6o THE MOTHS OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



St. Leonard's Forest, Sussex ; later still, it was discovered in the 

 Brentwood district, Essex. It still occurs in all these localities, 

 but appears to be now less frequently noticed in the original 

 one than formerly (Plate 21, Fig. 9). 



The caterpillar feeds in July and August on the flowers 

 of cinquefoil {Pote?itilla), and is said to eat bramble blossoms 

 also. Hellins describes it as rich brown, with a row of eight 

 dusky-red diamonds down the back, enclosing the dorsal line 

 of brighter red. The moth is out from the end of May and 

 in June ; it may be put up from herbage during the day, but its 

 proper time of flight is in the early evening, and then only when 

 the weather is favourable. If cold or damp the insects will not 

 get on the wing. (Plate 25, Fig. 3 ; after Hofmann.) 



The range abroad extends to Amurland. 



The straw Dot (Rivtda sericealis). 



This pale ochreous species, an example 01 wnich is repre- 

 sented on Plate 21, Fig. 8, varies in the amount of darker 

 shading or suffusion on the outer marginal area of the fore 

 wing ; sometimes this is grey-brown or pale reddish brown, but 

 often there is no shading whatever, and in such specimens the 

 ground colour is usually very pale. The dark brown reniform 

 mark is always present, but the cross lines are more often 

 absent than present. 



The caterpillar is green, with a darker green line along the 

 middle of the back, and a white stripe on each side of it, the 

 inner edge of each of the latter irregular ; head, greenish grey, 

 and the bristle-bearing raised dots are shining green with a 

 dusky cap. It feeds on Brachypodium sylvatiaim^ but seems 

 to accommodate itself to a diet of Phalaris arundinacea^ and 

 would perhaps eat other grasses : August to May. (Plate 23, 

 Fig. 3 ; after Hofmann.) 



The moth is out all through the summer months, and 



