288 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



dark olive-green bands cross the wing, one at the apex and the 

 other across the middle; three bands of similar colour extend 

 down the abdomen, one on each side, enclosing the black 

 spiracles, the other is central along the under surface ; the 

 dorsal area of the abdomen is blotched with olive, and has a 

 medio-dorsal line of pale pink ; the thorax is streaked with deep 

 pink ; the palpi are black ; on the hind legs is an olive streak 

 shading into black, and terminating in a black point at the end 

 of the tibia ; there is also a smaller black point on the fore leg ; 

 the anal point is buff, streaked longitudinally with black, and is 

 amply provided with shining brown hooks at the extremity. The 

 outline of the hind margin of the wing-case is most dissimilar 

 and disconnected to that of the true wing, which has the deep 

 angular margin clearly defined in the pupa, which in the former 

 is a simple curve. Some specimens are more uniform in colour, 

 having the maiddngs much less defined, especially on the wing, 

 and are generally somewhat metallic, as if lightly washed over 

 with gold- bronze, and in some the ground colour is a deep pink. 

 The pupa is suspended by the anal hooks to a small dense silken 

 pad spun by the larva, generally upon the under side of the stalk 

 or midrib of the leaf, and also upon the stems of the plant. It 

 remains in the pupal state from ten to fifteen days, but the time 

 is entirely regulated by temperature. 



The imago emerged (from the pupa described) on July 2nd, 

 remaining eleven days in the pupa. 



The descriptions are all taken from the same individual, from 

 directly after the hatching of the egg to the emergence of the 

 imago. 



The entire brood were kept under similar conditions, cor- 

 responding as closely as possible to the outdoor temperature, 

 purposely to avoid as much as possible any artificial rearing. 



Cold, dull weather principally prevailed during all their 

 stages. The ova and young larva? were subjected to a tempera- 

 ture which fell as low as 41° during the night of May 21st, when 

 several ova were hatched, and I found others hatching the next 

 morning, the temperature then being only 50° : therefore the ova 

 will hatch in a temperature between 40° and 50°, or rather a little 

 above 40°, as apparently some had hatched during the early hours 

 of the morning. 



Immediately after the hatching of several ova, I placed the 

 larvie on difl'erent plants, and kept each plant isolated from the 

 rest, so that the larvse fed solely upon the same food through all 

 ,the stages ; the plants selected were red-currant, black-currant, 

 gooseberry, elm, hop, and nettle ; I found all six plants to be 

 equally suitable as food for the larvae. The majority were fed 

 exclusively upon stinging-nettle. From this one brood I have a 

 long series, numbering 200 fine specimens, consisting of 105 

 males and 95 females, making a fairly equal proportion of sexes j 



