34 DESCRIPTION OF AN OVO-VIVIPAROUS MOTH, 



connected vvitli Natural History, I will, witli your permission, use 

 the pronoun, we, as I now proceed to describe more accurately 

 and at greater length the economy of this curious little creature. 

 The Lepidopterous insect brought under your consideration 

 is closely allied to the genus " Tinea " of modern Authors, is of 

 small size, and boasts of no outward singularity of form, nor 

 extraordinary beauty of coloring to distinguish it from others of 

 that group. It was after dark in the early pai"t of the month of 

 October, 1861, that we first captured a specimen with the hand, 

 being attracted at the moment by its elegant coloring, and 

 wishing to secure it for the cabinet. Fearful that the plumage 

 might be injured by the struggles of the Moth while endeavour- 

 ing to escape, it was gently compressed, and on opening the 

 hand we observed numbers of minute but perfect larvee being 

 ejected from the abdomen in rapid succession and moving about 

 with considerable celerity, evidently in search of suitable shelter 

 and food. This incident so singular and new to us, required 

 further confirmation and consequently many more of a similar 

 kind (of course all females) were caught and attached to corks 

 previously covered with black paper and subjected to the closest 

 scrutiny. These Moths shortly commenced to deposit their living- 

 progeny with rapidity, the small white fleshy larv^ being seen 

 with great distinctness on the black surface of the paper ; thus 

 afibrding clear and satisfactory proof that this Insect, the only 

 one of its order at present known, is unquestionably ovo-vivipa- 

 rous, and will represent in future this peculiarity among the 

 Lepidoptera ; similarly to those few species existing in the 

 Hemipterous and Dipterous orders. This fact having been ascer- 

 tained, oui' attention was incited to the care of the little strangers 

 and to procure suitable shelter and food for them, in the hope 

 that we should be able to rear them and thus to supply a correct 

 account of all their metamorphoses. In this we wei'e guided by 

 the form of the perfect insect, and accordingly placed before them 

 grains of maize, pieces of flannel and woollen cloth, shreds of 

 partially decayed paper, some fungus and lichen, and other 

 materials known to be the food of caterpillars belonging to the 

 genus " Tinea " and neighbouring genera. Unfortunately they 

 turned with distaste from* all these supplies with the exception of 

 the cloth and flannel, and even to these they attached themselves 



