10 APPLE. 



few, but this year they have been abundant, and many young Apples 

 have withered as a result. I first noticed the creatures by observing 

 certain bunches of leaves drooping in late April or early May, and 

 upon breaking off a twig end, such as I enclose, there was a small 

 reddish caterpillar, which had eaten down the stem to the woody fibre, 

 and up as far as the point where the twig split up into leaves. In no 

 case were the flower-buds injured individually, though of course, where 

 the mischief had progressed, they drooped collectively." 



On July 12th Mr. Webster further communicated : — 



" I collected a number of the caterpillars, and after keeping these 

 some ten days I discovered a fully-fledged moth in the box this 

 evening." 



This moth Mr. Webster forwarded to me, and on comparison with 

 type specimens and descriptions, it proved to be Laverna atra, some- 

 times also known as Laverna heUerella. 



On June 2nd Mr. C. S. Macklon wrote me from Edric Road, 

 Hatcham Park, New Cross, requesting information as to an infestation 

 in Apple twigs, of which he forwarded me specimens, with the remark 

 that "every year before the bloom of the Apple tree from which these 

 twigs were taken came to perfection it withered up and died off, and 

 the leaves also turned brown and died off; where a little piece was cut 

 off, a maggot was found within." So far as could be judged by the 

 specimens sent without rearing the caterpillars to moth condition, this 

 also was infestation of the "Pith Moth." 



On June 27th, and also in July, I was favoured by Mr. 0. E. 

 Janson, F.E.S., of 44, Great Russell Street, W.C., with some notes of 

 his own observations, and specimens of damage caused to Apple twigs 

 by this infestation, and also of Pith Moths reared by him from the 

 infested twigs, which are of valuable interest. Mr. Janson mentioned 

 on June 27th that he had found some dead buds (on the Apple trees 

 in his garden near London) which contained a small pupa in an ex- 

 cavated longitudinal central tunnel. These he collected with the view 

 of rearing the moths, and on July 8tli Mr. Janson wrote me that he 

 had observed (that morning) that a Laverna atra had emerged from the 

 Apple buds, but nothing else at present; * and on July 15th he further 

 mentioned that he had sent me three of the L. atra that morning. 

 From these the specimens given life size and magnified at p. 9 are 

 figured. 



The moth is only half an inch or hardly so much in expanse of the 

 fore wings. These are narrow, and to the naked eye appear merely of 

 a somewhat varied black or deep brown colour. When moderately 

 magnified, they will be seen to have a very irregular white streak 



* In the year 1889 attack of the Eed Bud Caterpillar, Tmctoccra ocellana, had 

 occurred accoDipanyuig that of L. atra. 



