POPLAR GREY— DARK AND GREY DAGGER 



GROUP NOCTURE 

 FAMILY ACRONYCTID^. 



Poplar Grey. — {Acroiiycta megacephala.) This familiar 

 little species — greyish-brown in colour on the forewings, 

 whitish on the hind ones — is partial to poplar leaves, 

 and is common in town and country all over the United 

 Kingdom. It flies from May onwards, and the hairy 

 larva is brownish-grey, or ochreous, in colour, with 

 darker markings. The hairs are whitish and especially 

 long on the sides of the body. There is a prominent 

 patch on the tenth segment. 



Dark Dagger. — {Acronycta tridens.) Belongs to the 

 same genus as the last-named. Like the Grey Dagger, 

 {A. psi) its near ally, it is of wide distribution, and is 

 found on a variety of food-plants, such as apple, birch, 

 blackthorn, hav^lihorn, pear, plum, and sallow. It is 

 rare in Ireland and Scotland. 



It is out and about in June, and the black larva has three 

 reddish stripes, one down the back, and one upon each 

 of the sides. There are humps on the fourth and eleventh 

 segments. The imago is greyish on the forewings, 

 with black dagger-like markings, and whitish on the 

 hindwings. 



Grey Dagger. — {Acronycta psi.) In all respects except 



the larva, this species (Fig. 19), is identical with A. 



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