TRIFIDAL. 263 



heap of similar frass inside, ejected from the seed capsule, 

 proving that one of the larvae had been there. When 

 T opened the capsule subsequently I found it therein, alive ; 

 it had moulted once and the unripe seeds were nearly all 

 devoured. 



" As some of the young larvae were still roaming about I 

 tried them with a small piece of the root of the plant, when 

 they all soon disappeared. On the fourth day while inspecting 

 the piece of root I detected two small holes in it with heaps 

 of minute cream-coloured frass adhering to them ; and on the 

 seventh day I examined the axil of a stem and leaf, where I 

 found that a larva had mined its way downwards and was 

 lying a quarter of an inch below in the stem waiting 

 apparently for its first moult, but my stripping away half the 

 stem to expose it proved fatal and it soon after died." The 

 same fate attended others of the larvae, which indeed 

 showed a singular absence of appreciation of Mr. Buckler's 

 efforts to secure accurate portraits at various ages, and finally 

 only one larva remained. " On September 13th I turned out 

 the contents of the pot, by inverting it, to search for the larva, 

 but no search was needful, for it at once rolled into view ; 

 it had evidently done feeding, for a great quantity of pale 

 frass, quite fresh, filled up a large cavity in the shoulder of 

 the thickest root; if it had made any chamber or gallery 

 the falling away of the light earth had quite destroyed it." 

 Happily this larva was less exigeant, and after being figured, 

 and wandering about a good deal, contentedly settled down 

 under a fragment of root to change to pupa, and eventually 

 produced a moth. In the case of the specimen reared by 

 Mr. Blandford it is evident that the stems of the plant alone 

 had served the larva for food, since no portion of the root 

 was taken ; indeed, there was no suspicion that tbis species 

 would be found in the locality, and from the large number 

 of Dianthoecia larva) there collected and reared, but one 

 of this species emerged. 



The only respect in which Mr. Buckler's larva differed 



