32 THE MOTHS OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



three broken whitish lines along the back ; head, green, with 

 a paler mark on each cheek. It is to be found in May and 

 early June on the leaves of oak. 



The species is widely distributed throughout England and 

 Wales, but is more frequently met with in the south than in the 

 north. It is found in Scotland, but only rarely, and the same 

 remark applies to Ireland generally, although the species is not 

 uncommon in some parts of Wicklow, Cork, and Kerry. 



Its range abroad extends to Amurland and Japan. 



The Golden-rod Br indie {LitJwmoia soUdaginis). 



On Plate 12, Fig. 8 represents a Lancashire specimen, whilst 

 Fig. 9 is taken from an Aberdeen example. The first, having 

 the central area suffused with brown, is more nearly typical, and 

 the other varies in the direction of ab. virgata, Tutt, in which 

 form the central shade is black. Other named forms are — ab. 

 cinerascens, Stand. = pallida, Tutt (pale ashy-grey, central shade 

 almost or quite obsolete), ab. suffusa, Tutt (similar to virgata^ 

 but the basal area also black or blackish). 



The caterpillar is browm, with a purplish or violet tinge, and 

 freckled with grey ; an indistinct line along the middle of the 

 back and a creamy stripe along the sides, the latter is edged 

 above with black ; head, shining reddish-brown, freckled with 

 darker brown. It feeds on bilberry, bearberry {Arclostaphylos 

 uva-ursi\ heather, sallow, birch, and hawthorn, and is to be 

 found from May to July. 



The moth is out in August and September, and in its wood- 

 land and moorland haunts is to be seen sitting about on the 

 . dead stems of bracken, charred twigs and stems of heather, or 

 on birch trunks, rocks, walls, etc. When thus resting, however, 

 they very closely resemble twisted birch bark, grouse droppings, 

 and other common objects occurring in the haunts of the 

 species, so that its detection is not easy at first. 



