BROWN-TAILED MOTH. 41 



for the manner in which the feather-scales are 

 prolonged into feathery plumes at the end of the 

 tail. This is largely developed in the female in- 

 sect, and is used by her in forming a sort of pent- 

 house over her eggs. The eggs are piled in a 

 conical heap on some flat substance, and the 

 Moth lays over them a complete thatched roof 

 formed of these elegant plumes. 



The species represented on Plate III. fig. 5 

 is the BROWX- TAILED MOTH (Liparis chrysorrlicea). 

 The upper surface of the wings is pure satiny 

 white ; under surface of fore-wings tinged with 

 brownish yellow. The thorax and abdomen are 

 of the same colour as the wings. The tail is 

 strongly tufted with golden brown hairs. 



The larva of this moth feeds on the leaves of 

 small trees, the hawthorn and sloe being, perhaps, 

 its favourite resort. It is yellowish for the first 

 few segments, and changes to pinkish orange for 

 the rest of the body. It may be known by the 

 long tufts or pencils of hair which project on 

 either side of the first segment, and the shorter 

 tufts that are found on the rest of the body. 



The larvae are social, and spin large webs, in 

 which they live in common. In some years this 

 insect has been so abundant as to threaten the 

 destruction of every tree in the place, and then 



