THE BROWN-TAIL. 99 



blackish. Ahogether it is a pretty creature, and as it is, or was 

 previous to the modern '' washing," common in hop gardens at 

 picking time, it was christened the "hop dog." It may be 

 found from July to September on the foliage of birch, hazel, 

 oak, and many other trees, as well as on hop. The moth 

 appears in May and June, and rests by day on herbage, 

 especially on bracken in woods (see Fig. 6, p. 7) ; at night it 

 comes readily to light, but specimens so obtained are generally 

 of the female sex. 



It is most at home in the southern portion, but occurs 

 throughout England and Wales, to Cumberland. Only doubt- 

 fully recorded from Scotland, but in Ireland it has occurred in 

 Galway, Kerry, Waterford, Cork, and Wicklow. 



Distribution : Central and Northern Europe eastward to 

 North-east China and Japan. 



The Brown- tail [Fuprofifif chryso7rhoea). 



Although sometimes found in the East and West of England, 

 and even in Yorkshire and Durham, this appears to Ije essentially 

 a coast species in Britain, and confined at that to Kent and 

 Sussex, the former especially. E\'en in these fa\oured localities 

 where it is usually abundant, it is, however, not al\\a\s in 

 evidence. The moths sit about at the end of July and early 

 August on leaves of hawthorn, sloe, sea-buckthorn (^Hippophac 

 rhamtioides)^ and wild rose, generally on the underside. Near 

 the females will Ije found l^atches of eggs, which are covered 

 with " fur " from the anal tuft of the female. The caterpillars 

 hatch out in August, and while still very small go into hiber- 

 nation in a common nest. In the spring, when active again, 

 they construct a new habitation, and another or perhaps two 

 more before they are full grown, about June. The chr)salis 

 is very dark, almost blackish-brown, with tufts of hair, and 

 the fairly substantial brownish cocoon in which it is enclosed 



