68 LEPIDOPTERA. 



number of eggF*, the season being mild, a considerable number 

 continued to feed in the winter, becoming full fed from the 

 middle of November to the end of December. The remainder 

 hibernated, and fed up in the spring, producing finer speci- 

 mens of the moth than the earlier examples which emerged 

 at a more unseasonable time. 



Pupa quite of the ordinary Nodua form ; at first of a pale 

 greenish colour, changes in a couple of days to brown, and 

 finally to a dark brown ; very slightly attached by the tail to 

 a thread in its cocoon. Spun up between dock leaves in con- 

 finement, or in moss, and apparently disinclined to enter the 

 earth. (W. Buckler). 



The moth apparently is never seen in the daytime, it doubt- 

 less hides among herbage or heather close to the ground. It 

 flies at dusk, but from the dark colour of its hind wings is 

 very inconspicuous. It is strongly attracted by heather- 

 bloom, and in Scotland by the blossoms of ragwort and tansy ; 

 sometimes in the south by those of the wood-sage ; it also 

 comes occasionally to sugar. Scarce in the Southern and 

 Eastern counties, occurring principally upon heaths and 

 woods, but apparently absent from the fen districts ; much 

 more plentiful locally in the Midlands, as in Sherwood Forest, 

 where it is sometimes abundant, and in Shropshire and North 

 Staffordshire; found also locally in Herefordshire, Cheshire, 

 Lancashire, Yorkshire, and Cumberland ; probably in suitable 

 places in Wales, since Mr. Blandford has found it in Pembroke- 

 shire ; widely distributed in Scotland, occurring too, high 

 up on the hills, in the Tweed, Forth, Solway, Clyde, Tay, and 

 Dee districts, abundantly in Moray, and extending to Arran 

 and the Orkneys. In Ireland rather local, but sometimes 

 abundant, occurring near Dublin, in Wexford, Kerry, Galway, 

 Sligo, Roscommon, Tyrone, Donegal, and Londonderry. 



Abroad it is widely distributed in Central Europe, and was 

 found at Gibraltar by Mr. J. J. Walker, R.N., at ivy in 

 November. Also found in Southern and Eastern Russia, 



