SCIENTIFIC SURVEY. yji 



■worm. The Agrotes or Dart moths have broad tips to the palpi, 

 their antennae pectinated, and the spaces between the dot and 

 reniform spots dark and conspicuous. The larvae are the noxious 

 cuts worms. They lead to the Mamestrae, which usually have a 

 W in the middle of the outer line of the primaries ; they have rather 

 broad wings, and are of large size. The larvae are long, cylindri- 

 cal and naked. Gortyna, the spindle-worm and its allies, have 

 somewhat falcated wings. The Acontians are small, slender bodied, 

 often white species, which fly in the day time about flowerS. Xylina 

 and Oucullia are large dart moths, with tufted fronts. Flusia is 

 marked with silver spots. 



The previous groups of genera have stout, blunt palpi, and narrow 

 wings ; but the Gafucalae have broad wings, filiform antennae, and 

 long, slender palpi, which reach often beyond the top of the head. 

 Moreover, the larvae are elongated, and have fourteen legs, and a 

 semi-looping gait, approaching closely to Geometrids. Catocala 

 is very large, with gray fore wings, and beautifully scarlet, vermil- 

 lion, or black striped secondaries. Erebus odor a is a gigantic 

 species, dark as night and faintly banded. Homoptera lunata and 

 allies are similar but much smaller broad winged Noctuae. 



Noctuae can be taken at dusk flying about flowers, and they enter 

 open windows in the evening and night in large numbers, attracted 

 by the light within. When lighted on the table under the lamp a 

 slight tap with a ruler will kill them without injuring the speci- 

 mens. In warm, foggy evenings they come in in great numbers. 

 July and August are the best mouths for this family, but many 

 species occur only in autumn, while others hybernate and are taken 

 early in the spring. "Moths are extremely susceptible of any 

 keenness in the air ; a north or east wind is very likely to keep 

 them from venturing abroad. Different species have different hours 

 of flight. Thus, on a mild and dark November evening Pcedlo- 

 campa populi will occupy from seven to ten o'clock, after which it 

 will "make way 'for Petasia cassinea, which will fly till one or two 

 o'clock in the morning. I have, for experiment's sake, sat up in the 

 summer till three o'clock, when the whole heavens were bright with 

 the rising sun, and moths of various kinds have never ceased arriv- 

 ing in succession till that time. Some of these must come from a 

 considerable distance : Scotophila porphyrea, being a heath-moth, 

 must come nearly a mile." Bird. 



" In April the willows come into bloom. In the day time they 



