THE SPOTTED CLOVER MOTH. 49 



ground colour and brighter cross bands are referable to var. 

 ma?-itijna, Grasl. 



The caterpillar varies in colour, green of various shades, 

 pinkish, or purplish brown ; three lines along the back, the 

 central one with dark edges, and the outer ones whitish, with 

 dark lower edge ; the line low down along the sides is often 

 whitish ; but this, and also the other white lines, may be replaced 

 by greenish or yellowish. It feeds on various low-growing 

 plants such as restharrow, scabious, toadflax, white campion, 

 bladder campion, clover, etc., preferring the flowers and seeds. 

 It has been found from July to September. Sometimes it has 

 been reared on the pods of the scarlet-runner bean. 



The moth, which is out in June and July, dashes about 

 rapidly in the daytime, and as it is partial to the flowers of the 

 bugloss, or those of clover, etc., it may be netted when feasting 

 on the blossoms. It occurs in meadows, on heaths, and on 

 sandhills by the sea, in most of the southern and eastern 

 counties of England, but is only rarely seen northwards, and 

 has not been recorded from other parts of the British Isles. 



Distribution abroad : the whole Palasarctic region less the 

 extreme north; also represented in North America hy phlogo- 

 phagus^ Grote and Robinson. 



The Spotted Clover Moth {Heliothis scutosa). 



The very distinct-looking moth shown on Plate 19, Fig. 3, is 

 exceedingly rare in Britain, only about eleven specimens being 

 authenticated. The earliest-known British specimen was 

 captured in a locality near Dalston, in Cumberland, July, 1835. 

 The next record is of three examples near Skinbumness, also in 

 Cumberland. Then, in 1875, one occurred in Norfolk, at the 

 Cromer lighthouse, and this was followed by another in 1876. 

 In 1877 one was captured as it flew over clover at Weston- 

 super-Mare. On September 19, 1878, a specimen was netted at 



Series II ■ E 



