THE (JENUS ACKONVCTA AND ITS ALLIES, 5 



The \oung lar\ai are usually to be found in the wild state, 

 several together on adjacent leaves or branches, showing that 

 the eggs, though laid separately, are generally laid in little 

 groups. 



In the 2nd skin, the larva presents the same general facies 

 as in the first. In the 3rd and 4th, it has another aspect, 

 having largely lost the alternation of dark and light segments, 

 and gained the long hairs, which are, however, straight, and 

 not very long or thick. In 5th (and 6th) it has the adult 

 plumage of long flowing hairs. This division into three stages 

 is very decided, and not precisely paralleled in any other 

 species. When well grown in the 2nd skin the length is 

 5-6 mm., head small, black ; the dark segments are pinkish or 

 fusco-rufous instead of blackish, the pale are yellow, the 

 tubercles have 4 to 6 hairs. It keeps its full width backwards 

 to the I2th segment, indeed it almost looks broader behind, 

 and is flat on the dorsum, giving a very square outline. The 

 sides are marbled, pale rufo-fuscous and whitish-yellow, the 

 hairs are pale laterally — dorsally they follow the colour of the 

 tubercles. Dorsally, 2nd segment fusco-rufous, tubercles 

 black ; 3rd the same ; 4 and 5 fusco-rufous, tubercles black — 

 a trace of a subdorsal yellow line ; 6th yellow, darker laterally 

 and a little darker to hind margin, tubercles yellow dorsally, 

 laterally rufous ; 7.8 and g fusco-rufous with black tubercles — 

 a paler line below the posterior trapezoidal ; 10 and 11 yellow, 

 tubercles so pale as to be invisible and marked only b\' weaker 

 hairs ; 12, pink, with black cruciform tubercles ; 13, rufous, 

 tubercles black : 14, yellow, tubercles black. When half 

 grown, the larva already suggests somewhat the adult aspect, 

 when it curls round so as to make the lateral hairs of jrd 

 and 6th segments meet. 



In the 3rd skin, there are now numerous yellow hairs 

 spreading laterally, some nearly half the length of the larva ; 

 they are still, however, the spreading tufts on the tubercles. 

 The skin presents no very marked distinction of light and dark 

 segments, but the difference still exists in the tubercles of 4, 

 7.8.9 and 12 being black, although their spiracular ones have 

 yellow hairs, also the trapezoidal tubercles of 2.3, 5 and 13 are 

 black — all the rest are yellow. The hairs also of the anterior- 

 trapezoidals of 3.4-5, 7-8.9 and 12 are black and stand up tuft- 

 like, especially so on 5, 7 and 12. A black hair or two (but 

 no tuft) exists also on the anterior trapezoidals of 6 and 

 10, and on the posterior trapezoidals of the dark segments 



