THE FOUR-SPOTTED FOOTMAN. 179 



such places. The moth, in June, may be disturbed from bushes, 

 or put up from the heather as one walks througii. As the sun 

 goes down it may often be seen on the wing, but later in the 

 evening is its chief time of activity. In Lancashire and 

 Cheshire it is found on the mosses, and Cannock Chase in 

 Staffordshire is a noted locality for it. Still obtained in 

 Chippenham fen, but Barrett states that it is now supposed to 

 be extinct in the fens of Wicken, Yaxley, and Burwell, in all of 

 which it used to abound. 



The Four-spotted Footman {(Eonestis quadra). 



The sexes of this species are very different in appearance. 

 The fore wings of the male are grey tinged with yellowish, 

 except on the outer fourth ; the basal fourth is yellow. The 

 female is larger* and yellow in colour ; each fore wing has two 

 black spots, sometimes unusually large, sometimes mere dots, 

 and more rarely absent altogether. (Plate 95, Figs. 11, 12.) 



Caterpillar blackish with four wavy yellow lines along the 

 back, the spaces between the lines powdered and freckled with 

 yellow giving a grey appearance ; raised spots on the back red, 

 those on the sides greyish ; a black cross on rings three, seven, 

 and eleven ; hairs grey mixed with black. Head black and 

 glossy. It feeds, after hibernation, in May and June, on lichens, 

 preferring those upon oak trees. In the breeding cage it is apt 

 to eat its companions, especially when many are crowded into 

 a small receptacle. (Plate 94, Fig. 3.) 



The moth emerges in July, and during that month, and some' 

 times in August, it may be seen on tree trunks ; but it more 

 often reposes on the branches, from which it may be dislodged 

 by jarring the boughs with a stick, when it drops rather than 

 flies towards the ground, but generally manages to arrest its 

 downward course by catching hold of a spray of bracken or 

 some other plant and there awaits capture. Night is the usual 



