20 THE MOTHS OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



scarce, and apparently does not occur further north than York- 

 shire, from which county there is only a single record. It is 

 common in Europe, except in the more northern and southern 

 parts, and its range extends eastwards into Siberia. 



The Poplar Hawk-moth {Smcrintlrus {Amorphd) pcpuli). 



On Plate 5 are three slightly difterent examples of this moth. 

 In colour it is most frequently ashy grey, with a brownish 

 central band, and other markings ; there is a white spot on the 

 fore wings and a conspicuous red patch at the base of the hind 

 wings. The female is generally paler than the male, and often 

 has a pinkish tinge. Specimens of a pale buff colour are some- 

 times obtained, and these are most often of the female sex, 

 although male examples of this form are not unknown. Among 

 unusual aberrations is one described as having the wings, 

 legs, thorax, and abdomen of a colour between brick- red and 

 chocolate, suffused with a whitish bloom as on ripe plums. 

 Another had the hind wings unadorned with red. Specimens 

 from Aberdeenshire and Sutherlandshire are smaller than 

 English examples, and the males are almost always more 

 brightly and distinctly marked. 



A very large number of Gynandrous, or " hermaphrodite " 

 specimens have been recorded, several of them from Britain ; 

 in most of these the gynandromorphism is bilateral, that is the 

 insect is wholly male on one side, and entirely female on the 

 other. In some the right side is male, in others the left side ; 

 the opposite side in each case being female. Much information 

 on this subject and on Hybridism of the Sphingida- will be 

 found in Tutt's " British Lepidoptera," vol. iii. 



The pale shining green eggs are laid, generally singly, but 

 sometimes in twos, threes, or more, on either surface of a leaf of 

 poplar or sallow. Now and then batches of eggs may be found, 

 and these have probably been laid by females that were crippled 



