THE LESSER LUTESTRING. 91 



the feast prepared for Noctua: so frequently as other members 

 of this family. It is known to occur, chiefly in woods, in Kent, 

 Surrey, Sussex, and Hampshire in the south ; Essex and 

 Suffolk in the east ; also in Worcestershire (Wyre Forest), and 

 Herefordshire ; in the Barnsley and Sheffield districts of York- 

 shire ; and it has been reported from Cumberland. In Ireland 

 it is rare and only recorded from Killarney, Kerry, and Sligo. 

 Abroad it occurs in Central Europe, the range extending to 

 Southern Scandinavia, and to South-east Russia. 



>■*/ \^^ The Lesser Lutestring {Asphaha diluta). 



' V^ The fore wings are whitish or greyish, and sometimes tinged 

 with brown ; crossed by two brownish bands. Variation is 

 chiefly in the tint of the bands and also in their width and 

 definition. In var. nubilata, which occurs in Yorkshire, the 

 general colour of the fore wings is darker than normal, and 

 there is a basal patch and three cross-bands of reddish or 

 purplish brown (Plate 39, Figs. 5, 6). 



Caterpillar, yellowish above and greyish beneath ; a dusky 

 line along the middle of the back, and one, dotted with black, 

 low down on the sides ; head dark brown, almost blackish. It 

 feeds in May and June on oak, but only at night ; it constructs 

 a leafy chamber in which it sits tight during the day, and is 

 not easily evicted unless its apartment is forcibly opened. The 

 reddish chrysalis is enclosed in a flimsy cocoon between, or 

 among, leaves. Although September is the month during 

 which the moth usually emerges, it is sometimes seen earlier. 

 It is so partial to sugar, that it may often be seen at an old 

 patch before the new feast has been set out for the evening 

 entertainment. The species is fairly well distributed through- 

 out England and Wales, and most common in the south of 

 the former country. It extends into Southern Scotland, but 



