THE LESSER CASE MOTH. 115 



CHAPTER LXXXVI. 



THE LESSER CASE MOTH. 



(Clania ignobilis, Walker .) 



Order : Lepidoptera. Family : Psychidce. 



These extraordinary creatures are common anywhere 

 near Melbourne, and may be found at any time in the 

 Melbourne reserves, where they do considerable damage, 

 especially to pines and other members of the Conifers 

 order of plants by gnawing the bark and leaves off 

 the trees, and, being in large numbers, a good sized tree 

 may be stripped in a very short space of time. In 

 structure and habits the females of the group (see Fig. 

 V. ) are, as the late Professor McCoy remarks ' ' amongst 

 the most abnormal and singular of all lepidopterous 

 insects; they are smooth, naked, fleshy, grub-like 

 creatures, totally destitute of wings, and having only 

 rudimentary traces of legs, antennae, and eyes." Pro- 

 fessor McCoy states that these apterous females never 

 leave the sack or case in which they dwell while in the 

 larval stage, but, after meeting the males at the lower 

 aperture of the case, commence to bring forth the young 

 in myriads ; these, escaping in crowds, let themselves 

 down each by a silk thread spun from the lower lip 

 until they reach a twig or leaf, and then each begins a 

 separate case of tough silk and extraneous material 

 such as bark, this species specially favouring twigs as 

 shown on the plate (Fig. I.) to protect itself during 

 its larval existence. I must here express some doubts 

 as to the correctness of the assertion that the female 

 never leaves the case which case, by the way, is much 

 larger than that of the male insect as good observers 

 have noticed that these do occasionally leave the case, 

 but only for a short period, and for the purpose of 



