198 LEPIDOPTERA. 



paler than the ground colour, encircled with grey ; spiracles 

 black ; undersurface dull ochreous (Chas. Fenn). 



When very young this larva seems to bear a curious and 

 perplexing resemblance to that of an Agrotis. Mr. Truckler 

 says that at first it is greenish-grey, with the head and 

 second segment ochreous-yellow, the body having conspicuous 

 blackish tubercular dots and hairs ; after the first moult green 

 with blackish dots ; after the second, whitey-brown, with a 

 still paler dorsal line, and the dots warty and brown, sur- 

 rounded by a paler ring ; the pale dorsal line thickened 

 towards the end of each segment ; a paler subdorsal line 

 edged above with darker and followed by a similar whitish 

 line ; the sides purplish-brown and a pale pinkish sub- 

 spiracular stripe. After a third moult the colour becomes 

 purplish-brown with dorsal and subdorsal lines still whitish, 

 the latter margined above at the beginning of each segment 

 by an oblong dash ; the tubercular spots are still very brown 

 and distinct and the general aspect continues like that of 

 Agrotis ; but after the next moult a sufiicient resemblance to 

 the adult larva is assumed to render its recognition easy. 



Mr. Fenn found that larvae from Scotland are of a very 

 dull dirty bronze-brown or earth-brown, the markings more 

 dull and indistinct, and the dorsal diamond markings often 

 imperceptible. 



July and August on dandelion, knotgrass, lettuce, chick- 

 weed, C^-epis, Hieraciuin, Medicago sativa, and doubtless 

 other low-growing plants. Extremely sluggish ; feeding at 

 night, hiding by day at the roots of its food plants, but there 

 seems to be no evidence in support of the assertion that it 

 feeds on the roots. 



Pupa elongate, anal extremity flattened and terminated 

 with two diverging spikes or bristles ; each side of the last 

 five abdominal segments is furnished with a thorn-like spine. 

 Colour reddish-mahogany. In a slight silken cocoon spun 

 among rubbish on the surface of the ground (Chas. Fenn). 



