BOMB YCID^. 3 



brown, much more strongly so in the female, and having a 

 faintly yellowish stripe, internally edged with grey, running 

 across all the wings ; cilia reddish-brown with yellowish 

 dashes; body and legs smoky-black, tinged with brown. 



Hardly variable ; but in the late Mr. F. Bond's collection is 

 a specimen of a semi-transpai'ent pale smoky-buff colour. 



On the wing in October, November, and December. 



Larva of even thickness, flattened beneath, and with an 

 appearance of being rather flattened and spread at the sides ; 

 soft, and covered with a great abundance of very fine short 

 hairs. Head rather small, pale grey or grey-brown ; body 

 slate-coloured or bluish-grey with a double dorsal row of 

 pale grey or reddish-brown spots edged with black, and a 

 subdorsal row of large, round, raised, deep black spots, each 

 with a spreading bunch of short hairs ; sides clouded with 

 smoky-grey or brown : or the dorsal series of spots is some- 

 times enclosed in a broad chain of squares united at the 

 corners ; or of urn-shaped black markings, each having four 

 yellow spots ; or grey with a dorsal series of oblique crimson 

 dashes, enclosing, and united by, curved black link-like 

 markings. The back of the second segment is sometimes 

 ornamented with a double row of black dots or double 

 curves ; but all the markings are obscured by the soft grey 

 hairs, which are longer at the sides, and partially hide the 

 legs and prolegs, though the latter are all rather spreading. 

 Under surface orange-coloured with black spots. When 

 younger the larva has the hairs proportionately longer ; it is 

 of a pale bluish-grey with the head browner, an orange spot 

 on the second segment and two yellowish dorsal lines. 



March or April to June, on oak, birch, sallow, alder, elm, 

 hawthorn, aspen, lime, ash, and poplar, but by no means so 

 frequently upon the latter as its name would seem to indicate. 

 The eggs are laid in the late autumn or early winter, and 

 usually do not hatch till April, but the young larvae feed up 

 rather rapidly. When well grown they love to rest on the 



