84 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



fulvoldrta may safely 

 be allowed to rank 

 as a species — at the 

 most it is probably 

 only a local form, 

 and the only definite 

 distinction seems to 

 be that obliqua has 

 the ground colour of 



S. fidvohirta, ordinary accepted form. & mQre creamy dnge 



The tendency of this genus to vary is well known, and for 

 dark forms to inhabit mountainous districts is in accordance with 

 the ordinary rule — being probably on account of the greater 

 humidity and moisture experienced there. Further experiments 

 will doubtless elicit the truth, and, as the species is easily reared, 

 we may hope that very shortly the question will be decided 

 definitely. 



Walking in the paddocks when the bright sunshine, the 

 golden scented wattles, and the'warmth of early spring make all 

 nature look fresh and joyous, we may often observe among the 

 dew-sprinkled grass a number of large caterpillars clothed with a 

 dense garment of soft hairs. The markings and colouration vary 

 with the age of the caterpillar ; when young the general aspect is 

 golden, but the older ones have more black about them. These 

 are the larvae of Pterolocera amplicomis. They feed upon the grass, 

 and when full fed, which is generally in October (though I have 

 met with stragglers much later), they construct a tough cocoon 

 just under the surface of the ground or among loose strips of bark, 

 being partial to those places somewhat moist. In this retreat the 

 pupa remains inactive throughout the summer months, and it is 

 not until the fierce heats have given way to the autumn rains that 

 the perfect insects emerge. The male, though having no very 

 brilliant colouring, is nevertheless a very beautiful object, its chief 

 characteristic being the antennae, which are plumose to a very 

 high degree. It has the rapid, bounding flight of the true Bombyx, 

 and is hard to procure in good condition unless by breeding. The 

 female is a very marked contrast, being quite wingless, and of a 

 brownish-black colour; she is perforce content to crawl about 

 among the newly springing grass, and concentrates all her energies 

 upon the task of depositing her ova in suitable situations, which 

 being accomplished, she dies, having performed her allotted work 

 in the great system of nature. The perfect insects are out in 

 April and May, and are widely distributed. 



Another species of grass-feeding larvae frequently found in 

 company with amplicomis is Darala denliculata (Newm.), but in 

 this species both sexes have the wings fully developed. The larvse 

 are hairy but very variable as regards colour and markings. 





