30 



calm June evening. The female, a larger, yellow insect, scatters her 

 eggs broadcast over the grass, and when they hatch, the young 

 larvae descend to the roots of the grass on which they feed, and 

 pastures may sometimes suffer damage by their ravages. Clisio- 

 canipa )ienstria, L. (The Lackey), was and may again become a 

 serious orchard pest. The larvae when young, and indeed until 

 they are nearly full-fed, are gregarious, living in a common web, 

 from which they sally forth and devour the surrounding foliage ; 

 an apple tree with its branches stripped l)y them was at one. time 

 no uncommon sight. The species however advertises its presence so 

 well that it is our own fault if we let it at any time get the 

 upper hand. The grey-brown eggs are laid in summer in clusters 

 around the tree twigs, and when the leaves fall in autumn may be 

 easily seen and removed. The webs formed by the larvae, although 

 not very conspicuous, are not difficult to detect if sought for, and 

 the handsome blue-headed larva when full-fed is an object not easily 

 overlooked, thus during all these stages it is easily seen and may be 

 destroyed. 



Ni/f/iiiia pIiGfonhoea, Don., which we have so long erronously 

 called Kiiproctis chrj/snrrhnea (the Brown-tail), is a pure white moth 

 of about an inch and a half in expanse and has a large anal tuft of 

 silky brown hairs. Like the last named species its larvae are 

 gregarious during the greater part of their life and live chiefly on 

 blackthorn, on which plant their winter " nests" are conspicuous 

 objects, and with their enlargement as spring advances even more so. 

 The species is of fitful occurrence in this country, sometimes for a 

 few years being practically, if not completely, absent, then it begins 

 to be found again and for a series of years may become more and 

 more common until it reaches a state of great abundance. At such 

 a time it soon consumes all the food that the bushes on which it 

 has wintered afford, it then sallies forth in search of fresh sus- 

 tenance and on its way consumes practically anything that it comes 

 across ; hawthorn, bramble, even sea-buckthorn are consumed. 

 I have seen acres where every bush has been stripped by them. ^ It 

 is said that apple orchards have sufi'ered by its depredations and it 

 is quite conceivable, that at a tune of its abundance as just described, 

 it might be the cause of very serious injury to them. Leiicmim 

 chrysorrhaea,Li., = iiii)iilis, Faes, = aitiif1ita, Fiih. (The Gold-tail), is 

 very similar in appearance but has a bright yellow, instead of 

 brown, anal tuft. The larvae may do some damage in orchards by 

 gnawing the buds of the trees in the early spring, and I have found 

 them in the autumn before hibernation feeding in companies on the 

 skin of the apple fruit while still on the tree, thus causing it to be 

 useless for keeping.'* 



8 " Proc. South London Ent. Nat. Hist. ,Soc.," 1907., p 12, 

 * "Entomologist.," iyi7., p. 279. 



