GEOMETERS. 



103 



colour the variation is extreme ; the head 

 usually semi-transparent apple-green ; the more 

 usual colour of the body glaucous green, ap- 

 proaching to white on the dorsal, and to 

 pple-green on the ventral surface ; the white 

 ppearance of. the back is partially due to the 

 iresence of whitish stripes, of which the more 

 onspicuous pair extend on each side from 

 e head to the anal extremity, and divide 

 the dorsal area into three nearly equal parts : 

 the other white markings are irregularly ar- 

 ranged in waved linear series, often imparting 

 a reticulated appearance to the surface ; at 

 each interstice of the segments adjoining the 

 principal white stripes are blotches of darker 

 or olive-green. It is full-fed by the end of 

 May, and then descends to the ground, and 

 turns to a CHRYSALIS in a slight web on the 

 surface. 



The MOTH is very abundant in January and 

 the first half of February ; it seems to brave 

 e coldest weather, and is common in Eng- 

 d, Scotland, and Ireland. (The scientific 

 me is Hylernia rvpicapraria.) 



232. The 



Usher (Hybernia leiicophearia) . 



232. THE SPUING USHER. The antenna) 

 of the male are slightly pectinated, those of 

 the female simple ; the wings of the male are 

 long and rather narrow ; they are very vari- 

 able, some being dark-brown with a central 

 whitish bar, as represented in the lower 

 figure, and having a row of roundish pale 

 spots parallel with the hind margin ; others 

 are pale, with numerous dark transverse 

 waved lines, as shown in the upper figure ; 



r 



the hind wings are pale and sprinkled with 

 dark dots. The female is almost without 

 wings. 



The EGGS are laid by the female on the 

 trunks and branches of oak in March. 



The CATERPILLARS emerge towards the end 

 of April or beginning of May, and as soon as 

 the leaves expand fasten them loosely together, 

 forming a little domicile for concealment from 

 the prying eyes of birds, which at this season 

 are constantly on the look-out for caterpillars 

 with which to feed their young. They are 

 full grown in June. Head narrower than the 

 body, body obese, transversely wrinkled and 

 verrucose, having also a manifest lateral skin- 

 fold. Colour infinitely varied. They change 

 to CHRYSALIS on the surface of the earth. 



The MOTH appears on the wing in February 

 and March, and is common everywhere in 

 England and Ireland. (The scientific name 

 is Ilybernia Uucophearia,} 



2:jli. The Scarce Umber (Hylernia aurantiaria). 



233. THE SCAUCE UMBEE. The antennae of 

 the male are pectinated, the pectinations long, 

 slender, and bent ; those of the female are 

 simple ; the wings of the male are ample, the 

 fore wings orange-ochreous, with three darker 

 transverse lines, the first and second of which 

 are near the base, oblique, direct, and short; 

 the third is beyond the middle, oblique, and 

 angled near the middle ; there is a dark spot 

 between the second and third line, and also 

 an oblique transverse series of spots between 

 the third line and the hind margin ; the hind 

 wings are paler, and have a slightly darker 

 transverse line beyond the middle, and a cen- 

 tral spot between this and the base. The 

 female has mere stumps of wings, which are 



