THE OLEANDER HAWK-MOTH. 45 



colour, which may be pale brown, dark brown, or green. There 

 is a black line along the middle of the back, and a pinkish 

 brown stripe on each side ; the latter runs from the ring next 

 the head to the horn, but is interrupted on ring four, and the 

 back from this ring to the horn is covered with linear dots 

 arranged in more or less regular rows ; the underside is thickly 

 sprinkled with black-ringed white dots ; on each side of ring 

 four there is a conspicuous oval mark made up of a blackish 

 outer ring, an inner ring of yellowish, and one of reddish ; the 

 centre is blackish, with some yellowish dots upon it. Head 

 small, pale brown ; horn blackish and rather rough. 



It feeds on vine(F///j' Tjinifei^d) and yellow bedstraw (6^rz////w 

 verum) ; also on fuchsia and virginia-creeper {Ampclopsis). 

 August and September are given as months for this caterpillar, 

 but the Newmarket and Epping examples referred to were 

 taken in October. 



The moth seems to visit us chiefly in September and October. 

 It does not appear to have been so often taken at flowers as 

 at light, or when resting by day, on a wall or window of a 

 dwelling house or shop, to which it had been attracted at night 

 by the illumination within. The species has a wide range 

 through Africa and Southern Asia to Java, liorneo, and 

 Australia. In Europe it is perhaps only native in southern 

 parts ; thence it sometimes wanders through Central Europe to 

 Germany and Holland. The specimens visiting our islands 

 may come from the latter country, or possibly in years of com- 

 parative plenty the moths come to us via the west coast of 

 Europe. 



The Oleander Hawk-moth {Da^Jmis {Chcerocawpa) nerii). 



The fore wings of this handsome moth (Plate 16) are pinkish 

 grey, marbled with various shades of green and olive brown ; 

 some of the marbling edged with white. Hind wings greyish 



