134< [November, 



E. stachydalls. The larva lives in a sort o£ tube, formed cither 

 by turning down the tip of a leaf, and folding it closely on to the 

 under surface with a quantity of silk, or else by drawing together a 

 fold of the under surface, and covering it over with a thick silken 

 web, in either case leaving an opening at each end ; in such a retreat, 

 it seems to live quietly by day, and comes out at night to feed on the 

 remaining portions of the same leaf ; so that as it grows it must move 

 from leaf to leaf. I think I found most of the larvae low down on 

 the plants of Stach/s, for though I found several webs on the 

 upper leaves, they were generally empty. The larva eats large holes 

 quite through the substance of the leaf, thus giving conspicuous marks 

 of its presence, and leaving the ribs and the margin untouched : when 

 full-fed, it quits the plant in search of a suitable hiding-place, in which 

 to spin its cocoon for passing the winter. 



The smallest larva I chanced to meet with, was about f inch long, 

 and possessing all the characters of those more mature. The full grown 

 larva is about -| inch in length, with the true Pyralis contour, thickest 

 in the middle of the body, the segments well defined and plump, es- 

 pecially on the belly, and on the back sub-divided by a transverse 

 wrinkle, the head small, and projecting forwards in a line with the 

 body, the ventral legs slender, furnished with rather spreading hooked 

 feet, the anal pair extended behind the body. In colour, the head is 

 whitish with the least possible flesh tinge, the mouth brownish, the 

 ocelli blackish, the second segment whitish with a triangular broadish 

 spot behind of bright transparent green ; from this starts the conspi- 

 cuous dorsal stripe of the same colour, more or less dark, of uniform 

 width to near the anal extremity, where it narrows a little by degrees 

 and is seen to be pulsating ; on either side of this, is a broad rather 

 ragged edged stripe, quite attenuated anteriorly and a little posteriorly, 

 of 2^ure opaque white, bearing a few minute freckles transversely near 

 the front of each segment ; the segmental folds pure white ; below 

 on the side is an uniformly broadish stripe of transparent green, darker 

 in some parts than in others, and along its lower edge the tracheal 

 thread of whitish can be seen beneath tlie skin, on which are the small 

 round black spiracles ; the belly and legs are pale, the former of a semi- 

 pellucid faint greenish tint, yet withal having a most delicate flesh 

 tinge, the latter pellucid ; the tubercular warts are raised, their centres 

 green and glittering, each bearing a fine hair ; the whole skin of the 

 larva is lustrous as the clearest glass. 



When full-fed, it by degrees loses all its previous details of 



