LEP1DOPTERA. I03 



not found in England. The larva of the male moth makes a larger and more con- 

 spicuous case, than does the grub which will produce the wingless female. The 

 larvae hibernate securely enclosed in their cases, which are spun on a tree-trunk or 

 other convenient object. In the spring the silken attachments are severed, and the 

 larva continues to feed until the time of pupation has arrived, when it again spins 

 up the mouth of the case to a tree or post, and changes within it to the pupa. 

 The male then emerges as a perfect moth, but the female, which is devoid of eyes r 

 ovipositor, or any appendages worthy of being styled antennae or legs, remains in 

 the larval-case even after it has emerged from the pupa. The organs for the 

 production of eggs are, however, complete, and parthenogenesis must, as in many 

 other cases, be looked upon as exceptional. 



Family CossiD^. 



The moths belonging to this family, like those of several others, do not possess 

 any proboscis ; the antennae being pectinate in both sexes. The larvae are smooth, 

 and feed sometimes for several years before pupating in the centre of tree-trunks of 

 various kinds ; a cocoon being formed of chips of wood within which the pupa awaits 

 its final development. The family is typified by the goat-moth (Cossus ligniperda\ 

 in which the front- wings are of a rich brown, streaked and mottled with darker 

 tints, while the hind-pair are dull brown. The larva often known as the auger- 

 worm is exceedingly destructive to forest trees, the holes which it bores in its 

 ravages being often half an inch, and even more, across. Its odour recalls that of 

 a goat, hence the name given to the moth. A large, long, flat, broad larva, flesh- 

 coloured, with short hairs scattered over the body, it is seldom met with, though it 

 sometimes may be found as it crosses a road or footpath when seeking for a suitable 

 place in which to spin its cocoon. It lives for over three years in the larval state, 

 and makes a very tough cocoon from wood chips, glued together with a gum which it 

 secretes. It is a native of Europe and Western Asia, generally appearing in June and 

 July. It is figured on p. 101. 



ALLIED FAMILIES. 



The next family (Arbelidce) must be dismissed without further remark. The 

 Hepialidce include the insects known as ghost-moths, one of which, the largest 

 British species (Hepialus lupulinus) has the wings white above and brown below, 

 so that when it flies in the dusk of the evening it appears and disappears in rapid 

 sequence owing to the practical invisibility of the dull colour of the under side, in 

 sharp contrast to the vivid white of the upper side. A near ally of the ghost-moth, 

 likewise referable to the family HepidLidw, is the splendid giant -swift moth 

 (Zelotypia stacyi) of Australia, which has been selected for illustration in our 

 coloured Plate, as being one of the finest of all moths. As the coloration and 

 characters of this magnificent insect are sufficiently indicated in the illustration, it 

 will only be necessary to give some account of its habits. Originally described 

 from imperfect specimens found at the Manning River and in the neighbourhood 

 of Newcastle, this moth was subsequently obtained in some numbers by the miners 

 of the latter district. Mr. A. S. Oliff writes that " as the insect is rarely found in 



