LIFE-HISTORY OF APORIA CRAT^EGI. 137 



They rest stretched out along the twigs, often in small 

 companies, lying side by side, always spinning silk over the 

 branches and leaves. Occasionally I found one suspended, 

 hanging by a web. If touched several times they suddenly start 

 crawling rapidly ; they neither feign death nor roll in a ring. 



I found before hybernation several had fed on a laurel leaf 

 which had come in contact with the plum branch upon which 

 they were ; they ate a large part of the upper cuticle of the 

 leaf. I therefore tried a few larvte in the last stage with 

 laurel, and although they fed on some of the young leaves, 

 it caused them to vomit, and one died. Plum appears to be 

 mostly appreciated, and forms the chief food in a wild state. 



The first larva spun up for pupating early morning of 

 May 14th, 1905, and pupated mid-day on the 16th, the trans- 

 formation occupying about fifty-five hours. All the remaining 

 pupated during the next week. 



Three of the larvae when about f in. long produced ichneu- 

 mons (Apanteles) in a similar manner as they infest Pieris 

 hrassiccE, emerging in clusters, and spinning lemon-yellow 

 cocoons over the body of the host, after which the latter 

 gradually dies. Three more larger ones, and another full grown, 

 produced ichneumons on May 20th. The ichneumon apparently 

 deposited its eggs in the larvse in the previous autumn, as a few 

 occasionally crept through the gauze covering the tree, and 

 rested outside for a time, when undoubtedly they were discovered 

 by the parasite. 



The pupa averages 1 in. in length ; the head is knobbed 

 in front ; at the base of the antenna is a short sharply- 

 pointed spike ; the meso-thorax is swollen, and keeled dor- 

 sally; the waist sunken, a slight abdominal dorsal keel; the 

 base of the wings angular ; on the second, third, and fourth 

 abdominal segments is a lateral keel ; the tongue-case protrudes 

 beyond the antennae, and is detached, forming a spike ; the anal 

 segment terminates in a flattened, slightly-curved horn, bearing 

 the cremastral hooks, which are firmly attached to an ample 

 pad of silk, and a girdle of silk passes round the body at the 

 waist. The normal ground colour is a pale greenish yellow of 

 more or less intensity, some approaching a greenish whitish ; a 

 black stripe passes over the crown and thoracic keel, and a broad 

 black band runs along the ventral surface, including the antennsG, 

 tongue, legs, and costal margins of the wings, only being broken up 

 at the base of the legs by the ground colour and yellow eye-spots. 

 The wings are broadly margined with black, and black vandyke 

 markings on the inner edge of hind margin ; a row of five black 

 spots form a median band, and usually there are one or two 

 small discoidal spots ; the spiracles are black, and surrounded 

 by conspicuous black markings ; on each segment is a dorsal 

 anterior black spot, and three sub-dorsal smaller ones, and two 



ENTOM. — JUNE, 1906. N 



