638 C. B. HARDENBKRG. 



deposited by the parent moth, make them probably less easily 

 detected. In addition to this, the young larvae, being small, 

 find their food close at hand, and there is no necessity for 

 travelling in search of food. 8ince it is the movement of an 

 object which attracts attention, this certain amount of immo- 

 bility on the part of the first instar larva doubtless aids in its 

 protection. With succeeding moults the necessity for protec- 

 tion, especially in the case of exposed feeders, becomes greater, 

 and therefore most remarkable changes in colour-pattern and 

 armament make their appearance. In the case of the Bom- 

 bycine, Lymantrid, and Lasiocampid moths, there is 

 an enormous development of secondary hair which obscures the 

 position of the primary setae. In many of these we have 

 found that this secondary hair is either absent iu the first 

 instar or so feebly developed as to allow the primary setae to 

 be recognised with certainty. In other cases, as in the 

 Saturniid^e, where the colour-pattern shows a great diversity 

 in the various species, the first instars (when no colour-pattern 

 has yet been developed) of the larvte of the diiferent species 

 look remarkably alike. 



We have thus endeavoured, wherever possible, to obtain 

 the first instars of the caterpillars, and have described tliem 

 in detail. In a good many cases, however, this has not been 

 possible, since the bagworms as a rule do not mate readily in 

 captivity. This article is based on the results of a couple of 

 seasons' breeding only, and there will be necessarily many 

 gaps which remain to be filled in by subsequent investigation. 



III. DETAILED ACCOUNT OF SPECIES. 

 1. Acanthopsyche junodi {Heylaerts). 



The Wattle Bagworm — Fam. Psychidee. 



This species is by far the most common bagworm in Natal, 

 and is probably one of the most widely distributed through 

 South Africa. It has been found from near Port Elizabeth 

 (Cape Colony) to the Groot Spelonken in the Zoutpansberg- 



