258 THE MOTHS OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



from which no other specimen has ever been recorded so far as I 

 am aware. In June, 185^, the late Mr. S. Stevens obtained a few 

 specimens at sugar, at Mickleham, Surrey. Between the year last 

 mentioned and 1894 five other specimens have been recorded 

 from the same county, these are Redhill (W. R. Jeffrey), Boxhill 

 (G. Elisha, a pair, and B. A. Bower), Reigate (R. Adkin). In Kent, 

 specimens have been found in the Folkestone and Tunbridge 

 districts, but the chalk downs between Ashford and Wye appear 

 to be the headquarters of the insect in Britain. 



A portrait of a male specimen will be found on Plate 128, 

 Fig. I, but the ground colour is much whiter in the majority of 

 British specimens. 



According to Dr. Chapman, the caterpillar varies from a nearly 

 uniform nankeen-yellow with the markings only indicated, to a 

 handsome larva with distinct black stripes. There is a pale dorsal 

 line. C[uite narrow ; thence to the black spiracles is divided into 

 three longitudinal stripes, a dark dorsal, a dark (but less dark) 

 lower one and a pale intermediate. In all these the ground 

 colour is the same, nankeen-yellow, and the darker areas depend 

 on the greater or less darkness of fine black mottlings, generally 

 in fine wavy streaks running more or less longitudinally. The 

 head is rather brown than yellow, mottled in a honey-comb 

 pattern, with some black marking about the mouth parts. It 

 feeds at night from July to March on various grasses, but seems 

 to prefer Poa anniia^ and P. ncvioralis. Dr. Chapman reared 

 some of these caterpillars by keeping each individual in a 

 separate glass jar and supplying it at frccjucnt intervals with a 

 fresh tuft of Poa ajiiiua. The moth is out from May to July, 

 and hides during the day among the tufts of grass on chalk hills. 

 It comes freely to sugar, and has been taken at pri\et blossom. 



The Silver Cloud {Xylomygcs conspicillaris). 

 Three forms of this species occur with us. In that repre- 

 sented on Plate 128, Fig. 4, the fore wings are almost entirely 



