NEMATUS CANALICULATUS. 107 



ground colour is decidedly reddish, the pale yellow 

 legs and sordid luteous stigma. The head also is 

 broader in comparison to the length ; it retreats more 

 inwardly before and behind, the eyes project more, 

 the face is longer and whitish-yellow, and altogether 

 the head is not so globular and swollen. The legs 

 are longer in proportion, and the femora have only 

 a short thin line on their apical half, the anterior also 

 being free from black. 



Brischke (1. c. supra) bred canaliculatus along with 

 N. umbripennis, Evers., from larvse which fed on 

 Populus tremula, and he concludes, therefore, that the 

 larvee of the two species are indistinguishable and of 

 similar habits, umbripennis being, however, really a 

 distinct species, easily distinguishable from canalicu- 

 latus by its shining unpunctured pleura3 and brownish- 

 yellow wings. The larva of umbripennis is stated to 

 be slender, narrowed posteriorly, of a clear bluish- 

 green colour with shining head, black eye spots, and 

 dark mouth. The dark dorsal canal is bordered on 

 each side by a thin white line, and another very thin 

 white line is on the sides at the spiracles. The 

 segmental divisions are white. Sometimes the skin- 

 folds over the legs bear two rows of fine black tuber- 

 cles. At the last moult the larva becomes clear, 

 shining, grass green. It is very desirable that a 

 careful comparison and breeding of these larvas be 

 made, as it is quite possible there may be some slight 

 though radical distinction between the two. If 

 Brischke' s observations be correct then we have here 

 a converse case to that of N. cadderensis and JV. 

 croceus, where very different larvee produce very 

 similar imagos. 



The only British specimen that I have seen of 

 canaliculatus was taken by myself in June on birch at 

 the Falls of the Shin, Sutherlandshire. 



It does not appear to be very common on the 

 Continent either. Zaddach mentions having seen 

 specimens from Lapland, Prussia, Holstein, and 



