20 



June, 



September 28th, when eleven wont under tho moss, and the remaining two con- 

 tinued feeding until October 14th, and then retired for the winter. Judging from 

 their present diminished size, they must feed again for their transformation to be a 

 successful one as regards their dimensions. They fed upon sallow, and would 

 frequently eat decaying leaves, although well supplied with fresh ones. — Id. 



Description of the larva of Hadena rectilinea. — On the 23rd of last September, 

 Mr. Doubleday most kindly presented me with several nearly full-grown larva? of 

 this species ; and subseqiiently Mr. N. Cooke obliged me Avith another variety, 

 reared from the same batch of eggs, which ho obtained from a ? taken at Eaunoch 

 last summer. 



They continued to feed well, as long as any sallow (the plant upon which they 

 wci-e feeding when I received them) could be procured for them ; and, about tlio 

 end of October, one individual retired to a sUglit hollow on the surface of the earth, 

 and spun itself over with a semi-transparent web, in which, now (at the end of 

 March,) it is still coiled up and visible. 



One or two of the others died in Februaiy : the rest are still attached to 

 the top of their cage, and, during the last few weeks, have occasionally crawled 

 about a little, but apparently without feeding on any of the various leaves and 

 willow shoots supplied to them ; they have now lost much of their sleekness, and 

 tho segmental divisions appear contracted. The following is a description of 

 their condition at the end of Scjitember. 



Larva sliglitlj^ tapering towards the head, with a transparent ridge or hump 

 across the back of tho twelfth segment. The dorsal and sub-dorsal lines grey, and 

 very thin, edged with blackish ; and the inner edges of the sub-dorsaJ, at the 

 front of each segment from the fourth, diverges, thus forming a dusky oblique 

 streak on each side of the segment, pointing behind to the centre of the back at 

 the segmental division. The colours of the back are of rich dark browns, others of 

 chestnut browns, and others of ochreous and orange browns. On the back of each 

 segment, fi-om the fourth to the twelfth inclusive, are paler wedge shaped streaks 

 on each side, viz. : — a short one on each side anteriorly, pointing backwards, and a 

 long one on each side posteriorly, pointing forwards ; thus giving somewhat of a 

 diamond form to the dai'kest brown of tho back. Ordinary spots pale, each con- 

 taining a central black dot, and placed moro on the anterior portion of each 

 segment than is usual with the Noctuina in general. A broad deep brown stripe 

 along the sides, mottled and streaked, and slightly edged below with darker colour, 

 and along tliis are placed the very small white spiracles which are edged with 

 blackish. Above the first is a rather broad lateral stripe, commencing next the 

 head with a pale ochreous or cream colour, blending gradually at the fourth 

 segment into a grey-brown, and re-appearing, similarly of the same tint, on the 

 twelfth and thirteenth segments, and sides of the anal pro-legs. 



Belly dusky-brown. Head blackish-brown and iridescent. 



The sides of these velvety looking creatures are clothed with an exccscively 

 fine and soft pubescence, which, more or less, includes the ventral pro-legs, and 

 assumes the most delicate tints of bright azure, according to the angle of reflected 

 light in which they are seen. — W. Buckler, March, 1865. 



