When I took the female figured in the plate, many years 

 back, in a meadow near Bungay, Suffolk, it was considered a 

 valuable species ; but it has been frequently captured since, 

 although never in any abundance. It is said to be taken at 

 Darent Wood, Kent, in June ; and Fabricius says the per- 

 fect insect is found amongst alders in the North of Europe, and 

 that the caterpillars are gregarious, green, spotted black, with 

 a yellow apex ; many of the larvae of this family are very simi- 

 lar in appearance to those of the Lepidopf era ; they feed upon 

 the leaves of plants, are often very brilliant, and have a pecu- 

 liar manner of rolling themselves up if touched ; when full- 

 grown they curl up a leaf in the most artful manner to protect 

 them in the chrysalis state: their feet are very differently 

 situated to the Lepidoptera ; and the accurate Jurine observes, 

 that the number of them regulates the number of the marginal 

 and submarginal cells in the superior wings, which shows the 

 importance of a knowledge of the imperfect, to be thoroughly 

 informed of the affinities of the perfect insect. 



The present genus, of which we only know the species 

 figured, was separated from Nematus of Jurine by Dr. Leach 

 in the 3rd vol. of the Zoological Miscellany, in a paper upon 

 the external characters of the Tenth redinidae; the dUated 

 tibiae and tarsi in both sexes indicate a different mode of life 

 to the other Nemati : this singular conformation appears occa- 

 sionally in many of the Orders, although we are ignorant of 

 its uses except in the poUinigerous Apidag. 



The insects of this family may easily be known by their 

 ample wings of many complete cells, and perfectly sessile ab- 

 domen, and on more close inspection by their peculiar oviduct: 

 when alarmed, many of them bend down their heads and an- 

 tennaa very forcibly, so as to show the attachment of the thorax. 



The plant figured is Crepis Tectorum (Smooth Hawk's- 

 beard). 



