An Artificial Diet for Rearing the Salt Marsh Caterpillar, Estigmene acrea (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae), with Notes on the Biology of the Species12

Abstract
Between 1964 and 1965, 12 generations of salt marsh caterpillars, Estigmene acrea (Drury), were successfully reared at Riverside, California, on a semisynthetic diet. Of the criteria measured, the percentage pupation and fertility and the number of eggs laid were the most variable; little difference was noted in sex ratio, pupal weights, percentage emergence, or number of adult deformities. A cup and a tray method for rearing the insect are described. The biology of reproduction of adults was also investigated. Mating behavior appears to be complex and is variable between given pairs of moths.