448 



Insect Pests. 



FIG. 291. PUPA OK GARDEN SWIFT 

 MOTH. 



larvae (Fig. 290) coming from them at once enter the soil and commence 

 to feed upon the roots of the plants. They may be found from mid 

 June right through the winter to April. In size they are fairly 

 uniform, when mature being nearly 

 1 inch long, when expanded. The 

 colour is dull white to creamy- white, 

 somewhat shiny, the head chestnut-brown, 

 mandibles dark ; the first segment is 

 white, but, owing to the head being 

 partly withdrawn into it at times, as- 

 sumes a brown colour ; the spiracles 

 are dark with a pale border ; each 

 segment has four hairs upon its dorsum, the two lower ones being 

 the larger, arising from dark dots, and there are four other hairs 

 on the sides of each segment ; their legs are normal. When touched 

 they wriggle backwards with great energy. Greenish tinged speci- 

 mens may occur (1), but not in the roots of strawberries. 



The pupre are found in the ground in May. They are brown 

 to chestnut- brown in colour, cylindrical, with deeply constricted 

 abdominal segments, es- 

 pecially ventrally, five 

 of the abdominal seg- 

 ments are armed with 

 rows of spines, on ridges, 

 on the dorsum, four 

 have rows of ventral 

 projections, and the 

 last segment is pro- 

 minently ridged, the 

 caudal extremity has 

 two diverging wart-like 



[F. Edenden. 



FIG. 292. EARTHEN COCOON AND EMPTY I'UPA SKIN OF 

 GARDEN SWIFT MOTH. 



processes and a few 



hairs or bristles. The 



segments are freely 



movable. In length the pupre reach a little over f inch. They 



are found some little distance below the ground in a pale loose 



silken cocoon, or may be nude. 



NATURAL ENEMIES. 



The only insect enemy of the larvae seems to be a species of bug, 

 an Anthocoris (6), which sucks the juices of the larvae and soon 

 causes their death. Their method of procedure is to crawl upon the 



