258 



THE NATURE BOOK 



motli. Therefore, these apparent butter- ing, more or less gregariously, amongst 

 flies are only da}-flying moths. There the stems and yellow flowers of the corn- 

 are several species of Burnet Moths, such mon ragwort, as they are seen doing in 

 as the Broad-bordered Five-Spot (Z. the illustration on page 259. These are 



the larvae of the Cinnabar Moth 

 (Hipocrita jacobece), which is familiar 

 in June about railway cuttings and 

 hilly districts. The moth is, at first 

 glance, not unlike the Burnets pre- 

 viously referred to, owing to the 

 fact that its fore-wings are dark 

 brown, and spotted and striped with 

 red of a similar hue to that of the 

 Burnets ; the lower wings of these 

 moths are also red like those of the 

 Burnets. The wings, however, are 

 larger, and the antennae are hair-like 

 when compared with those of the 

 Burnet ]\Ioths. The Cinnabar Moth, 

 too, is not at all an active insect 

 during sunlight, usually flying during 

 the evening, though sometimes it is 

 seen fluttering amongst the grasses 



TWO FIVE-SPOT BURNET MOTHS ON A 

 FLOWER-HEAD OF CLOVER. 



Trifolii) and the Six-spotted (Z. Fili- 

 pendiilcB), the popular names indicat- 

 ing the differences in the markings 

 of tlieir wings. 



In the districts where these moths 

 are seen, or have been seen, flying, 

 there will probably be found on the 

 stems of grasses and other plants 

 some of the curious objects shown 

 on this page; these are the cocoons 

 of the Five-Spot Burnet Moth. From 

 four of those shown in the photo- 

 graph, it will be observed, the moths 

 have emerged, leaving the cmj^ty, 

 black chr^^salis skins protruding from 

 the tops of the cocoons. Sometimes 

 these cocoons are very numerous, 

 the grasses in some parts of the fields 

 being more or less covered with them. 

 The moths deposit their eggs amongst 

 clover and grasses during June. 



Towards the end of August a species 

 of conspicuous yellow and black banded 

 cateri)illars will be frequently found feed- 



COCOONS OF THE FIVE-SPOT BURNET MOTH. 



during the day. The larvae, doubtless, 

 present an instance of warning colours, 

 black and yellow being colours j^iarticularly 

 fa\'(jured for this purj)ose : stinging insects 

 such as bees, wasps, and hornets represent 



