TRIFID&. 65 



were cleared off by birds. Probably the common sparrow, by 

 his power of adaptation of himself to almost any circumstances, 

 may have trained himself to the enjoyment of these tit-bits, 

 and our experience of him lends force to the suggestion that 

 he will probably appropriate anything in a garden which the 

 proprietor especially desires to preserve. That this larva is 

 distasteful to jackdaws is, I think, established. 



Pupa hardly of the ordinary Noctua form, being broadest 

 in the middle, yet having the wing-covers narrow. They are 

 not much swollen, nor are the limb and antenna covers con- 

 spicuous, but the tongue-case is swollen from the base, and at 

 the end of the wing-covers the case of its coiled tip forms a 

 very considerable raised knob ; spiracles distinct, oval, rather 

 blackened ; segmental divisions well marked ; general surface 

 smooth but not very glossy ; hardly any sculpture except a 

 little upon the back of the corselet ; cremaster projecting, 

 much flattened, rounded behind and showing no trace of 

 spikes or bristles ; general colour red-brown, anal tip black- 

 brown ; skin very delicate. In a cocoon of the size of a wood- 

 pigeon's egg, very thick and tough and composed of layers of 

 earth and silk ; at some depth beneath the surface of the 

 ground. 



In this condition during the winter — but often through 

 several winters, since but a small proportion of the pupa? 

 produce moths in the first season. Out of a large brood fed 

 up together, some will emerge in each following spring for 

 four or five years, or even longer. The depth to which the 

 pupa is buried is therefore a great protection. 



The moth is very rarely seen either in the daytime or at 

 night. Almost all the specimens in collections have been 

 reared from larvas. Once, however, I saw a specimen sitting 

 in a hedge by which mullein was growing, and was astonished 

 at its protective resemblance to the piece of dead stick upon 

 which it was at rest. The rich shades of brown on the wings, 

 which were clasped close to the stick as it sat lengthwise, 



VOL. vi. E 



