BRITISH AXD EUROPEAN BUTTERFLIES AXD MOTHS. 



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abdomen is ashy grey, with a white anal tuft 

 in the male. The antennae are setiform, not 

 ciliated. The moth appears in May and June 

 and in August, and frequents damp meadows 

 in the northern parts of Central Europe. In 

 England it is only known about the fens of 

 Cambridgeshire. The larva is black, spotted 

 with grey, has four pale yellow longitudinal 

 stripes spotted with orange, and is thickly 

 covered with hairy tubercles. It lives in June 

 and in Autumn on Lysimachia and grasses, 

 and weaves a thin cocoon with pieces of grass 

 bound together with silk. The pupa is small 

 and dark brown. 



Genus Demas, Steph. 



Fore wings with rounded tips and hind mar- 

 gins, and with indistinct markings. Nervures 7, 

 8, and 10 rise from the appendicular cell, and 

 9 from 8. The hind wings are without mark- 

 ings. Nervures 3 and 4, and 6 and 7 rise 

 from a point. The antennse are bipectinated. 

 The head and thorax are woolly. The ab- 

 domen is short, with hairy tufts. The only 

 species is: — 



D. coryli, Linn. The Nut-tree Tussock. PI. 

 XXIII. fig. 5. This moth is found in Central 

 and Northern Europe, but is not very common. 

 It is on the wing in May and June. The larva 

 is uniform pale yellow or flesh-coloured, slightly 

 hairy, with two long red tufts of hair on the 

 second segment, and one on the last but one. 

 It lives from August to October on oak, lime, 

 and hazel. The pupa is black in front, reddish 

 brown behind, and is placed between leaves 

 spun together. ,, 



FAMILY 



ACRONYCTID^. 



Antennae simple, shortly ciliated in the 

 males. Thorax rounded in front, with raised 

 crests. Legs hairy, the tibiae not spurred. 

 Nervures 7 and 10 of the fore wings rise from 

 the appendicular cell; 8 and 9 from 7. Ner- 

 vure 5 of the hind wings is slender, and 7 

 rises from the anterior angle of the discoidal 

 cell. The larvae have hairy warts, and often 

 fleshy tubercles or tufts of hair. They weave 

 a firm cocoon, and usually bury themselves in 

 rotten wood or bark; some cork, turf, or soft 



pieces of wood should therefore be placed in 

 the breeding cage. 



Genus Acronycta, Ochs. 



Fore wings generally broad, the hind 

 margins somewhat contracted at the hinder 

 angle, with slightly waved fringes. The fore 

 wings are usually grey, varied with darker. 

 The hind wings are without markings, except 

 an indistinct curved line. The antennae are 

 short and ciliated, or simple. The head and 

 thorax have depressed hair, and the abdomen 

 is without dorsal crests. 



A. leporina, Linn. The Miller. PL XXIII. 

 fig. 6. Larva 6a. appears from May to July, 

 and is common in woods in Central and 

 Northern Europe. The larva is yellowish or 

 greenish, with long, thickly set erect hairs. 

 It lives from August till September on birch, 

 willow, alder, poplar, and other trees. The 

 pupa is dark brown, with a short terminal 

 point, and is formed in rotten wood in a cocoon 

 made of splinters. 



A. aceris, Linn. The Sycamore Moth. 

 PI. XXIII. fig. 7. is common throughout Eu- 

 rope in June. The larva is yellow, with long 

 thick hair, a row of white spots on the back, 

 edged with black, and black spiracles. It 

 feeds on horse-chestnut, sycamore, maple, oak, 

 etc. The pupa, which is reddish brown, is 

 enclosed in a tough cocoon made with hair. 



A. megacephala, W. V. The Poplar Grey. 

 Fore wings light grey, varied with black, es- 

 pecially near the anterior transverse line (which 

 is thus rendered indistinct), behind the posterior 

 transverse line and the orbicular stigma, which 

 has a dark centre. The two black longitudinal 

 lines on nervure ib. and the reniform stigma 

 are consequently also rendered indistinct. The 

 fringes are chequered with black and grey. 

 Hind wings white or greyish, with dark ner- 

 vures, a darker interrupted marginal line, 

 and faintly chequered fringes. It is common 

 throughout Europe in May and June, especially 

 in poplar avenues. The larva is blackish, with 

 a large head. The back is thickly sprinkled 

 with yellow dots, with an oblong black-mar- 

 gined spot on the twelfth segment, and small 

 rust-coloured warts with red hair over the 

 whole body, the hair being longest on the 

 sides. It lives on poplar from August to Sep- 



