SATYRS. 



99 



colour ; the hind-marginal area is dullei 1 , and 

 contains a series of circular black spots half 

 way between the transverse bar and the hind 

 margin ; these spots are generally four in 

 number, three near the apical angle being 

 closely approximate, almost contiguous ; and 

 the other, which is less distinct, being nearer 

 the anal angle : the second of these spots, 

 counting from the costa, has generally a white 

 pupil, the others are generally without : the 

 hind wings are dark brown at the base, thickly 

 sprinkled with fulvous scales ; beyond the 

 brown basal area is a pale oblique band cross- 

 ing the middle of the wing in a very irregular 

 manner, and always interrupted near the 

 middle ; the hind-marginal area beyond this 

 band is divided by the wing-rays into seven 

 compartments, each of which contains a cir- 

 cular black spot with a white pupil and pale 

 circumscription; these seven spots form a 

 semicircular series parallel with the hind 

 margin ; the seventh, situated at the anal 

 angle, is often absent, and the sixth is often 

 double ; the others vary in intensity and mag- 

 nitude, as shown in the figures, and are often 

 very beautiful. 



Obs. 1. The underside has not that gray and 

 shaggy appearance which I have described as 

 characteristic of the typical Davus. 



Obs. 2. This insect is undoubtedly the 

 Davus of Haworth, but not of Fabricius, who 

 certainly applied that name to the preceding 

 insect. 



Obs. 3. The ten very accurate figures 

 engraved to illustrate this species have been 

 kindly lent by Mr. Bond and Mr. Birchall. 



LIFE HISTORY. The EGG is barrel-shaped, 

 the sides convex and delicately ribbed ; it is 

 attached by the lower extremity to the linear 

 setiform leaves of beak-rush (Rhynchospora, 

 alba), on which it is laid at the end of June, 

 always singly, and generally only one on a leaf, 

 but sometimes two, and very rarely three. The 

 young CATERPILLARS emerge in fifteen days, 

 and crawling to the extremity begin feeding ; 

 they feed during the day, and grow very 

 slowly ; they rest on the leaves in a perfectly 

 straight position, but on being annoyed fall 

 from their food on the Sphagnum or other 



mosses among which the Rhynchospora usually 

 grows, and there lie in a bent posture, as if 

 dead, until all appearance of danger has 

 passed, when they reascend the leaves : when 

 among the moss it is almost impossible to 

 detect them. At the end of August those 

 under my care ceased to eat, and on the 1st 

 of September I made the following descrip- 

 tion : The head is semiglobose, wider than 

 the body, slightly notched on the crown, and 

 beset with minute hairs ; the body is linear, 

 its sides almost parallel, but slightly and 

 gradually attenuated towards the anal ex- 

 tremity, which terminates in two points 

 directed backwards ; the dorsal surface is 

 transversely and regularly wrinkled, and is 

 covered with minute warts, which under a 

 pocket lens give the surface the appearance of 

 extremely fine shagreen; the dorsal wrinkles 

 divide each segment into four sections, in 

 addition to which there is a transverse skin- 

 fold between the sections, and this has often 

 the appearance of being double, so that each 

 segment has the appearance of having five and 

 sometimes six sections. The colour of the 

 head is dingy semitransparent green ; the 

 ocelli are very prominent and intensely black ; 

 the colour of the body is dingy green, with 

 five narrow, equidistant, distinct, purple- 

 brown stripes ; the interspace between the 

 second and third stripe on each side is inter- 

 sected by a very narrow and indistinct stripe, 

 almost similar in colour to the other five, and 

 the exterior purple stripe on each side is 

 bordered below by a pale glaucous, almost 

 white stripe, extending throughout its entire 

 length. Immediately after this description 

 was written the little caterpillars disappeared, 

 probably secreting themselves at the roots of 

 their food-plant. In the spring of 1865 I 

 saw nothing more of these hybernating cater- 

 pillars, but received a fresh supply on tLe 

 26th of May, when they appeared full fed. 

 The caterpillar then rests in a perfectly 

 straight position on the blades of the beak- 

 rush, falls off its food-plant when annoyed, 

 and remains quiescent for some time, as if 

 dead, in a somewhat bent position. At this 

 date I made a second description : The head 



