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Melittia Satyriniformis

The larva of the insect is commonly known as the "Squash-borer," or the "Pumpkin-borer." The insect has an extensive range from New England to the Argentine States. It attacks the Cucurbitaceae generally, laying the eggs upon all parts of the plant, but preferably upon the stems, into which the caterpillar bores, and in which it develops until the time of pupation, when it descends into the ground, makes a cell beneath the surface in which it hibernates, and is transformed into a chrysalis the following spring. The moths emerge, according to locality, from June to August. It is said to be double-brooded in the southern parts of our region, but is single-brooded in the Northern States.