Destructivk Forest Insects of Dumfriesshire. 2G5 



T.El'IDOI'TERA OR MOTHS. 



The damage done by moths is confined to the larval stage, 

 the mature insects being quite harmless. We are rather too far 

 north to get a great variet\ of moths, but some \'ery destructive 

 ones arc found in the county, although I ha^■e not been very for- 

 tunate in securing specimens. 



Orgyia Aniigua (Common Vapourer Moth). — The cater- 

 pillars of this moth feed upon the foliage of almost every tree and 

 shrub. They are very noticeable for their tufts or bunches of 

 hair, and for their great variety of colour. They are a mixture 

 of brown, gre\ , pink, vellow, red, etc. The male moth varies in 

 colour between brown and chestnut, with a half-moon shaped spot 

 on each of its upper wings. The female is almost wingless. 



Dicranura Viiiitla (Puss Moth). — One of the finest cater- 

 pillars is that of the Puss Moth. It is bright green in colour with 

 a brown diamond-shaped patch on its bark. It has a forked tail, 

 from which, when roused to a fighting attitude, two threadlike 

 organs are thrust out. The moth lays her eggs on poplars and 

 willows, and the lar\-?e on hatching out eat the leaves. The 

 insect pupates in a hard cocoon, made by gnawing the bark and 

 soft wood into sawdust, and glueing it into shape round itself, 

 and on to a branch of the tree. The moth is a large and handsome 

 insect of a greyish colour with yellowish venation. The body is 

 covered with long soft hair and it is this characteristic that gives 

 it its name. 



Pygara Biicephala (Buff -tip Moth). — The larvae of this moth 

 do considerable damage to hard woods such as Oak and Elm, 

 sometimes defoliating trees of all ages. It is a common .sight to 

 see a bough totally stripped of its leaves standing out plainly 

 against the rest of the tree. The larvre feed in company in their 

 younger stage, but after moulting they divide up into parties of 

 eight or ten, but do not move far away. Thus the damage is 

 often confined to one place. They are about If inches long, and 

 are covered with long hair. Their colour is a mixture of black 

 and yellow. The moth is a very handsome insect and its colour 

 harmonizes so well with the bark of a dead twig, upon which it 

 likes resting, that it is often overlooked. The extremities of its 

 upper wings are buff coloured, hence its name. 



Fidonia Piniari (Bordered White Moth). — The male moth is 

 rather pretty, the centres of the wings are white, and round the 



