PROC. ENTOMOL. SOC. WASH. 86(2), 1984, pp. 411-421 THE LARVAE AND PUPAE OF THREE PHYCITINE SPECIES (LEPIDOPTERA: PYRALIDAE) THAT OCCUR IN FLORIDA' Larry R. Grimes and H. H. Neunzig Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27650. Abstract.— The last stage larvae and the pupae of Hypargyria slossonella (Hulst), Davara caricae (Dyar), and Sarasota plumigerella Hulst are described. Larvae of these species were collected from Hippocratea volubilis L., Carica papaya L. and Coccoloba uvifera (L.), respectively. Information on feeding behavior and seasonal occurrence of the 3 species is included. Heinrich's 1956 revision of the Phycitinae included many species found in tropical America. We provide information on the immature stages of three of these phycitines that occur in the United States in southern Florida. Of these, Hypargyria slossonella (Hulst) feeds as a larva on Hippocratea volubilis L., and appears to be of no economic importance; however, one of the others, Davara caricae (Dyar) is a pest of the fruit of papaya {Carica papaya L.) (Bruner et al., 1945), and the third, Sarasota plumigerella Hulst, feeds on the leaves, flowers, and seed capsules of sea grape {Coccoloba uvifera (L.)), which is sometimes used in ornamental plantings. Materials and Methods Insects included in this study were all collected as larvae from host plants. Notes were made of feeding damage at the time larvae were collected, and photographs of feeding injury were taken either in the field or upon returning to the laboratory. A small number of the last stage larvae present at the time of collection were killed in hot water, and subsequently fixed and preserved in Kahle's fluid; the remaining larvae were reared to obtain pupae and adults. Pupae were fixed and preserved like the larvae. Larvae were reared in either Ziplock? plastic bags or large plastic refrigerator trays containing part of the host plant and usually a small amount of moist sand. Following adult emergence, genitalia slides were prepared of representative spec-imens and identifications made following Heinrich (1956). Information on the color of living larvae is given in parentheses. All other color descriptions are based on preserved larvae and pupae. The setal nomenclature foflows Hinton (1946) for larvae, and Neunzig and Merkel (1967) for pupae. Measurements are for preserved specimens. The widths of the larval head ' Paper No. 8700 of the Journal Series of the North Carolina Agricultural Research Service, Raleigh, North Carolina 27650.
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