VI 



HETEROCERA PSYCHIDAE 



393 



therein, and inside, also, their former pupa-skin ; and here the 

 young hatch ; the peculiar little larvae are very numerous, and it is 

 suggested that they make a first meal on the body of their parent, 

 but this we believe has not been satisfactorily ascertained. 

 Great differences as to the condition of the legs, antennae, etc., 

 are said to exist in species of the same genus. There is also a 

 remarkable diversity in the pupae of the females ; the male sex 

 being normal in this respect. Some of the female pupae are 

 destitute of wing-sheaths and all other appendages, while others 

 are said to possess them, though there are no wings at all in 

 the imago (Fumea, e.g.}. 1 Great difficulties attend the study of 

 these case-bearing Insects, and several points require careful 



FIG. 196. Metamorphosis of Monda rhdbdophora. Ceylon. A, Larva in case, nat. 

 size ; B, larva itself, magnified : C, case of female during pupation ; D, case of male 

 during pupation ; E, female pupa, magnified ; F, male moth, nat. size ; G, female 

 moth, magnified. (From unpublished drawings by Mr. E. E. Green). 



reconsideration, amongst them the one we have just mentioned. 

 The males fly rapidly in a wild manner, and may sometimes 

 be met with in swarms ; their lives are believed to be very brief, 

 rarely exceeding a couple of days, and sometimes being limited 

 to a few hours. 



The larvae are called basket-worms, and their baskets or 

 cases are well worthy of attention. Their variety is remark- 

 able ; the most extraordinary are some of the genus Apterona 

 Tig. 197, B, which perfectly resemble the shells of Molluscs 

 such as snails ; indeed, the specimens in the collection at 

 the British Museum were sent there as shells. This case is not, 

 like those of other Psychidae, constructed of earth or vegetable 

 matter, but is of silk and is in texture and appearance exactly 

 1 Heylaerts, op. cit. p. 55. 



