196 Transactions. 



his discovery was one of extreme interest, and urged him to 

 prepare a note on the subject for this Society. This he stated 

 he intended to do, but did not carry out his intention before 

 his death. I now place his observation on record to save it 

 from probable oblivion. In connection with this discovery it 

 is perhaps remarkable that the vegetable caterpillar was origin- 

 ally identified by the early New Zealand naturalists as the 

 larva of Hepialus virescens, but apparently without any definite 

 evidence, and that this chance identification has proved, in one 

 instance at least, to be correct. 



In June, 1905, Master Comyn Caldwell, a son of Mr. Robert 

 Caldwell, of Karori, brought me two Hepialid larvae, one very 

 recently dead and infested with the Sfhceria fungus, being in 

 fact a vegetable caterpillar of recent formation, the other an 

 identical larva unaffected by the fungus — aUve, and very healthy. 

 Both the larvae were found in the earth, close together, amongst 

 the roots of some native shrubs in some bush on Mr. Caldwell's 

 property, through which a footpath was being cut at the time. 

 I at once imprisoned the Uving larva in a jar of earth covered 

 with turf, hoping to rear the perfect insect and thus ascertain 

 the^actual species of Porina to which the larva was referable. 

 This I fortunately succeeded in doing, the moth emerging 

 during the following November. I have much pleasure in 

 exhibiting this evening the vegetable caterpillar found by 

 Master Caldwell, together with the female specimen of Porina 

 enysii reared from the living larva of the same species. 



As vegetable caterpillars have, so far as I know, always been 

 found in the ground, with the exception of the specimen found 

 by Mr. Tone, we may, I think, now reasonably conclude that 

 the caterpillars found in the North Island mostly belong to 

 Porina enysii, and those in the southern portion of the South 

 Island to Porina dinodes. 



The appearance of the Sphceria in the larva of H. virescens 

 is no doubt very rare, but clearly occurs, and it is probable that 

 all the larvee of the Hepialidce in New Zealand are liable to 

 attack. 



In further illustration of these notes I exhibit male and 

 female specimens of Hepialus virescens from Karori, male speci- 

 mens of Porina dinodes captured by Mr. Alfred Philpott of 

 Invercargill, and a fine specimen of vegetable caterpillar given 

 to me by Mr. Leonard Hill, and probably specifically identical 

 with the one which has been proved to be the larva of Porina 

 enysii. 



