30 THE MOTHS OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



Northumberland ; twenty-six were obtained on the bindweed 

 growing on Lancashire sandhills, thirteen or fourteen in Essex, 

 and others in Bedfordshire, Kent, Hants, Dorset, and Devon. 



Mr. Bell-Marley obtained thirty eggs, September, 1897, and 

 although these were kept in a cold room, thirteen caterpillars 

 hatched, September 21. They were supplied with Convolvulus 

 arvensis and C. soldanclla^ and seemed to relish one as much 

 as the other. Seven died during the first three moults. The 

 bindweeds being nearly over, seedlings were raised by forcing, 

 but before these were ready the larvae had been on short 

 commons, and just immediately before the seedlings came to 

 hand, had been twenty-four hours without food. On these 

 tender seedlings and some endive the remaining larvic, six in 

 number, attained full growth in December, Two subsequently 

 died in the first half of that month, and the others went under 

 the soil. Only one, however, managed to assume the chrysalis 

 state. 



A small caterpillar, about one week old, described by Pay- 

 master-in-Chief G. F. Mathew (" Notes on Lepidoptera from 

 the Mediterranean," Etitom.^ xxxi. 115), was if inch long, 

 pale glaucous green in colour, and thickly covered with raised 

 white dots ; oblique side stripes white, bordered above with 

 dark green. On September 26, 1897, this caterpillar, which had 

 been found on September 18, was nearly full grown, and the 

 writer goes on to state that when gathering bindweed he 

 obtained either eggs or tiny caterpillars at the same time, and 

 he eventually found that he had eight of them altogether. They 

 fed up rapidly, as a caterpillar, hatched about September 27, 

 had gone down on October 18. Owing to accident, four pro- 

 duced deformed chrysalids, but each chrysalis resulting from 

 the others was perfect and healthy on February 15, 1898. The 

 large reddish-brown chrysalis is figured on Plate 11, and it will 

 be noted that the "tongue" case forms a curious bent projec- 

 tion not unlike the handle of a pitcher. To give some idea of 



