THE PEACH-BT.OSSOM. 87 



Ilie fluted greenish-white eggs are laid upon the edges of 

 bramble-leaves. 



The caterpillar is pale reddish brown shaded with darker and 

 freckled with whitish (in the young stage the second and third 

 rings are whitish above) ; a slender dark brown line along the 

 middle of the back, and a broader one along the sides, the 

 latter not distinct on the first three rings ; the two rings nearest 

 the head each have a divided ridge, the second being the larger ; 

 there are also similar ridges on the fifth to ninth rings, and the 

 back of ring eleven is slightly raised ; a series of pale triangular 

 marks on the back. It feeds on bramble in July, and may be 

 found from that month until September. 



In confinement it will thrive on raspberry or the cultivated kinds 

 of blackberry. From some thirty eggs I had in June this year 

 (1907) the caterpillars hatched on tlie 27th ; several of these fed 

 up rapidly and one or two had spun up for pupation, among the 

 leaves, in July (about 24th), whilst others remained quite small, 

 and a few were in the last skin but one. Early in August the 

 larger caterpillars just referred to pupated, and the smaller ones 

 began to feed up, and by the end of the month they had attained 

 to full growth, although they did not spin cocoons until the 

 second week in September. 



From July chrysalids moths will often emerge in August 

 or September of the same year, but none have appeared 

 from those under observation. The chrysalis is pale brown 

 mottled with dark purplish or reddish brown, wing cases reddish. 

 The species frequents woods or wooded localities, and is gene- 

 rally distributed throughout England and Wales, but commoner 

 in some parts than others. Rather local in Scotland but not 

 uncommon in Perthshire. Sometimes very abundant in Ireland, 

 occurring in similar localities to the preceding species. It is 

 found over the greater part of Northern and Central Europe, 

 and as far e^t as Amurland and Japan. 



