CREAM-SPOT TIGER-MOTH. 2i3 



serratures terminating in a bristle ; in the proboscis 

 being short, scarcely longer than the head ; and the 

 wings being densely clothed with scales. The 

 thorax is without a crest, and, as well as the abdo- 

 men, is thick and strong. The species figured as 

 an example of the genus is by no means so gene- 

 rally distributed as the Great Tiger-moth, but it is 

 not very rare in some parts of England. It measures 

 from two inches to two inches and a half across the 

 anterior wings, which have the ground colour deep 

 black ; each of them with about eight yellowish or 

 cream-coloured spots of various sizes, the basal one 

 triangular or heart-shaped, the others in pairs 

 placed transversely, and an insulated one on the 

 hinder margin. The under wings are rather deep 

 yellow, with a few scattered small black spots, and 

 a large black patch on the outer angle, enclosing a 

 few irregular spots of the ground colour. The 

 thorax is deep black, with a cream-coloured mark 

 on each shoulder ; the abdomen yellow at the base, 

 bright red posteriorly, with three longitudinal rows 

 of black spots. On the under side the anterior 

 edge of all the wings is tinged with bright red, and 

 the breast and sides are thickly garnished with 

 hairs of the same colour. 



The caterpillar is black after its last moult, and 

 covered with aigrettes of greyish-brown hairs : the 

 head and legs reddish-brown, the former having a 

 black heart-shaped spot in the middle. It feeds on 

 most of our common field plants. The chrysalis 

 has short tufts of reddish hairs on the segments. 



