TRIFID.-E. 89 



blossoms of the Marguerite (Chrysanthemum frutescens), and 

 if the weather is bright feeds up with great rapidity. Very 

 sudden and hasty, almost jerky or nervous in its movements, 

 but if alarmed it becomes instantaneously quite still, and so 

 remains for some little time. Mr. Woodforde says : " I find 

 that the best time to take them is between sunset and dusk, 

 when they come up to feed, though they may be found in the 

 daytime by examining under the flower-heads where the 

 flowers are bitten. A favourite position is grasping the stem 

 with the hinder prolegs, and stretching over the top of the 

 flower to eat the centre of the eye, getting the head right 

 into it. Another habit is to bite off the heads of Pyrethrum 

 inodorum just where they join the stalk or half an inch below, 

 and drop the flower-heads to the ground ; it gives the plant a 

 peculiar look, the long straight stalks sticking out with 

 nothing upon the ends. Those which I found feeding upon 

 this plant were all green or whitish-green ; of three found 

 upon Matricaria two were reddish ; since feeding on Matri- 

 caria several of the smaller whitish-green larvee have become 

 reddish. The common colour, however, is green, and they 

 closely resemble green ears of wheat ; this I think is remark- 

 able, as they are generally found in wheat fields, although 

 wheat is not their food plant." 



Pupa extremely thin-skinned ; end of the tongue contained 

 in a long nipple-like case projecting in front of the abdomen ; 

 otherwise of the usual form, almost devoid of sculpture and 

 very glossy ; yellow-brown, spiracles distinct, black ; cremaster 

 projecting, flattened and bluntly rounded, very smooth and 

 shining, and without a trace of spines or bristles. Under- 

 ground at some depth, in an extremely thick, even massive, 

 cocoon of earth and silk. In this state through the 

 winter. 



The moth loves to sit in the daytime upon the top of a 

 railing, gate, post, or even wall or iron rail, but especially 

 on a park fence, with its wings clasped closely down ; and 



