
twisted together would sustam nearly an ounce more in
weight than the same number of common silk. Mr. Moses
Bartram, of Philadelphia, in the year 1767, succeeded in
bringing up the caterpillars from the eggs of the Cecropia
moth, and obtained several cocoons from them.t In the
Paris ‘Journal des Debats,” of the 22d of July, 1840, is
an account of the complete success of Mr. Audouin in
* Vol. LI. p. 54.
+ See “ Transactions of the American Philosophical Society of Philadelphia,”
Vol. I. p. 294.
Co
THE SATURNIA IO. 93
rearing the caterpillars of this or of some other American
species of Attacus, the cocoons of which were sent to him
from New Orleans. The Cecropia does not bear confine-
ment well, and is not so good a subject for experiment as
the Luna and Polyphemus, which are easily reared, and
make their cocoons quite as well in the house as in the open
ar. The following circumstances seem particularly to rec-
ommend these indigenous silk-worms to the attention of
persons interested in the silk culture. Our native oak and
nut trees afford an abundance of food for the caterpillars ;
their cocoons are much heavier than those of the silk-worm,
and will yield a greater quantity of silk ; and, as the insects
remain unchanged in the chrysalis state from September
to June, the cocoons may be kept for unwinding at any
leisure time during the winter. By a careful search, after
the falling of the leaves in the autumn, a sufficient number
of cocoons may be found, under the oak and nut trees, with
which to begin a course of experiments in breeding the in-
sects, and in the manufacture of their silk.
Two more moths, belonging to the family under consid-
eration, are found in Massachusetts. They may be referred
to the genus Saturnia,* and are distinguished from the fore-
going by their antennee, which are widely feathered only
in the males, the feathering being very narrow in the other
sex; their caterpillars, moreover, are furnished with small
warts crowned with long prickles or branching spines. None
of the caterpillars described in the preceding pages are ven-
omous ; all of them may be handled with impunity. This
is not the case with the two following kinds, the prickles
of which sting severely. The first of these begin to appear
by the middle of June, and
other broods continue to be
hatched till the middle of July.
These caterpillars (Fig. 188) Jeege
live on the balsam poplar and “ ¥*
* The surname of Juno, the daughter of Saturn.
50
394 LEPIDOPTERA.
the elm, and, according to Mr. Abbot, on the dogwood or
cornel, and the sassafras ; they feed well also on the leaves
of clover and Indian corn. They are of a pea-green color,
with a broad brown stripe edged below with white on each
side of the body, beginning on the fourth ring and ending
at the tail; they are covered with spreading clusters of
green prickles, tipped with black, and of a uniform length ;
each of these clusters consists of about thirty prickles branch-
ing from a common centre, and there are six clusters on
each of the rings except the last two, on which there are
only five, and on the first four rings, on each of which there
is an additional cluster low down on each side; the feet
are brown, and there is a triangular brown spot on the
under side of each ring, beginning with the fourth. The
prickles are exceedingly sharp, sting very severely when
the insect is handled, and produce the same kind of irrita-
tion as those of the nettle. When young these caterpillars
keep together in little swarms. They do not spin a common
web, but, when not eating, they creep under a leaf, where
they cluster side by side. In going from or returning to
their place of shelter they move in regular files, like the
processionary caterpillars (Lasvocampa processionea) of Eu-
rope, a single caterpillar taking the lead, and followed closely
by perhaps one or two in single file, after which come two,
side by side, close upon the heels of these creep three more,
the next rank consists of four, and so on, the ranks contin-
ually widening behind, like a flock of wild geese on the
wing, but in perfectly regular order. When about half
grown they disperse, and each one shirks for himself. At
the age of eight weeks they get to their full size, in the
meanwhile moulting their skins four times, and finally meas-
ure two inches and a half or more in length. At this age
they leave off eating, crawl to the ground, and get under
leaves or rubbish, which they draw round their bodies to
form an outer covering, within which they make an irregular
and thin cocoon (Fig. 189), of very gummy brown silk,
TH ASk TURN EA -1O. 395
that has almost the texture of thin parchment. As soon
as their cocoons are finished, the Fig, 189.
insects are changed to chrysalids
(Fig. 190), in which form they re-
main throughout the winter, and
in the following summer, during the
month of June, or beginning of
July, they come out in the winged
or moth state. The scientific name
of these moths is Saturnia Jo.* Un-
like those of the genus Attacus, they
sit with their wings closed, and covering the body like a
low roof, the font edge of the under wings extending a
little beyond that of the upper wings, and curving upwards.
The two sexes differ both in color and size. The male
(Fig. 191), which is the smallest, is of a deep or Indian
yellow color; on its fore wings there are two oblique wavy
lines towards the hind margin, a zigzag line near the base,
and several spots so arranged on the middle as to form the
letters A H, all of a purplish red color; the hind wings
are broadly bordered with purplish red next to the body,
and near the hinder margin there is a narrow curved band
of the same color; within this band there is a curved black
* Jo, a priestess of Juno, in Greece, afterwards became the wife of Osiris, the
king of Egypt, and received divine honors under the name of Isis.
396 LEPIDOPTERA.
lime, and on the middle of the wing a large round blue spot,
having a broad black border and a central white dash. The
fore wings of the female (Fig. 192) are purple-brown, min-
Fig. 192.
gled with gray ; the zigzag and wavy lines across them are
gray, and the lettered space in the middle is replaced by
a brown spot surrounded by an irregular gray line; the
hind wings resemble those of the male in color and mark-
ings ; the thorax and legs are purple-brown ; and the abdo-
men is ochre-yellow, with a narrow purple-red band on the
edge of each ring. These moths expand from two inches
and three quarters to three inches and a half.
The other Saturnia, mhabiting Massachusetts, is the Maia*
(Fig. 193) of Drury, or Proserpinat of Fabricius. The
ws
©
Fig. 193.
le
p3
moth probably rests with its wings closed, like the Jo moth,
* Maia, in mythology, was one of the seven daughters of Atlas; they were
placed in the heavens after death, and formed the constellation called Plecades.
+ Proserpina was the wife of Pluto, the god of the infernal regions.
THE) SAD URNIEAY eMALA. 397
the fore wings covering the other pair, the front edge of
which seems formed to extend a little beyond that of’ the
fore wings in this position, The wings are thin and almost
transparent like crape; they are black, and both pairs are
crossed by a broad yellow-white band, near the middle of
which, on each wing, there is a kidney-shaped black spot
having a central yellow-white crescent or curved line on it ;
the thorax is covered with black hairs on the top, pale yel-
low hairs on the fore part, and has two tufts of rust-red
hairs behind; the abdomen is black, with a few yellowish
hairs along the sides, and a patch of a rust-red color at
the extremity, in the males. The wings expand from two
‘inches and a half to three inches and one elohth.
Saturnia Maia seems to be a very rare moth in Massachu-
setts; I have never met with it alive, but have seen several
specimens which were taken in this State. The time of its
appearance here is not known to me with certainty ; but,
if I am rightly informed, it has been found in July and
the beginning of August, flying by day on the borders of
oak woods, or resting on the shrub oaks which cover the
sides of some of our high hills. Of the caterpillar I have
seen only one specimen, which was found, fully grown, on
an oak, towards the end of September; it was destroyed,
however, before I had an opportunity of making a descrip-
tion of it. Mr. Abbot * has figured two of the caterpillars,
which differ from each other in color and markings. They
are nearly three inches long; the head and all the fect are
red ; and on each of the rings there are six long branched
prickles. One of these caterpillars is represented of a dusky
brown color mingled with yellow, with yellow warts from
which the prickles arise. The other is yellow, with red
warts, and two black stripes along the back. Mr. Abbot
states that these caterpillars, while small, feed together in
company, but disperse as they grow large; they eat the
leaves of various kinds of oaks ; sting very sharply when
* Insects of Georgia, p. 99, pl. 50.
398 LEPIDOPTERA.
handled ; and that they go into the ground to transform ;
but he does not inform us whether they make cocoons.
Probably their cocoons are like those of the Io moth, com-
posed of a gummy membranaceous substance, covered either
with leaves or with grains of earth. |
As far as I can ascertain, these six moths are the only
Saturnians which have been discovered east of the Missis-
sippi, and they are commonly met with throughout the
United States.* The last of them, together with some for-
eign species, such as the Tau moth of Europe, seem nat-
urally to conduct to the next family, which I call Cerato-
campians (CERATOCAMPAD#), after the name of the chief
genus contained in it. This name, moreover, signifying
horned caterpillar, serves to point out the principal pecu-
liarity of the caterpillars in this group ; they being armed
* Mr. Audubon has figured two more, apparently sexes or varieties of one
species, in the fourth volume of his magnificent “ Birds of America,” pl. 359;
but has not named or described them. He informs me that they were taken by
Mr. Nuttall near the Rocky Mountains. Through the kindness of Mr. Edward
Doubleday, of Epping, England, the present possessor of one of the very speci-
mens from which Mr. Audubon’s drawing was made, an opportunity of exam-
ining and describing this fine insect has been granted to me.
- Though differing somewhat from the other species of Saturnia, it approaches
so near to the Jaa that I shall not venture to separate it from this genus, espe-
cially as the caterpillar and its habits are unknown. It may be called Saturma
Hera: the latter (a generical name proposed for it by Mr. Doubleday) is the name
given by the Greeks to Juno. The specimen before me is a male. It resembles
the J/aia in form and size, but the wings are not quite so thin, and are more
opaque. The fore wings when the insect is resting probably cover the hind wings,
the front edge of which appears to be formed to project a little beyond that of
the fore wings. It is of a pale yellow color; on each of the wings there is a
kidney-shaped black spot between two transverse wavy black bands; the outer
margins are black; the veins from the external black band to the edge are marked
with broad black lines; and there is a short black line at the base of the fore
wings; the head, fore part of the thorax, and upper sides of the legs, are deep
ochre-yellow; and the rings of the abdomen are transversely banded with black
at the base, and with ochre-yellow on their hinder edges. The kidney-shaped
spots on the fore wings have a very slender central yellow crescent, and those on
the hind wings touch the external black band. The wings expand three inches.
The other moth, figured on the same plate in Mr. Audubon’s work, which is
probably the female of the preceding, apparently differs from it only in being cf
a deep Indian-yellow color, and in having the crescent in the middle of the kid-
ney-shaped spots very distinct, whereas in the male it is almost obsolete.
x
THE REGAL WALNUT-MOTH. 399
with thorny points, of which those on the second ring, and
sometimes also those on the third, are long, curved, and
resemble horns. ‘These caterpillars eat the leaves of forest-
trees, and go into the ground to undergo their transforma-
tions without making cocoons. The rings of the chrysalis
are surrounded by little notched ridges, the teeth of which,
together with the strong prickles at the hinder end of the
body, assist it in forcing its way upwards out. of the earth,
just as the moth is about to burst the skin of the chrysalis.
The moths are very easily distinguished from all the fore-
going by their antennze, which are short, and in the males
_are feathered on both sides for a little more than half the
length of the stalk, and are naked from thence to the tip ;
while those of the females are threadlike, and neither feath-
ered nor toothed. The feelers (except in Ceratocampa, in
which they are very distinct) and the tongue are very small,
and not ordinarily visible. ‘There are no bristles and hooks
to fasten together the wings, which, when at rest, are not
spread, but are closed, the fore wigs covering the hinder
pair, and the front edge of the latter, in most cases, extends
a little beyond that of the fore wings. These are some of
the principal characters on which I have ventured to estab-
lish this family, which is now, for the first time, pointed out
as a peculiar group. I believe that it is exclusively Ameri-
ean.
One of the largest and most rare, and withal the most
magnificent of our moths, is the Ceratocampa regalis (Fig.
194), or regal walnut-moth. Its fore wings are olive-col-
ored, adorned with several yellow spots, and veined with
broad red lies; the hind wings are orange-red, with two
large irregular yellow patches before, and a row of wedge-
shaped olive-colored spots between the veins behind; the
head is orange-red ; the thorax is yellow, with the edge of
the collar, the shoulder-covers, and an angular spot on the
top, orange-red; the upper side of the abdomen, and the
legs, are also orange-red. Unlike the other moths of the
400 LEPIDOPTERA.
same family, the feelers in this are distinct, cylindrical, and
prominent, and the front edge of the hind wings does not
seem to be formed to extend beyond that of the other pair
when the wings are closed. It expands from five to six
?
Fig. 194.
/
inches. In the year 1828, I found three of the eggs of this
fine insect on the black walnut on the 20th of July and
the 4th of August. They were just hatched at the time,
and the caterpillars were near to them resting on a leaf.
The position of these young insects was so peculiar as to
attract attention, independently of the long branching spines
with which the fore part of their body was armed. They
were not stretched out in a straight line, neither were they
hunched up like the caterpillars of the Luna and Polyphe-
mus moths; but, when at rest, they bent the fore part of
the body sideways, so that the head nearly touched the
middle of the side, and their long horn-like spines were
stretched forwards, in a slanting direction, over the head.
When disturbed, they raised their heads and horns, and
shook them from side to side in a menacing manner. These
little caterpillars were nearly black; on each of the rings,
except the last two, there were six straight yellow thorns
or spines, which were furnished on all sides with little sharp
points like short branches. Of these branched spines, two
THE REGALOW Mi NWr-M OTH. 401
on the top of the first ring, and four on the second and the
third rings, or ten in all, were very much longer than the
rest, and were tipped with little knobs, ending in two points ;
they were also movable, the insect having the power of drop-
ping them almost horizontally over the head, and of raising
them up again perpendicularly. On the eleventh ring there
were seven spines, the middle one being long and knobbed
like those on the fore part of the body; on the last ring there
were eleven short and branched spines.. After casting its
skin two or three times, the caterpillar becomes lighter-
colored, and gradually changes to green; the knobs on the
long spines disappear, their little pots or branches do not
increase in size, and finally these spines become curved, turn-
ing backwards at their points, and resemble horns. When
fully grown, the caterpillar (Fig. 195) measures from four to
Fig. 195.
five inches in length, and about three quarters of an inch
in diameter. It is of a green color, and transversely banded
across each of the rings with pale blue; there is a large blue-
black spot on each side of the third rmg; the head and legs
are orange-colored ; the ten long horn-like spines on the fore
part of the body are orange-colored, with the tips and the
points surrounding them black; the other spines are short and
black. Notwithstanding the great size, formidable appear-
ance, and menacing motions of this insect, when handled it
is perfectly harmless, and unable to sting or wound with its
frightful horns. It lives solitary on walnut and hickory trees,
the leaves of which it eats; crawls down and goes into the
ground towards the end of summer, and changes to a chrysalis
51
402 LEPIDOPTERA.
without previously making a cocoon. Unfortunately my
caterpillars died before the time for their transformation
arrived. The chrysalis is short and thick; obtuse behind,
but terminated by two minute points; and the transverse
notched ridges or little teeth that are found on the chrysa-
lids of the other insects belonging to the same family, are
very small and hardly visible on this one. ‘The insect re-
mains in the ground through the winter, and the moth comes
out in the following summer, during the month of June,
if I am rightly informed. I have not been able to obtain
one myself, and my description of the moth was made from
a very fine specimen belonging to a friend, who received it
from New Bedford.
Between the regal Ceratocampa and the smaller insects of
this family belonging to the new genus Dryocampa should be
placed a noble moth, which partakes, in some respects, of
the characters of both; its horned caterpillar, particularly
while young, when its horns are proportionally longer and
more formidable in appearance than afterwards, resembles
somewhat that of the Ceratocampa; its chrysalis is exactly
like that of a Dryocampa, and like the latter also, in the
winged state, its feelers are minute, its hind wings project
beyond the front edges of the fore wings when at rest, and
its style of coloring is the same. In my Catalogue of the
Insects of Massachusetts, I placed this moth, the emperia-
lis of Drury, in the genus Ceratocampa, from which, how-
ever, it must be removed, on account of its very small
feelers, and the position of its wings; and I now refer it,
with some hesitation, to the genus Dryocampa, with which
it agrees so well in the moth state, although its caterpillar
differs a good deal from those of the other insects of the
same genus. The imperial moth, Dryocampa imperialis
(Fig. 196), has wings of a fine yellow color, thickly sprin-
kled with purple-brown dots, with a large patch at the base,
a small round spot near the middle, and a wavy band to-
wards the hinder margin of each wing, of a light purple-
\
403
MOTH.
THE IMPERIAL
“L6L “Sl
O6L “SUL
J)
Hh
WZ
AG4 LEPIDOPTERA.
brown color; in the males there is another purple-brown
spot, covering nearly the whole of the outer hind margin of
the fore wings, and united to the band near that part; the
body is yellow, shaded with purple-brown on the back, and
with three spots of the same color on the thorax. It ex-
pands from four inches and a half to more than five inches.
In a variety of this moth, of which I have a colored drawing
done by Mr. Abbot, the purple-brown color prevails so much
as to cover the wings, with the exception only of a large
triangular yellow spot contiguous to the front margin of each
wing. This moth appears here from the 12th of June to
the beginning of July, and then lays its eggs on the button-
wood tree.
The caterpillars (Fig. 197) may be found upon this tree,
grown to their full size, between the 20th of August and
the end of September, during which time they descend
from the trees to go into the ground. They are then
from three to four inches in length, and more than half an
inch in diameter, and, for the most part, of a green color,
shehtly tinged with red on the back; but many of them
become more or less tanned or swarthy, and are sometimes
found entirely brown. ‘There are a few very short hairs
thinly scattered over the body; the head and the legs are
pale orange-colored; the oval spiracles, or breathing-holes,
on the sides, are large and white, encircled with green; on
each of the rings, except the first, there are six thorny knobs
or hard and pointed warts of a yellow color, covered with
short black prickles ; the two uppermost of these warts on
the top of the second and of the third rings are a quarter of
an inch or more in length, curved backwards like horns, and
are of a deeper yellow color than the rest; the three triangu-
lar pieces on the posterior extremity of the body are brown,
with yellow margins, and are covered with raised orange-
colored dots. The chrysalis, which is not contained in a
cocoon, is about two inches long, of a dark chestnut-brown
color, rough with little elevated points, particularly on the
THE SENATORIAL DRYOCAMPA. 405
anterior extremity, ends behind with a long forked spine,
and is surrounded, on each ring, with a notched ridge, the
little teeth of which point towards the tail. Three of the
grooves or incisions. between the rings are very deep, thus
allowing a great extent of motion to the joints, and these,
with the notched ridges, and the long spine at the end of
the body, enable the chrysalis to work its way upwards in
the earth, above the surface of which it pushes the fore part
of its body just before the moth makes its escape.
Dryocampa, oak or forest caterpillar, is a name originally
applied by me to certain insects, found sometimes in great
numbers on oak-trees, which then suffer very severely from
their ravages. Of these caterpillars there are several kinds,
resembling each other in shape, and in the form and situation
of the thorns with which they are armed, but differing in
color, and in the moths produced from them. They live
together in swarms, but do not make webs; their bodies are
cylindrical, remarkably hard and stiff, naked or not hairy,
and have, on each ring, about six short thorns, or sharp
points, besides two on the top of the second ring, which are
long, slender, and threadlike, but not flexible, and project
in the manner of horns.
The most common of these
eaterpillars (Fig. 198) in
Massachusetts is black, with
four narrow ochre-yellow stripes along the back, and two
on each side. It is found in swarms of several hundreds
together, on the limbs of the white and red oaks, during the
month of August. The eggs from which they proceed are
laid in large clusters on the under side of a leaf near the
end of a branch. The caterpillars are hatched towards the
end of July, but sometimes earlier, and at other times later.
At first they eat only the youngest leaves at the end of the
branches and twigs, and, as they grow larger and stronger,
proceed downwards, devouring every leaf, to the midrib and
foot-stalk, from one end of the branch to the other. They
406 LEPIDOPTERA.
have their regular times for eating and for rest, and when
they have finished their meals, they cluster closely together
along the twigs and branches. If disturbed, they raise the
fore part of their bodies, and shake their heads to signify
their displeasure. When fully grown they measure about
two inches in length. Commonly in the early part of Sep-
tember, they crawl down the trees and go into the ground,
to the depth of four or five inches, where they are changed
to chrysalids (Fig. 199). These re-
semble the chrysalids of the imperial
Fig. 199.
Dryocampa, but are much smaller, and
like them they remain in the ground
throughout the winter, and work their way up to the sur-
face in the followimg summer. These chrysalids may often
be seen sticking half-way out of the ground under oak-trees
in the latter part of June and the beginning of July, at
which time the
moths burst them
open and make
Fig. 200.
their escape. Dry-
ocampa senatoria
(Fig. 200), the
senatorial Dryo-
campa, which is
: the name of this
kind of moth, is of an ochre-yellow color; the wings are
faintly tinged with purplish red, especially on the front and
hind margins, and are crossed by a narrow purple-brown
band behind the middle; the fore wings are sprinkled with
blackish dots, and have a small round white spot near the
middle. The male is much smaller than the female, its
wings are thinner, and more tinged with dull purple-red.
It expands about an inch and three quarters ; the female,
two inches and a half, or more.
Three more kinds of Dryocampa are found in Massachu-
setts, but they are all rare in this State. The largest of
THE CLEAR-WING DRYOCAMPA. 407
them is the stigma of Fabricius, or spotted-wing Dryocampa.
It is of a reddish ochre or deep tawny yellow color; the
fore wings are tinged with purplish red behind, are thickly
sprinkled with blackish dots, have a small round white spot
near the middle, and a narrow oblique purple-red band be-
hind; the hind wings have a narrow transverse purple band,
behind which the border is sprinkled with a few black dots.
It expands from one inch and three quarters to two inches
and three quarters. The caterpillar, which I have not seen,
is figured in Mr Abbot’s work,* where it is colored yellow,
with black thorns on its back. It is said to live on the oak,
in swarms, while young, but these disperse as the insects
erow large.
The following resembles the senatorial Dryocampa ; but
is rather smaller, and is a more delicate moth. ‘The color
of its body is ochre-yellow; the fore wings of the male are
purple-brown, with a large colorless transparent space on the
middle, near which is a small round white spot, and’ towards
the hinder margin a narrow oblique very faint dusky stripe ;
the hind wings are purple-brown, almost transparent in the
middle, and with a very faint transverse dusky stripe; the
wings of the female are purplish red, blended with ochre-
yellow, are almost transparent in the middle, and have the
same white spots and faint bands as those of the male. It
expands from one inch and three quarters to two inches and
a quarter, or more, in some females. The distinguishing
name, given by Sir J. E. Smith,f to this moth, is pellucida,
and we may call it the pellucid or clear-wing Dryocampa.
I have only once seen the caterpillar, which was found on
an oak on the 25th of September. It was about the size
of that of the senatorial Dryocampa, and resembled it in
everything but color. Its head was rust-yellow, its body
pea-green, shaded on the back and sides with red, longitudi-
nally striped with very pale yellowish green, and armed with
black thorns.
* Insects of Georgia, p. 111, pl. 56. + Tbid., p. 115, pl. 58.
408 LEPIDOPTERA.
The last of these insects is the rubicunda (Fig. 201) of
Fabricius, or rosy Dryocampa. ‘This delicate and very rare
moth is found in Massachusetts in July. Its fore wings
are rose-colored, crossed by
a broad pale-yellow band ;
the hind wings are pale yel-
low, with a short rosy band
behind the middle; the body
is yellow; the belly and
legs are rose-colored. It
expands rather more than one inch and three quarters. The
caterpillar is unknown to me.*
All the Moth caterpillars thus far described in this work
live more or less exposed to view, and devour the leaves of
plants; but there are others that are concealed from observa-
tion in stems and roots, which they pierce in various direc-
tions, and devour only the wood and pith; their habits, in
this respect, being exactly like those of the Aigerians among
the Sphinges. These insects belong to a family of Bomby-
ces, by some naturalists called ZevzeRapa#, and by others
Hepratip#, both names derived from insects included in the
same group. The caterpillars of the Zeuzerians are white
or reddish white, soft and naked, or slightly downy, with
brown horny heads, a spot on the top of the fore part of the
body which is also brown and hard, and sixteen legs. They
make imperfect cocoons, sometimes of silk, and sometimes
of morsels of wood or grains of earth fastened together by
gummy silk. Their chrysalids, like those of the Cerato-
* Only one more North American Dryocampa is known tome. This moth was
taken in North Carolina, and does not appear to have been described. It may be
called Dryocampa bicolor, the two-colored, or gray and red, Dryocampa. The
upper side of the fore wings and the under side of the hind wings are brownish
gray, sprinkled with black dots, and with a small round white spot near the
middle, and a narrow oblique dusky band behind it on the fore wings; the upper
side of the hind wings and the under side of the fore wings, except the front edge
and hinder margin of the latter, are crimson-red, and the body is brownish gray.
The male expands two inches and a quarter. The female and the caterpillar of
this insect I have not seen.
THE HOR] VEINE PeEPIOLUS. 409
campians, are provided with notched transverse ridges on the
rings, by means of which they push themselves out of their
holes when ready to be transformed. The moths differ a
good deal from each other, although the appearance and
habits of the caterpillars are so much alike. The antennz
in some are thread-like, or made up of nearly cylindrical
joints put together like a string of beads; in others they are
more tapering, and doubly pectinated or toothed on the
under side, at least in the males; and in Zeuzera, a kind of
moth not hitherto found in this country, the antennz resem-
ble those of the Ceratocampians, being half-feathered in the
males, and not feathered in the females. The wings are
rather long and narrow, and are strengthened by very nu-
merous veins. ‘The female is provided with a kind of tube
at the end of the body, that can be drawn in and out, by
means of which she thrusts her eggs into the chinks of the
bark or into the earth at the roots of plants.
Of the root-eaters there is one kind which is very injurious
to the hop-vine in Europe. It is called Hepiolus humuli,
the hop-vine Hepiolus. The caterpillar is yellowish white ;
the head, a spot on the top of the first and second rings, and
the six fore legs are shining brown, and it is nearly naked,
or has only a few short hairs scattered over its body. It
lives in the roots of the hop, and, when about to transform,
buries itself in the ground, and makes a long, cylindrical
cocoon or case, composed of grains of earth, held together
by a loose silken web. The chrysalis has transverse rows
of little teeth on the backs of the abdominal rings, and by
means of them it finally works its way out of the cocoon and
rises to the surface of the earth; this being done, the includ-
ed moth bursts its chrysalis shell, and comes forth into the
open air. In moths of this kind (genus Hepiolus) the an-
tennze are very short, slender, almost thread-like, and not
feathered or pectinated ; the tongue is wanting or invisible;
and the feelers are excessively small, and concealed in a tuft
of hairs.
ae}
410 LEPIDOPTERA.
The hop-vine Hepiolus has not yet been detected in Mas-
sachusetts ; but we have a much larger species, known to
me only in the moth state, which is the reason of my hav-
ing given the foregoing account of the preparatory stages
of a European species. ‘This moth does not appear to have
been described. It is named in my Catalogue of the In-
sects of Massachusetts, Mepiolus argenteo-maculatus (Fig.
202), the silver-spotted Hepiolus. Its body and wings are
Fig. 202.
rather long. It is of an ashen-gray color; the fore wings
are variegated with dusky clouds and bands, and have a
small triangular spot and a round dot of a silvery white color
near their base; the hind wings are tinged with ochre-yellow
towards the tip. It expands two inches and three quarters.
A much larger specimen was found by Professor Agassiz
near Lake Superior.*
The locust-tree, Robinia pseudacacia, is preyed upon by
three different kinds of wood-eaters or borers, whose un-
checked ravages seem to threaten the entire destruction and
extermination of this valuable tree within this part of the
United States. One of these borers is a little reddish cater-
pular, whose operations are confined to the small branches
and to very young trees, in the pith of which it lives; and
by its irritation it causes the twig to swell around the part
attacked. ‘These swellings being spongy, and also perforated
* See a figure of it in his ‘‘ Lake Superior,” pl. 7, fig. 6.
PEO tint i rein BORE RS: 411
by the caterpillar, are weaker than the rest of the stem,
which therefore easily breaks off at these places. My at-
tempts to complete the history of this insect have not been
successful hitherto.
The second kind of borer of the locust-tree is larger
than the foregoing, is a grub, and not a caterpillar, which
finally turns to the beetle named Clytus pictus, the paint-
ed Clytus, already described on a preceding page of this
work.
The third of the wood-eaters to which the locust-tree is
exposed, though less common than the others, and not so
universally destructive to the tree as the painted Clytus, is a
very much larger borer, and is occasionally productive of great
injury, especially to full-grown and old trees, for which it
appears to have a preference. It is a true caterpillar (Fig.
203), belonging to the tribe of moths under consideration,
is reddish above, and white beneath, with the head and top
of the first ring brown and shelly, and there are a few short
hairs arismg from minute warts thinly scattered over the
surface of the body. When fully grown, it measures two
inches and a half, or more, in length, and is nearly as thick
as the end of the little finger. These caterpillars bore the
tree in various directions, but for the most part obliquely
upwards and downwards through the solid wood, enlarging
the holes as they increase in size, and continuing them
through the bark to the outside of the trunk. Before trans-
forming, they line these passages with a web of silk, and,
retiring to some distance from the orifice, they spin around
their bodies a closer web, or cocoon, within which they
assume the chrysalis form. The chrysalis (Fig. 204) meas-
412 LEPIDOPTERA.
ures one inch and a half or two inches in length, is of an
amber color, changing to brown
Fig. 204.
on the fore part of the body ;
and on the upper side of each
abdominal ring are two trans-
verse rows of tooth-like projec-
tions. By the help of these, the insect, when ready for its
last transformation, works its way to the mouth of its bur-
row, Where it remains while the chrysalis skin is rent, upon
which it comes forth on the trunk of the tree a winged
moth. In this its perfected state, it is of a gray color; the
fore wings are thickly covered with dusky netted lines and
irregular spots, the hind wings are more uniformly dusky,
and the shoulder-covers are edged with black on the inside.
It expands about three inches. The male, which is much
smaller, and has been mistaken for another species, is much
darker than the female, from which it differs also in having
a large ochre-yellow spot on the hind wings, contiguous to
their posterior margin. Professor Peck, who first made
public the history of this insect,* named it Cossus Robinie,
the Cossus of the locust-tree, scientifically called Robinia.
It is supposed by Professor Peck to remain three years in
the caterpillar state. The moth comes forth about the mid-
dle of July. The same insect, or one not to be distin-
guished from it while a caterpillar, perforates the trunks of
the red oak. Mr. Newmanf has recently given the name
of Xyleutes, the carpenter, to the genus including this insect,
instead of Cossus, which it formerly bore, because the latter,
being the name of a species, ought not to have been applied
to a genus. The European carpenter-moth, called Bombyx
Cossust by Linneeus, will now be the Xyleutes Cossus ;
and our indigenous species will be the Xyleutes Robinie
* See “Massachusetts Agricultural Repository and Journal,’ Vol. V., p. 67,
with a plate.
7 See ‘* Entomological Magazine,’ Vol. V., p. 129.
t+ Subsequently named Cossus ligniperda by Fabricius.
, fig
THE LOCUST-TREE CARPENTER-MOTH. 413
(Fig. 205), or locust-tree carpenter-moth. The moths of
this genus have thick and robust bodies, broad and thickly-
veined wings, two very distinct feelers, and antennze, which
Fig. 205.
are furnished on the under side, in both sexes, with a double
set of short teeth, rather longer in the male than in the
female. Their tongue is invisible. They give out a strong
and peculiar smell, whence they are sometimes called goat-
moths by English writers.
Some caterpillars, which eat the leaves of plants, live in
cases or long oval cocoons, open at both ends, and large
enough for the insects to turn around within them, so as to
go out of either end. They do not entirely leave these cases,
even when moving from place to place, but cling to them on
the inside with the legs of the hinder part of their bodies,
while their heads and fore legs are thrust out. Thus in
moving they creep with their six fore legs only, and drag
along their cases after them as they go. These cases are
made of silk within, and are covered on the outside with
leaves, bits of straw, or little sticks. The caterpillars are
nearly cylindrical, generally soft and whitish, except the
head and upper part of the first three rings, which are brown
and hard; they have sixteen legs; the first three pairs are
long, strong, and armed with stout claws; the others are
very short, consisting merely of slight wart-like elevations
414 LEPIDOPTERA.
provided with numerous minute clinging hooks. When they
are about to change their forms, their cases serve them in-
stead of cocoons; they fasten them by silken threads to
the plant on which they live, stop up the holes in them, and
then throw off their caterpillar-skins. The chrysalids are
remarkably blunt at the hinder extremity, and are provided
with transverse rows of minute teeth on the back of the ab-
dominal rings. The moths, of which there are several kinds
produced by these case-bearing caterpillars, differ very much
from each other; but, as they all agree in their habits and
general appearance while in the caterpillar form, they are
brought together in one family called PsycHapa#, the Psy-
chians, from Psyche, a genus belonging to it. The Germans
give these insects a more characteristic name, that of Sack-
triéger,* that is, sack-bearers, and Hiibner calied them Cane-
phore, or basket-carriers, because the cases of some of them
are made of little sticks somewhat like a wicker basket.
The cases of the insects belonging to the European genus
Psyche are covered with small leaves, bits of grass or of
sticks, placed lengthwise on them. ‘The chrysalis of the
male Psyche pushes itself half-way out of the case when
about to set free the moth; the female, on the contrary,
never leaves its cocoon, is not provided with wings, and
its antenne and legs are very short. The male Psyche
resembles somewhat the same sex of Orgyia, having pretty
broad wings, and antennee that are doubly feathered on the
under side; it has also a bristle and hook to hold the wings
together. ‘The cases of Ozketicus,t another and much larger
kind of sack-bearer, inhabiting the West Indies and South
America, are covered with pieces of leaves and of sticks
arranged either longitudinally or transversely. The cases
of some of the females measure four or five inches in length.
Some which I received from Cuba were covered with little
* See Germar’s “ Magazin der Entomologie,’”’ Vol. I. p. 19.
7 This name ought to be @ceticus. See Mr. Guilding’s description of the
insect in the “ Transactions of the Linnzean Society,’’ Vol. XY.
EEE
MELSHEIMER’S SACK-BEARER. 415
bits of sticks, about a quarter of an inch long, arranged
transversely, and the cases were hung by a thick silken loop
or ring to a twig; the lower end of these cases was filled
with a large quantity of loose and very soft brownish floss-
silk, which completely closed the orifice within. The male
Oiketicus resembles a Zeuzera in the form and great length
of its body, in the shape of its wings, and in its antenne,
and in both the latter it resembles also the same sex of a
Dryocampa, particularly in its antenne, which are feathered
on both sides on the lower part of the stalk, and are bare at
the other end. The female has neither wings, antenne, nor
lezs, and is said to remain always within its cocoon. Some
years ago, a case or cocoon of an Orketicus, which was found
on Long Island, was presented tome. It was smaller than
the West Indian specimens, measuring only an inch and a
half without its loop, and was covered with a few little sticks
longitudinally arranged. It contained a female chrysalis,
with the remains of the caterpillar. In Philadelphia and the
vicinity, cases of a similar kind are very common on many
of the trees, particularly on the arbor-vite, larch, and hem-
lock, which are often very much injured by the insects in-
habiting them. These are there popularly called drop-worms
and basket-worms.
_ We have in Massachusetts another sack-bearer, which
does not appear to have been described, and differs so much
both from Psyche and Oiketicus, when arrived at maturity,
as to induce me to give it another generical name. I there-
fore call it Perophora Melsheimerti,* Melsheimer’s sack-bearer
(Plate VI. Fig. 5). SAWoE LY. iy
dark brown veins. The body of the female (Fig. 244)
measures one quarter of an inch in length, that
Fig. 244.
of the male is somewhat shorter. These flies
g, not all at “Bie
one time, but at irregular intervals, and lay TA
their eges on the lower side of the terminal leaves of the
rise from the ground in the sprin
vine.
In the month of July the false caterpillars, hatched
from these eggs, may be seen on the leaves, in little
swarms, of various ages, some very small, and others fully
grown. ‘They feed in company, side by side, beneath the
leaves, each swarm or fraternity consisting of a dozen or
more individuals, and they preserve their ranks with a
surprising degree of regularity. Beginning at the edge
they eat the whole of the leaf to the stalk, and then go to
another, which in like manner they devour, and thus pro-
ceed, from leaf to leaf, down the branch, till they have
grown to their full size. They then average five eighths
of an inch in length, are somewhat slender and tapering
behind, and thickest before the middle. They have twenty-
two legs. The head and the tip of the tail are black; the
body, above, is light green, paler before and behind, with
two transverse rows of minute black points across each
ring; and the lower side of the body is yellowish. After
their last moulting they become almost entirely yellow, and
then leave the vine, burrow in the ground, and form for
themselves small oval cells of earth, which they line with
a slight silken film. In about a fortnight after going into
the ground, having in the mean time passed through the
chrysalis state, they come out of their earthen cells, take
wing, pair, and lay their egos for a second brood. The
young of the second brood are not transformed to flies until
the following spring, but remain at rest in their cocoons in
the ground through the winter.
For some years previous to the publication of my Dis-
course, I observed that these insects annually increased
524 HYMENOPTERA.
in number, and in the year 1832 they had become so
numerous and destructive that many vines were entirely
stripped of their leaves by them. Whether the remedies
then proposed by me, or any other means, have tended to
diminish their numbers, or to keep them in check, I have
not been able to ascertain, and have had no further oppor-
tunity for making observations on the insects themselves.
At that time, air-slacked lime, which was found to be fatal
to these false caterpillars of the vine, was advised to be
dusted upon them, and strewed also upon the ground un-
der the vines, to insure the destruction of such of the in-
sects as might fall. A solution of one pound of common
hard soap in five or six gallons of soft water is used by
English gardeners to destroy the young of the gooseberry
saw-fly ; and the same was recommended to be tried upon
the insects under consideration.
All the young of the saw-flies do not so closely resemble
caterpillars as the preceding; some of them, as has already
been stated, have the form of slugs or naked snails. Of
this description is the kind called the slug-worm in this
country, and the slimy grub of the pear-tree in Europe.
So different are these from the other false caterpillars, that
they would not be suspected to belong to the same family.
Their relationship becomes evident, however, when they
have finished their transformations; and accordingly we
find that the saw-flies of our slug-worms and those of the
vine are so much alike in form and structure, that they
are both included in the same genus. Moreover, there are
certain false caterpillars intermediate in their forms and
appearance between the slimy and slug-like kinds and those
that more nearly resemble the true caterpillars; thus admi-
rably illustrating the truth of the remark, that nature pro-
ceeds not with abrupt or unequal steps ; * or, in other words,
that, amidst the immense variety of living forms wherewith
this earth has been peopled, there is a regular gradation
* “ Natura sal-us non facit.’’ — Linnzeus, Syst. Nat. I. 11.
THE ROSE SAW-FLY. VAs,
and connection, which in particular cases if we fail to dis-
cover, it is rather to be attributed to our own ignorance and
short-sightedness than to any want of harmony and regu-
larity in the plan of the Creator. In considering the resem-
blances of species, we cannot fail to admire the care that
has been taken, by almost imsensible shades of difference
among them, or by peculiar circumstances controlling their
distribution, their habits of life, and their choice of food,
to prevent them from commingling, whereby each species
is made to preserve forever its individual identity.
The saw-fly of the rose, which, as it does not seem to
have been described before, may be
called Selandria Rose (Fig. 245), from Pe
its favorite plant, so nearly resembles
the slug-worm saw-fly as not to be
distinguished therefrom except by a
practised observer. It is also very
much like Selandria barda, Vitis, and pygmea, but has not
the red thorax of these three closely allied species. It is
of a deep and shining black color. The first two pairs
of legs are brownish-gray or dirty white, except the thighs,
which are almost entirely black. The hind legs are black,
with whitish knees. The wings are smoky, and transparent,
with dark brown veins, and a brown spot near the middle
of the edge of the first pair. The body of the male is a
little more than three twentieths of an inch long, that of
the female one fifth of an inch or more, and the wings
expand nearly or quite two fifths of an inch. These saw-
fes come out of the ground, at various times, between
the 20th of May and the middle of June, during which
period they pair and lay their eggs. The females do not
fly much, and may be seen, during most of the day, resting
on the leaves, and, when touched, they draw up their legs,
and fall to the ground. The males are more active, fly
from one rose-bush to another, and hover around their
sluggish partners. The latter, when about to lay their
526 HYMENOPTERA.
egos, turn a little on one side, unsheathe their saws, and
thrust them obliquely into the skin of the leaf, depositing,
maa in each incision thus made, a single egg. The
__, young (Fig. 246) begin to hatch in ten days
Pore or a fortnight after the eggs are laid. They
may sometimes be found on the leaves as early as the first
of June, but do not usually appear in considerable numbers
till the 20th of the same month. How long they are in
coming to maturity, I have not particularly observed; but
the period of their existence in the caterpillar state probably
does not exceed three weeks. They somewhat resemble
young slug-worms in form, but are not quite so convex.
They have a small, round, yellowish head, with a black
dot on each side of it, and are provided with twenty-two
short legs. The body is green above, paler at the sides,
and yellowish beneath; and it is soft, and almost trans-
parent, like jelly. The skin of the back is transversely
wrinkled, and. covered with minute elevated points; and
there are two small, triple-pomted warts on the edge of the
first ring, immediately behind the head.
These gelatinous and sluggish creatures eat the upper
surface of the leaf in large irregular patches, leaving the
veins and the skin, beneath, untouched ; and they are some-
times so thick that not a leaf on the bushes is spared by
them, and the whole foliage looks as if it had been scorched
by fire, and drops off soon afterwards. They cast their
skins several times, leaving them extended and fastened on
the leaves ; after the last moulting they lose their semitrans-
parent and greenish color, and acquire an opaque yellowish
hue. They then leave the rose-bushes, some of them slowly
creeping down the stem, and others rolling up and dropping
off, especially when the bushes are shaken by the wind.
Having reached the ground, they burrow to the
depth of an inch or more in the earth, where
each one makes for itself a small oval cell (Fig.
247), of grains of earth, cemented with a little gummy silk.
THE ROSE SAW-ELY. SOT
Having finished their transformations, and turned to flies,
within their cells, they come out of the ground early in Au-
gust, and lay their eggs for a second brood of young. These,
in turn, perform their appointed work of destruction in the
autumn; they then go into the ground, make their earthen
cells, remain therein throughout the winter, and appear, in
the winged form, in the following spring and summer.
During several years past, these pernicious vermin have
infested the rose-bushes in the vicinity of Boston, and have
proved so injurious to them as to have excited the attention
of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, by whom a pre-
mium of one hundred dollars for the most successful mode
of destroying these insects was offered, in the summer of
1840. In the year 1852, I first observed them in gardens
in Cambridge, and then made myself acquainted with their
transformations. At that time they had not reached Milton,
my former place of residence, and they did not appear in
that place till six or seven years later. They now seem
to be gradually extending in all directions, and an effectual
method for preserving our roses from their attacks has be-
come very desirable to all persons who set any value on
this beautiful ornament of our gardens and shrubberies.
Showering or syringing the bushes with a liquor made by
mixing with water the juice expressed from tobacco by
tobacconists, has been recommended ; but some caution is
necessary in making this mixture of a proper strength, for
if too strong it is injurious to plants; and the experiment
does not seem, as yet, to have been conducted with sufficient
care to insure safety and success. Dusting lime over the
plants when wet with dew has been tried, and found of
some use; but this and all other remedies will probably
yield in efficacy to Mr. Haggerston’s mixture of whale-oil
soap and water, in the proportion of two pounds of the soap
to fifteen gallons of water.
Particular directions, drawn up by Mr. Haggerston him-
self, for the preparation and use of this simple and cheap
528 HYMENOPTERA.
application, may be found in the ‘ Boston Courier” for
the 25th of June, 1841, and also in most of our agricultural
and horticultural journals of the same time. ‘The utility of
this mixture has already been repeatedly mentioned in this
treatise, and it may be applied in other cases with advantage.
Mr. Haggerston finds that it effectually destroys many kinds
of insects; and he particularly mentions plant-lice, red spi-
ders, canker-worms, and a little jumping insect which has
lately been found quite as hurtful to rose-bushes as the slugs
or young of the saw-fly. The little insect alluded to has
been mistaken for a Thrips or vine-fretter ; 1t is, however a’
leaf-hopper, or species of Zettigonia, and is described in a
former part of this treatise.
According to the plan to which I have found it necessary
to limit this work, only one more species of saw-fly remains
to be described. Of the habits and transformations of this
insect the late Professor Peck has given us an admirable
account, under the title of a ‘‘ Natural History of the Slug-
Worm,” which was printed in Boston, in the year 1799, by
order of the Massachusetts Agricultural Society, and ob-
tained the Socicty’s premium of fifty dollars and a gold
medal. As my own observations on this insect agree per-
fectly with those of Protessor Peck, in the following remarks
I have merely abridged and condensed his ‘* Natural History
of the Slug-Worm,” a work now out of print, and rarely
to be met with. It will be proper to premise that Professor
Peck was inclined to believe this slug-fly to be a variety of
the Tenthredo Cerast of Linnzeus, an insect found more com-
monly on the pear-tree in Europe than on the cherry, al-
though it has a specific name derived from the latter tree.
Most naturalists now reject the name given by Linnzus
to the shmy grub of the pear-tree, because it is not strictly
correct, and substitute a specific name imposed upon it by
Fabricius. The European insect, therefore, is now called
Selandria (Blennocampa) ithiops ; and a good account of
it, by Mr. Westwood, may be found in the thirteenth volume
THE pe ARerR HE SUG. 529
of “The Gardener’s Magazine.” It is possible that our
slug-fly may have been imported from Europe, and it may
turn out to be really a mere variety of the European insect.
Professor Peck was aware that it did not agree with the
description given by Linnzeus of the latter; and it appears
to me that the difference between the two insects, in their
winged state, is enough to entitle them to be considered as
specifically distinct from each other. For this reason I shall
retain for our insect the specific name adopted by Professor
Peck, because this slug does really live upon the cherry, in
this country, as well as on the pear-tree; and shall merely
prefix to it the generical name which it should bear accord-
ing to modern nomenclature. The fly of our slug-worm
may therefore be called Selandria (Blennocampa) Cerasi.
The meaning of the word Selandria is unknown to me.
Blennocampa signifies slimy caterpillar, a name which, it
will be seen, may be applied with great propriety to our
slug-worm.
This slug-fly is of a glossy black color, except the first
two pairs of legs, which are dirty yellow or clay-colored,
with blackish thighs, and the hind legs, which are dull
black, with clay-colored knees. The wings are somewhat
convex and rumpled or uneven on the upper side, like the
wings of the saw-flies generally. They are transparent,
reflecting the changeable colors of the rainbow, and have
a smoky tinge, forming a cloud or broad band across the
middle of the first pair; the veins are
brownish. The body of the female (Fig.
248) measures rather more than one fifth
of an inch in length; that of the male is
smaller. In the year 1828, I observed
these saw-flies, on cherry and plum trees, in Milton, on
the 10th of May; but they usually appear towards the end
of May or early in June. Soon afterwards some of them
begin to lay their eggs, and all of them finish this business
and disappear within the space of three weeks. Their eggs
67
Fig. 248.
530 HYMENOPTERA.
are placed, singly, within little semicircular incisions through
the skin of the leaf, and generally on the lower side of it.
The flies have not the timidity of many other insects, and
are not easily disturbed while laying their eggs. On ‘the
fourteenth day afterwards, the eggs begin to hatch,
and the young slug-worms (Fig. 249) continue
to come forth from the 5th of June to the 20th
of July, according as the flies have appeared early or late
in the spring.
Fig. 249.
At first the slugs are white; but a slimy matter soon »
oozes out of their skin and covers their backs with an olive-
colored sticky coat. They have twenty very short legs, or
a pair under each segment of the body except the fourth
and the last. The largest slugs are about nine twentieths
of an inch in length, when fully grown. ‘The head, of a
dark chestnut color, is small, and is entirely concealed under
the fore part of the body. They are largest before, and
taper behind, and in form somewhat resemble minute tad-
poles. They have the faculty of swelling out the fore part
of the body, and generally rest with the tail a little turned
up. These disgusting slugs live mostly on the upper side
of the leaves of the pear and cherry trees, and eat away
the substance thereof, leaving only the veins and the skin
beneath untouched. Sometimes twenty or thirty of them
may be seen on a single leaf; and in the year 1797 they
were so abundant, in some parts of Massachusetts, that
small trees were covered with them, and the foliage en-
tirely destroyed; and even the air, by passing through the
trees, became charged with a very disagreeable and sick-
ening odor, given out by these slimy creatures. The trees
attacked by them are forced to throw out new leaves, dur-
ing the heat of the summer, at the ends of the twigs and
branches that still remain alive; and this unseasonable fo-
liage, which should not have appeared till the next spring,
exhausts the vigor of the trees, and cuts off the prospect
of fruit.
THE PEAR-TREE SLUG. 531
The slue-worms come to their growth in twenty-six days,
during which period they cast their skins five times. [re-
quently, as soon as the skin is shed, they are seen feeding
upon it; but they never touch the last coat, which remains
stretched out upon the leaf. After this is cast off, they
no longer retain their slimy appearance and olive color,
but have a clean yellow skin, entirely free from viscidity.
They change also in form, and become proportionally longer ;
and their head and the marks between the rings are plainly
to be seen. In a few hours after this change, they leave
the trees, and, having crept or fallen to the ground, they
burrow to the depth of from one inch to three or four
inches, according to the nature of the soil. By moving
their body, the earth around them becomes pressed equally
on all sides, and an oblong oval cavity is thus formed, and
is afterwards lined with a sticky and glossy substance, to
which the grains of earth closely adhere. Within these
little earthen cells or cocoons the change to chrysalids
takes place; and, in sixteen days after the descent of the
slug-worms, they finish their transformations, break open
their cells, and crawl to the surface of the ground, where
they appear in the fly form. ‘These flies usually come forth
between the middle of July and the first of August, and
lay their eggs for a second brood of slug-worms. The
latter come to their growth, and go into the ground, in
September and October, and remain there till the following
spring, when they are changed to flies, and leave their
winter quarters. It seems that all of them, however, do
not finish their transformations at this time; some are found
to remain unchanged in the ground till the following year ;
so that, if all the slugs of the last hatch m any one year
should happen to be destroyed, enough from a former brood
would still remain in the earth to continue the species.
The disgusting appearance and smell of these slug-worms
do not protect them from the attacks of various enemies.
Mice and other burrowing animals destroy many of them
532 HYMENOPTERA.
in their cocoons, and it is probable that birds also prey
upon them when on the trees, both in the slug and the
winged states. Professor Peck has described a minute ich-
neumon-fly, stated by Mr. Westwood to be a species of
Encyrtus, that stings the eggs of the slug-fly, and deposits
in each one a single egg of her own. From this, in due
time, a little maggot is hatched, which lives in the shell of
the slug-fly’s egg, devours the contents, and afterwards is
changed to a chrysalis, and then to a fly like its parent.
Professor Peck found that great numbers of the eggs of
the slug-fly, especially of the second hatch, were rendered
abortive by this atom of existence.
Ashes or quicklime, sifted on the trees by means of a
sieve fastened to the end of a pole, was recommended, by
the late Hon. John Lowell, of Roxbury, for the destruc-
tion of the slugs; and it is found to answer the purpose.
It is probable that Mr. Haggerston’s almost universal rem-
edy may prove to be still more effectual.
The saw-flies, though undoubtedly belonging to the order
Hymenoptera, depart from the general characters thereof
more than any other insects in it. They are more dull
and heavy in all their motions; they have not the power-
ful jaws of the predaceous tribes, nor the long and slender
lower jaws and tongue of those that subsist upon honey.
They live but a short time, and their food appears to be
pollen, the tender parts of leaves, and sometimes the plant-
lice and other soft-bodied insects frequenting flowers. In
the stiffness of their upper wings, and the heaviness of
their flight, they somewhat resemble beetles, and, analogi-
cally, may be said to typify the Coleoptera, or, in other
words, they may be called the beetles of the Hymenop-
tera. They will be found, on comparison, to have some
features In common with the crickets, which, with the ear-
wigs, are also the representatives of the Coleoptera. Al-
though they differ essentially from butterflies and moths,
the resemblance of most of their young to caterpillars, in
HORN-TAILS. O09
form and in habits, is very striking and remarkable. Hence
the saw-flies plainly show the relation existing between the
orders Lepidoptera and Hymenoptera, and serve closely to
connect them together.
The next piercing insects to be described belong to the
family of Urocertp#, or horn-tails, so called because they
have a horny point at the end of the body. The Ger-
mans call them wood-wasps. Their antennz are slender,
and thread-like, or tapering. They have a large head,
convex before, and flat behind where it joins the thorax.
Their wings are long, narrow, and strong, and overlap on
the top of the back, when closed. The body is very long,
and nearly or quite cylindrical; the thorax and the after
part of the body are of equal thickness, and are closely
joined together. ‘The horn, at the end, is short, and coni-
cal or triangular, in the males; longer, and sometimes
spear-pointed, in the females. Moreover, the latter are
provided with a long, cylindrical borer, hinged to the mid-
dle of the belly, which is furrowed to receive it. The
borer usually extends some distance beyond the end of the
body, and consists of five pieces. The two outermost are
grooved within, and, when shut, form a hollow tube or
scabbard to the others, one of which represents the two
backs of the saws of the saw-flies, joined together, and
encloses two needles for boring holes. The part serving
for a back to these needles is notched on each side, and
the needles themselves, which are as fine as a hair, and
as strong and elastic as wire, have several small teeth
along the lower side towards the end. These needles,
and the back in which they play, are so connected as to
appear to be only a single spear-pointed awl. With this
complicated and powerful tool the females bore holes into
the trunks of trees, wherein they drop their eggs. Their
young are cylindrical and fleshy grubs, of a whitish color,
with a small, rounded, horny head, and a pointed and
horny tail. They have six very small legs under the fore
534 HYMENOPTERA.
part of the body, and are provided with strong and pow-
erful jaws, wherewith they bore long holes in the trunks
of the trees that they inhabit. Like other borers, these
grubs are wood-eaters, and often do great damage to pines
and firs, wherein they are most commonly found.
When fully grown, the grubs make thin cocoons of silk,
interwoven with little chips, in their burrows, and in them
go through their transformations. The chrysalis is some-
what like the winged insect in form, but is of a yellowish
white color till near the time of its last change, and the
wings and legs are folded under the breast; in all these
respects it agrees with the chrysalids of other Hymenop-
terous insects. After the chrysalis skin is cast off, the
winged insect breaks through its cocoon, creeps to the
mouth of its burrow, and gnaws through the covering of
bark over it, so as to come out of the tree into the open
air. It is stated that the grubs of the large species come
to their growth in seven weeks after the eggs are laid.
If this be true, and it seems hardly possible, the chrysalis
state must last a long time, for the perfected insects have
been known to come out of timber that had been cut up
and applied to mechanical uses by the carpenter. Some
persons have supposed that they attacked only diseased and
decayed trees, in which it must be admitted they are often
found in great numbers. But many instances might be
mentioned of their appetite for sound wood also, and it is
probable that the presence of these insects, like that of
many others, is the cause, and not the consequence, of the
decay of the trees wherein they live.
It is stated in the London ‘ Zoological Journal,” that
two hundred Scotch firs have been destroyed by the Uro-
cerus Juvencus, in the woods of Henham Hall, the seat of
the Earl of Stanhope, their trunks being bored through
and through by the grubs of this insect. Mr. Westwood
relates,* that a piece of wood, twenty feet in length, from
* Introduction to the Modern Classification of Insects, Vol. II. p. 118.
HORN-TAILS. Foo
a fir-tree in Bewdley Forest, Worcestershire, England, was
found to be so intersected by the burrows of these grubs,
as to be fit for nothing but firewood; and that the winged
insects continued to come out of it, at the rate of five, six,
or more each day, for the space of several weeks. Mr.
Marsham states, on the authority of Sir Joseph Banks,
that several specimens of Urocerus gigas were seen to
come out of the floor of a nursery in a gentleman’s house,
to the no small alarm and discomfiture of both nurse and
children. The grubs must therefore have existed in the
boards or timbers before they were employed in building,
and these materials would not have been used if in a de-
cayed state. The sexes of most of these insects differ con-
siderably in size and color, and in the shape of their body
and of their hind legs. There are not many different kinds,
_ but they are very prolific, and abound in mountainous dis-
tricts, and in temperate climates, where forests of pines
and firs prevail. A new order was proposed for their
reception by Mr. Macleay, and was named Bomboptera, on
account of the humming sound that they make in flying.
Their young partake of the nature of the wood-eating
grubs of the capricorn beetles, which therefore they may
be said to represent, as the saw-flies do some of the leaf-
eating insects of the same order.
Eight of the URocrerip# are enumerated in my “ Cata-
logue of the Insects of Massachusetts,” including two kinds
of Xiphydria, which are now known to belong to the same
family.
In the autumn of 1826, Major E. M. Bartlett, of North-
ampton, ‘‘found, on the body of one of his almost lifeless
pear-trees, a dead insect, about one inch and a half long,
attached to the tree by its awl or borer, of about the same
length, near an inch of which was fast in the hard wood ;
and there were several deep punctures near it, evidently
made by the same instrument, and in some of them eggs
were deposited.” Not long afterwards Major Bartlett found
536 HYMENOPTERA.
that the body of this tree, two or three feet from the ground,
was pierced with many small holes, to the depth of an inch
or more, and in these holes there were great numbers of
larvee, about one sixth of an inch in length, which he sup-
_posed were hatched from the eggs seen there before; and
he came to the conclusion that the tree was “ destroyed
by the deadly needles of the winged insect”” above men-
tioned.* The latter was subsequently sent to me for exam-
ination, and enabled me to furnish an account of it, which,
with a description of the male insect, was published in Jan-
uary, 1827, in the fifth volume of the “ New England
Farmer.”
The insect proved to be the Strex Columba of Linnezus,
or ZTremex Columba of modern naturalists. Strex is a cor-
ruption of the Greek
Fig. 250. name for a wild bee;
Tremex signifies a per-
forator, or maker of
holes ; and Columba a
pigeon. The body of
the female (Fig. 250)
is cylindrical, about as
thick as a common lead-
pencil, and an inch and
a half or more in length,
exclusive of the borer,
which is an inch long,
and projects three eighths of an inch beyond the end of
the body. The latter rounds upwards, like the stem of
a boat, and is armed with a point or short horn. The
head and the thorax are rust-colored, varied with black.
The abdomen, or hinder and longest part of the body, is
black, with seven ochre-yellow bands across the back, all
of them but the first two interrupted in the middle. The
horned tail, and a round spot before it, impressed as if
* See New England Farmer, Vol. V. pp. 167, 175, 186, and 211.
THE PIGEON TREMEX. 537
La
with a seal, are ochre-yellow. The antenne are rather
short and blunt, rust-colored, with a broad black ring in
the middle. The wings expand two inches and a quarter,
or more; they are smoky brown and semitransparent. The
legs are ochre-yellow, with blackish thighs. The borer, awl,
or needle is as thick as a bristle, spear-pointed at the end,
and of a black color; it is concealed, when not in use,
between two narrow rust-colored side-pieces, forming a kind
of scabbard to it.
This insect is figured and described in the second volume
of the late Mr. Say’s ‘“* American Entomology.” The male
does not appear to have been described by any author ;
and, although agreeing, in some respects, with the two
other species represented by Mr. Say, is evidently distinct
from both of them. He is extremely unlike the female
in color, form, and size, and is not furnished with the re-
markable borer of the other sex. He is rust-colored, varie-
gated with black. His antenne are rust-yellow or blackish.
His wings are smoky, but clearer than those of the female.
His hind body is somewhat flattened, rather widest behind,
and ends with a conical horn. His hind legs are flattened,
much wider than those of the female, and of a_ blackish
color; the other legs are rust-colored, and more or less
shaded with black. The length of his body varies from
three quarters of an inch to one inch and a quarter; and
his wings expand from one inch and a quarter to two inches
or more.
An old elm-tree in this vicinity used to be a favorite
place of resort for the Zremex Columba, or pigeon Tremex ;
and around it great numbers of the insects were often col-
lected, during the months of July and August, and the
early part of September. Six or more females might fre-
quently be seen at once upon it, employed in boring into
the trunk and laying their egos, while swarms of the males
hovered around them. For fifteen years or more, some
large buttonwood-trees in Cambridge have been visited by
68
538 HYMENOPTERA.
them in the same way. The female, when about to lay
her eggs, draws her borer out of its sheath, till it stands
perpendicularly under the middle of her body, when she
plunges it, by repeated wriggling motions, through the bark
into the wood. When the hole is made deep enough, she
then drops an egg.therein, conducting it to the place by
means of the two furrowed pieces of the sheath. The borer
often pierces the bark and wood to the depth of half an
inch or more, and is sometimes driven in so tightly that
the insect cannot draw it out again, but remains fastened
to the tree till she dies. The eggs are oblong oval, pointed
at each end, and rather less than one twentieth of an inch
in length. The larva, or grub, is yellowish-white, of a
cylindrical shape, rounded behind, with a conical, horny
point on the upper part of the hinder extremity, and it
grows to the length of about an inch and a half. It is often
destroyed by the maggots of two kinds of ichneumon-flies
(Pimpla atrata and lunator (Fig. 251) of Fabricius). These
flies may frequently be seen thrusting their slender borers,
measuring from three to four inches in length, into the
trunks of trees inhabited by the grubs of the Tremex, and
by other wood-eating insects; and, like the female Tremex,
they sometimes become fastened to the trees, and die without
being able to draw their borers out again.
Urocerus albicornis, of Fabricius, the white-horned Uro-
cerus, has white antenne, longer and more tapering than
those of the pigeon Tremex, and black at each end. The
female is of a deep blue-black color, with an oval white
spot behind each eye, and another on each side of the
hinder part of the abdomen. ‘The horn on the tail is long,
and shaped like the head of a lance. The wings are smoky
brown, and semitransparent. The legs are black, with
white jomts. The body measures about an inch in length,
and the wings expand nearly two inches. The male has a
black head, with a white spot on each side, behind the eyes.
His thorax and legs are black. His abdomen is flattened,
THE PIMPLA LUNATOR. 539
and rust-colored, and ends with a flattened horny point. He
Fig. 251.
measures about an inch in leneth. This species, which
is not common, has been found on pine-trees in July.
540 HYMENOPTERA.
Urocerus nitidus,! the polished horn-tail, is an unde-
scribed species, for which I am indebted to the Rev. L.
W. Leonard. ‘The male is not known to me. The female
is of a deep blue color, downy on the head and thorax,
smooth and highly polished on the abdomen, the end of
which is armed with a flattened horny point. Her wings
are clear and perfectly transparent, with brownish veins,
and have only a faint smoky tinge towards the tip. Her
lees are ochre-yellow. The body of this insect measures
rather more than three quarters of an inch, exclusive of
the horn on the tail. This insect differs from the European
Urocerus Juvencus in the much greater brilliancy of its color,
and in having shorter antenne. ‘The borer of this and of
the preceding species resembles, in form and structure, that
of the pigeon 'Tremex, and is used in the same way.
Urocerus abdominalis,* the black and orange horn-tail,
of which only the male is known to me, has not been
described before. It is black, with the four middle seg-
ments of the abdomen deep orange. There is a pale yel-
low spot behind each eye; the front corners of the thorax
are pale brownish-yellow; and there are two minute yel-
lowish scales on the back part of the thorax. The abdo-
men is flattened and widened behind, and ends with a
flattened or triangular point. The antenne are long and
tapering, of a reddish brown color, with the two extremi-
ties black. The wings are transparent, with brown veins,
and are a little smoky at the tips. The first four legs are
ochre-yellow, with black thighs; and the hind legs are
black, with yellow knees and feet. This insect varies in
length from six tenths to more than three quarters of an inch.
It is found in July, on the trunks of the white pine.
Mr. Westwood has ascertained that the grubs of the
[1 Urocerus nitidus. This is the cyaneus of Fab. Syst. Piez. p. 50. — Norton.]
* So named from the great contrast in the colors of the abdomen. In my
“Catalogue” it stands under the genus Sirex of Linnzus, which is the same as
Urocerus of Geoffroy.
HORN-TAILED WOOD-WASPS. 541
insects belonging to the genus Xtphydria have the same .
form and habits as those of the horn-tailed wood-wasps.
The name comes from a word signifying a small sword,
in allusion to the borer of the female, which is shorter
than in the preceding horn-tails. The winged insects
have a rounded head, distant from the thorax, to the lower
part of which it is joined by a slender conical neck. The
body is nearly cylindrical, a little flattened, somewhat turned
up behind, and ends with an obtuse point. The antenne
are short, curved, and tapering at the end.
Xiphydria albicornis of my * Catalogue,” or the white-
horned Xiphydria, has white antennz with the two lowest
jomts black. The head is black, with a narrow white
line around each of the eyes, forming a large oval, inter-
rupted only in two places, on each side of the head. The
body is black, with a spot on the front corners of the tho-
rax, and six spots on each side of the abdomen, of a white
color. The legs are reddish yellow or honey-yellow, with
dusky feet. ‘The wings are transparent, and have blackish
veins. The body measures from six tenths to nearly three
quarters of an inch in length. This insect is found on
the trunks of trees of soft wood, in August.
Xiphydria mellipes of my ‘* Catalogue”’ may be merely
a variety of the preceding, from which it differs chiefly
in having only four white spots on each side of the abdo-
men. It is four tenths of an inch long. I am indebted
to the Rev. L. W. Leonard for specimens of these two
species.
The name of the genus Oryssus comes from a Greek
word signifying to dig holes. The insects belonging to it
differ considerably from the other Uroceride, but, from what
little is known respecting them, they appear to have the
same habits. They have a cylindrical body, almost rounded
behind, or bluntly pointed, and not distinctly horned. Their
heads are large, and very rough on the front. Their an-
tenne appear to come out of the mouth, being inserted
542 HYMENOPTERA.
close to it, under the outer angles of the visor; are rather
short, curved, and thread-like ; and are unequal in the num-
ber and size of the joints, in the two sexes. They have
a short and thick neck. Their borer is very slender, is
entirely concealed in a deep and narrow chink under the
hinder part of the body, and is coiled up at its base, so
that it can be darted out to some distance when extended.
The fore legs of the females are very thick, and have only
three joints to the feet; while the rest, as well as all of the
feet of the male, are five-jointed. Their wings have but
few veins and meshes in them. These insects are active,
fly quickly, and love to alight and run about on the sunny
side of the trunks of trees, wherein they are supposed to
lay their eggs.
For a long time, only two kinds of Oryssus were known
to naturalists, and both of them were European insects. In
the year 1833, three undescribed species were enumerated
in my ‘Catalogue of the Insects of Massachusetts”; and
these, in the second edition of the Catalogue, which was
published early in 1835, received the following descriptive
names, by means whereof an entomologist would find little
or no difficulty in recognizing them; namely, hemorrhoida-
lis, the red-tailed, maurus, the dark-colored, and affinis, the
allied, so called from its near resemblance to the preceding
species. These singular insects were taken upon a willow-
tree, by my friend, the Rev. L. W. Leonard, and were pre- .
sented to me many years ago.
The red-tailed Oryssus has been renamed and described,
by Mr. Newman, in the October number
of the fifth volume* of ‘The Entomologi-
cal Magazine,” published in London in
1838. It is. his Oryssus terminalis (Fig.
252). The female only is known to me.
Her body is black, rough before, and smooth
behind, with the last three segments of a blood-red color.
Fig. 252.
* Page 486.
THE POUR=WINGHD: .@ALL-FLIES. 548
The outer side of the fourth and fifth joints of her antenne,
her knees, and a line on the outer edge of her shins, are
white. Her feet are dull red. Her wings are clear and
transparent, with a broad, smoky-brown, transverse band,
beyond the middle of the first pair. Her body measures
nearly six tenths of an inch in length.
The dark-colored Oryssus is probably the same as one
described by Mr. Westwood, in 1835, in the fifth volume*
of “The Zodlogical Journal,’ under the name of Orvyssus
Say, in honor of the late Mr. Say, who sent lim the insect.
It is of a deep black color, rough before and smooth behind,
and is marked with white on the antennz and legs, like
the red-tailed kind, with the addition of two short white
lines on the forehead, between the lower corners of the
eyes. The feet are black. The wings have a smoky band
beyond the middle, which, however, fades away towards
the inner margin. I have seen only females of this species,
and they measure from four to five tenths of an inch in
leneth.
It is possible that my Oryssus affinis, which is a male,
may be the mate of the foregoing dark-colored species, from
which it differs in having reddish feet, and in wanting the
two white spots on the forehead. It measures four tenths
of an inch in length.
From this somewhat extended account, it is evident that
we have very little power over the insects of the foregoing
family. The most that we can do towards checking their
ravages will be to destroy the females, whenever they are
found laying their eggs.
The four-winged gall-flies have very little outward resem-
blance to the saw-flies and horn-tailed wood-wasps. They
agree with them, however, in boring into plants, and in
laying their egos therein. Vegetation does not often suffer
much injury from their attacks, and it is only on account
of the very singular productions, called galls, arising from
* Page 440.
544 HYMENOPTERA.
the irritating punctures of these insects, that the attention
of cultivators is at all likely to be drawn to them. There
are some two-winged flies, and also some other insects,
which produce various kinds of excrescences or galls on
plants; but these now under consideration are very small,
four-winged insects, belonging to the order Hymenoptera,
and distinguished by the following peculiarities. The head
is small; the antennz are rather short, slender, and thread-
like; and the thorax is thick and hunched. The abdomen
or hind body, viewed sidewise, appears round or oval, but
it is sharp-edged above and below, very thin or pinched
up at the sides, and is hung to the thorax by a very short
and slender stem. The fore wings are rather long, and
have only a few veins in them; the hind wings are small,
and seemingly veinless. The borer of the females is very
long, and slender, concealed in the under side of the hind
body, the curvature whereof it follows, and is capable of
being straightened and thrust out of a narrow chink, which
is covered by two little, grooved, sheath-like pieces, that
serve to conduct the eggs into the holes made with the
instrument.
The genus containing most of the gall-flies was called,
by Geoffroy, Diplolepis, that is, double scales, on account
of the two pieces that cover the opening for the borer in
the hinder part of the abdomen. The same insects, how-
ever, had previously been placed by Linnzeus in the genus
Cynips, so called from a word used by ancient authors to
designate some small piercing insect. The Linnean name,
though for some time rejected, has been restored to the gall-
flies, which accordingly are now included in a family called
Cynipipz. The punctures, made by these insects in the
leaves, buds, stems, and roots of plants, are followed by
swellings of the wounded parts, which increase rapidly in
size, and become spongy or pulpy within. The thin-skinned
eggs, dropped into the punctures, grow awhile, by absorb-
ing the sap around them, and, when at length they are
Gh Go nipeE Se 545
hatched, the little grubs, proceeding therefrom, find them-
selves comfortably bedded within the pulpy tumors, and
plentifully supplied with food on every side. They feed
on the vegetable substance immediately around them, come
to their growth in due time, cast their skins, and appear
first in the chrysalis and: then in the winged form, and
finally gnaw their way through the hard shell of the galls,
and come out into the open air. ‘There are a few of the
grubs, however, that leave the galls when fully grown, and
finish their transformations in the ground.
The grubs or young of the gall-flies are of a whitish
color, and somewhat resemble maggots, but are shorter
and thicker, and have a small, distinct head. They are
without proper legs, and move only by means of the swollen
edges of their rings, with the aid, it is said, of certain little
contractile warts on their bodies, that serve them instead
of feet. There are almost as many kinds of galls as there
are species of gall-flies; and each species confines its
attacks to some one sort of plant, and to some particular
part thereof. It is wonderful that there should be such a
diversity in the forms and texture of the galls of insects
so nearly resembling each other in form and structure;
and, on the other hand, that each species of gall-fly should
invariably produce galls of the same kind. Many galls are
very irregular and uneven, others are round and resemble
fruits; some are smooth, others are beset with prickles,
or covered with a woolly substance; some hang by little
stems, others are perfectly flat, and adhere closely to the
surface of leaves. At first they are soft or spongy within,
but after some time they become hard, and almost or quite
woody. The eggs of some gall-flies do not hatch till the
galls begin to grow hard on the outside; this is the rea-
son why we do not find any insects within certain kinds
of galls, so long as they remain soft and unripe.
The round and hard Aleppo galls, or nutgalls of com-
merce, used in the making of ink, in coloring, and in med-
69
546 HYMENOPTERA.
icine, are caused by the punctures of the Cynips galle
tinctorie on a kind of oak growing in the western part
of Asia; and the insect may often be found in those which
are not pierced with holes. Some galls contain only a
single insect, lodged in a little cavity in the centre; other
kinds are inhabited by several grubs, each in a cell by
itself, and the cells not unfrequently resemble numerous
small seeds, clustered together in the middle of a fruit.
Two or three different kinds of insects are often found to
come from one gall, namely, a few gall-flies, which are
the lawful proprietors thereof, and more numerous four-
winged flies (CHALCIDIDZ), with elbowed antenne. The
latter are bred from grubs, which devour the grubs of
some of the gall-flies, or starve them by eating up their
food, and thereby contribute to check the too great increase
of the gall-flies.
The largest galls found in this country are commonly
called oak-apples. They grow on the leaves of the red
oak, are round and smooth, and measure from an inch
and a half to two inches in diameter. This kind of gall
(Plate VIII. Fig. 9) is green and somewhat pulpy at
first, but when ripe it consists of a thin and brittle shell,
of a dirty drab color, enclosing a quantity of brown spongy
matter, in the middle of which is a woody kernel about
as big as a pea. A single grub
(Fig 253, magnified) lives in
the kernel, becomes a chrysalis
— (Fig. 254) in the autumn, when
| the oak-apple falls from the tree,
Fig. 253. Fig. 254.
changes to a fly in the spring,
and makes its escape out of a
small round hole which it gnaws
through the kernel and shell. This is probably the usual
course, but I have known this gall-fly to come out in Octo-
ber. The name of this insect is Cynips confluens.* (Plate
* Diplolepis confluentus of my Catalogue, and so named by Mr. Say.
DH Be Wome OMAK ene AG L= EL Y . 5AT
VIII. Fig. 10.) Its head and thorax are black, and are
rough with numerous little pits and short hairs ; the hind
body is smooth, and of a shining pitch-color ; the legs are
dull brownish red; and the fore wings have a brown spot
near the middle of the outer edge. Its body is nearly one
quarter of an inch long, and its wings expand five eighths
of an inch.
A dwarf oak (Quercus infectoria), growing on the borders
of the Dead Sea, produces galls somewhat like the forego-
ing, which have been supposed to be the apples of Sodom,
described by ancient writers as fruits fair to the view, but
crumbling into dust when handled. A late writer,* how-
ever, has shown that these tempting and deceptive produc-
tions are the real fruits of a tree, the