20 



Insect Pesls. 



Its food plants are the apple, plum, pear, liawthorn, blackthorn, 

 willow and sallow. 



Life-History and Habits. 



The moth appears at the end of June and in July. It varies in 

 length, the male being much smaller than the female ; the latter is often 

 3:^ inches from wing to wing, the male seldom more than 2^. The 

 form is shown in Figure 6, page 21 ; the colours are rich brown, 

 with irregular dark transverse scolloped lines, the posterior wings 



very similar, and both pairs 

 have scolloped edges. When 

 at rest the under wings 

 project in a characteristic 

 manner beneath the upper. 

 The eggs (Fig. 4) are very 

 marked. 



The larvcC hatch in late 

 summer and autumn, and 

 hibernate during the winter. 

 Previous to this they moult 

 once, and then remain ex- 

 tended on a twig (Fig. 5) 

 and assume the colour of the 

 wood. The mature larvre 

 reach over 4 inches in length, 

 they are grey and grey-brown 

 in colour with faint Y-shaped 

 dark marks or other indis- 

 tinct ornamentation down the 

 back ; always present, how- 

 ever, are two beautiful deep 

 blue or purple, velvety bands 

 across the segments next the 

 head. Above the legs on 

 each side and on all the 

 segments is a row of fleshy 

 pad-like appendages with long grey hairs, like lappets, and hence 

 the name " Lappet Moth " ; there is a more or less prominent hump on 

 the last but one segment, and all the body is finely hairy (Fig. 6 b). 



When mature in summer the caterpillar spins a long oval cocoon, 

 pointed at each end, in all I have seen, and of a mouse colour, hairs 

 This cocoon is spun up amongst the 



[/''. Edenden. 



YOCNG LARVAL LAPPET HEADY FOR WINTERING. 



beiniT mixed with the silk 



