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Smeared Dagger
This is probably the commonest species of the genus. It occurs from eastern Canada to Florida and westward to the Rocky Mountains. The larva feeds on a great variety of shrubs and herbaceous plants. It never is found upon trees. It is very fond of the various species of smart-weed (Polygonum), and in the fall of the year it is very abundant in places where this plant grows. It does some damage to cotton-plants in the South, but by handpicking it can easily be kept under. The cocoon, which is composed of yellowish silk, is long and oval. There are two broods in the Middle States. The hibernating insects emerge from their cocoons in May, and lay their eggs. The caterpillars develop and the second brood of moths appears upon the wing in July. They oviposit and the caterpillars of this generation, having made their cocoons, pass the winter in the pupal state.