TRTFID^E. 213 



are out, but soon after nine they retire for the day. The 

 shields or tubercles of the Lecidea are the chief attraction ; 

 these they gnaw, removing the black crusts and exposing 

 the white undersurface to view. Their depredations are thus 

 readily seen in the morning, as the white tops are very con- 

 spicuous in the sunshine. To watch their building operations 

 more narrowly, I removed a dozen of them from their quarters 

 on the house-side, and built them a tiny rockwork of lichen- 

 covered stones, covered over with a bell-glass. Here they 

 soon busied themselves in constructing new nests, gnawing 

 off fragments from the stone, and cementing them together 

 with all possible care. They fed. when thus kept, iu the 

 early part of the day, withdrawing to their nests when 

 breakfast was over. Sometimes, by moistening the stones, I 

 could invite them out during the day, but when this was 

 not done they usually remained at home till the following 

 morning." 



Pupa light shining brown. Not more fully described. In 

 the chamber which has served the larva as a habitation. 



The moth sits very flatly upon walls, and is easily visible ; 

 indeed, when the walls are of brick, it is sufficiently con- 

 spicuous. It flies at dusk and at night, and is very strongly 

 attracted by light, sometimes coming in numbers to the street 

 lamps. Also in some small degree attracted by sugar, and 

 has been taken at flowers of red valerian. Its attachment to 

 walls is remarkable ; it seems very rarely to sit willingly 

 upon anything else, having an evident repugnance against 

 trees and plants. Possibly it may sometimes frequent rocks, 

 but this I have not seen. Common all over England, Wales, 

 and Ireland, and some portions of the East of Scotland, 

 much less so in the West of Scotland, and apparently not 

 found north of the districts of the Tay, Dee, and Clyde. 

 Abroad it is common in Central, Southern, and Western 

 Europe, the South of Sweden and Norway, and the North of 

 Italy. 



