1882.] 153 



transparent, the anal plate is blackist on the front and side margins, 

 brownish-grey behind, the belly has a brownish-ochreous tinge and 

 somewhat of this modifies the darker chocolate-brown of the back, 

 assimilating well with the few old decaying leaves in spring that can 

 yet be found lingering on in the haunts of the insect. 



The cocoon, formed by the larva that was prematurely full-fed, 

 on withering leaves of sallow, on the 10th of November, was of a 

 roundish oval figure, composed of greyish-drab coloured silk, spun on 

 the under-side of one of the leaves and joined in part to another, the 

 silken surface exposed to view became in course of the night follow- 

 ing finished off with a number of small particles of greenish leaf 

 sprinkled irregularly over it, and adhering, gave just the speckled 

 aspect the under-side of the sallow leaf presented so often at that 

 time, both leaf stalks were fastened to the twigs with thick moorings 

 of silk, and one end of the cocoon being attached to the vessel wherein 

 it was kept for observation, seemed suggestive of an innate habit 

 under favouring circumstances of securing the cocoon to some fixed 

 object ; a day later it became needful for its removal to sever this 

 attachment, causing a hole, exposing much of the larva to view and 

 allowing me to note its already changing colour, but it was quite 

 equal to the mishap, for within a few hours it spun a quantity of silk 

 over the hole and prevented any further observation. 



The above exceptioual instance induces me to add that all the 

 other larvae oi flammealis remaining alive in spring spun themselves 

 up during the last few days in May, both with Mr. Jeffrey and myself, 

 and that one of mine was in an oval cocoon of 13 by 6 mm. diameters, 

 covered with particles of earth and of dead leaf, half sunk in the soil 

 and attached to a dead leaf lying on the surface above with other 

 leaves matted together ; another cocoon had but little earth in its 

 covering, and was chiefly composed of decayed leaf of hornbeam and 

 hazel, situated partly within a curled-up leaf of the former kind to 

 which and to a little moss it was fastened : another, was a most clever 

 adaptation of the lower part of a dead sallow leaf with foot stalk 

 remaining, the edges of the leaf having been drawn round to meet, 

 and fastened with silk formed a hollow cone, which at the open end 

 had been stopped with grey -brown silk and the interior smoothly lined 

 with similar material ; in this the old larval skin lay next the foot stalk 

 at the pointed end, and the tail of the pupa next, altogether 15 mm. 

 in length. 



The pupa itself is 81 mm. long, its general figure very much of 

 ordinary form, the head and eye-pieces moderately well developed, the 



