\XQ [October, 



I potted for it a small plant of Convolvulus arvensis, and on two little shoots of 

 this, bearing in all not more than five or six very small leaves, it fed and grew and 

 moulted contentedly during the first half of its fifty days' life, its longest journey 

 all that time not exceeding an inch and a half 



Had the other eggs escaped squaslmig on their journey, probably I might hav^ 

 had the pleasure of seeing both the varieties which Iliibner figures, but the 

 green one yet remains a desideratum ; my single larva was his brown variety. 



When first hatched, it was a dingy-grey little looper, with a black transverse 

 dorsal hump on each of the four middle segments ; but at each moult these humps 

 became less, till at last there remained nothing but the usual dorsal dots, black 

 and distinct, and these too afterwards disappeared. When full-growu the larva is 

 about an inch long ; the legs twelve ; the body cylindrical, thickest at the fourth 

 segment ; the segmental divisions deeply indented ; when at rest the middle 

 segments are generally arched, and the head bent down. The colour a rich choco- 

 late-brown ; dorsal line rather darker, and edged with very fine paler lines ; sub- 

 dorsal line also darker, but scarcely visible ; spiracular stripe broad, of a pale 

 yellow, and with a fine brown thread running throughout its length, immediately 

 after the last moult ; there were some rich yellow and orange spots also in it, but 

 these disappeared, and the whole stripe grow paler. — Id. 



Note on Cucullia, scrophularice and uerbasci. — In the following notes I hope to 

 bo of some service to those who, like myself, have entertained doubts concerning 

 the real distinctness of the two species, from inability to distinguish the larvae 

 found feeding on Scrophularia aquatica and nodosa from others on Verhascum 

 thapsus and nigrum,. It is therefore with gi'eat pleasure I acknowledge my 

 obligations to Mr. Doubleday, by whose kindness I am at length made acquainted 

 with the real scropTiulariw, in four fine larvae he presented me with on the 4th and 

 8th of last July, feeding on flowers and seed-vessels of Scrophularia nndnsa, the 

 sight of which immediately dispelled all my previous doubts, as it did also any 

 existing in the minds of Mr. Hellins and Mr. D'Orville, through whose hands they 

 passed to mine ; the latter gentleman having for years had great experience in, and 

 devoted much attention to, this particular genus in theii- larval state. 



The larva of scrophiilaria', when full-grown, is 1| inches in length, plump, and 

 cylindrical ; the head rounded, and a trifle smaller than the 2nd segment. Viewed 

 sideways, it appears of uniform tliickness; but seen on the back, it tapers behind 

 fron^ the 10th to the anal segment. 



In looking on the back, its most valuable character, by which it can be 

 instantly identified, is apparent in the bright yellow dorsal mark ; for whether 

 little or much intersected by black, it is distinctly seen to be a blunt-pointed tri- 

 angle of yellow, close to the beginning of each segment, pointing forwards, its 

 transverse base being longer than the sides, placed on rather less than the first 

 half of each segment. The ground colour in front of the two sides of the triangle, 

 with belly and prolegs, is whitish-grey, or pale blueish-grey, or greenish-white ; but 

 the broad space behind tlie base of the triangle is a bright full green, varying indi- 

 vidually towards blueish-green or grass-green. Thus it will be seen there is a 

 broad green band across the end of each segment. The black marks on the back 



