THE CURVE-WINGED APPLE MOTH. 57 



CHAPTER VIII. 



THE CURVE-WINGED APPLE MOTH. 



(Erechthias mystacinella.) 



Order: Lepidoptera. Family: Tineinice. 



A small insect to which (owing to the singular curva- 

 ture of the wings) I have given the common name of the 

 " Curve-winged Apple Moth." 



This little pest is but imperfectly known, and I am 

 indebted to Dr. T. P. Lucas, of Brisbane, the well-known 

 lepidopterist, for its name ; and as I had not the necessary 

 specimens for comparison, he has kindly compared and 

 identified the specimens for me. Mr. Anderson, of the 

 Field Naturalists' Club, who has brought this, one of the 

 least known of apple pests, under my notice, says that 

 unnamed specimens of this moth have been in the 

 University Museum for some time, and it plays no unim- 

 portant part in the destruction of apple trees throughout 

 the colony. 



The female deposits her eggs among the loose bark, or 

 in any crevice in the stem or thick branches of the tree, 

 being especially fond of the warty excrescences caused by 

 the Schizoneura, or "Woolly Aphis" blight of the apple, 

 but which probably is aggravated by the gnawing and 

 tunnelling of the larvae of this species. (See Plate III., 

 Fig. 1.) _ 



As this moth is very abundant, its depredations are 

 often on a serious scale, the number of bores and tunnels 

 and the admission of air and moisture generally weaken- 

 ing the vitality of the tree, which frequently is brought to 

 such a low state of health that a little extra pressure, even 

 by the wind, will cause the limb to snap off, and in any 

 case the sap is interrupted from its natural flow, which 

 instead of being utilized in a natural manner wastes itself 

 in the enlargement of the unsightly excrescences as men- 

 tioned, and also shown in the plate. 



