io8 



THE MOTHS OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



construct a silken tent-like web (Fig. 22). The exterior of the 

 tent affords a suitable surface upon which they can lie when 

 they take a sun bath, which they seem fond of doing whenever 



the opportunity 

 offers. It is also 

 used, as well as 

 the interior, for 

 the process of 

 skin-changing. 



The full-grown 

 caterpillar is slaty 

 blue abo\e ; along 

 the middle of the 

 back is a bluish 

 white line, bor- 

 dered on each side 

 by a reddish- 

 orange-lined black 

 stripe ; towards the 

 lower limit of the 

 slaty blue colour is 



a black edged red- 

 I' ir, '>'>. . . 



dish-orange line, 

 "Web of Lackey Caterpillars. 111 1 • 



and below this 

 (I'liut!) by W. I. Luc;is. ) . , , 



agam the ground 



colour is flecked with orange, sometimes forming a line in the 



region of the spiracles ; there are two velvety black spots on 



the back of the ring nearest the head, and a smaller black 



spot on each side of the next two rings ; the hairs are brownish, 



rather more numerous on the sides than on the back. Head 



slaty-blue with two black eye-like spots. It feeds from April 



to June on hawthorn, sloe, and various fruit trees in orchards 



and gardens ; also on birch, elm, oak, sallow, willow, etc. 



Chrysalis blackish, rather downy enclosed in a double 



