106 



BRITISH MOTHS. 



237. The Winter Moth (Chimafobia brumata). 



237. THE WINTER Morn. The antennae in 

 both sexes are nearly simple ; the fore wings 

 of the male are rounded, and of a grayish 

 brown colour, tinged with ochreous, and 

 having several narrow transverse waved bars, 

 which in some specimens are associated in 

 three pairs ; the hind wings are pale, with 

 scarcely any markings; the wings of the 

 female are very short, are quite unadapted for 

 flight ; her locomotive power is restricted to 

 running about on fences and trunks of trees, 

 much in the manner of a spider. 



This is one of our most injurious insects, 

 and therefore requires a somewhat more 

 elaborate and lengthened history than we 

 can afford to give to others of less economical 

 importance. The apterous female lays EGGS 

 in the crevices of the bark of various trees and 

 shrubs during November and December; when 

 laid the eggs are greenish white, but they 

 become orange, and subsequently brown, 

 before hatching, which takes place about the 

 beginning of April. 



The CATERPILLARS are extremely small at 

 first, and suspend themselves by threads, and 

 are blown about in all directions by the cold 

 winds of spring ; many must certainly perish, 

 but multitudes escape, and find congenial 

 homes ; they commence their destructive 

 career by eating into the young unexpanded 

 buds : at this time of the year the bullfinches, 

 sparrows, and titmice render the most impor- 

 tant services to the gardener, by their activity 

 in devouring the buds, and thus destroying 

 this little garden pest. When the leaves have 

 begun to expand, each caterpillar draws two 

 or three together, and unites them by a silken 

 web, coming partially out to feed, and retiring 

 again within its domicile when satisfied. When 

 full-fed it rests with its head on one side, and 



curled round so as to touch the middle of its 

 body. The head is scarcely so wide as the 

 body, and scarcely notched on the crown ; 

 the body is rather obese, decreasing in size 

 towards each extremity. Head pale green, 

 semi-transparent, the cheeks often blotched 

 with smoky brown on each side, just in the 

 region of the ocelli. The body is glaucous 

 green, with a narrow median blackish stripe 

 on the back, and three narrow white stripes, 

 at equal intervals, on each side ; the third or 

 lowest on each side includes the spiracles. 

 The legs and claspers are transparent green. 

 It is a variable larva, the colour sometimes 

 green, sometimes smoky brown, approaching 

 to blackish ; the stripes in different individuals 

 differ greatly in distinctness ; the medio- 

 dorsal stripe is apparently in great measure 

 due to the food in the alimentary canal being 

 visible through a very transparent skin ; it is 

 sometimes bordered on each side by an obscure 

 white stripe, thus making eight stripes in all. 

 It is almost useless to specify any tree as the 

 food-plant of this ubiquitous larva ; I have 

 beaten it by thousands from the hornbeam in 

 Epping Forest, and I am unable to mention a 

 tree the leaves of which it does not devour; it 

 is especially destructive to plantations of 

 filberts, to plums and bullace, quinces, med- 

 lars, and in a less degree to apples and pears. 



The MOTH appears everywhere in October, 

 November, and December; it is full-fed in 

 May, and then descends to the earth, and 

 changes to a CHRYSALIS near the surface. (The 

 scientific name is Chimatobia brumata.} 



Obs. It may be assumed that so injurious an 

 insect has excited considerable interest, and 

 that many remedies have been prepared, and 

 experiments tried to arrest its ravages. I 

 have extracted a detailed account of these, 

 published a few weeks back in the Field 

 newspaper, and having more especial reference 

 to the cider and perry orchards of Hereford- 

 shire and Worcestershire. 



When the destruction of these insects on a 

 large scale is to be effected, the operation 

 should be divided into three campaigns, cor- 

 responding to the three stages of the enemy's 

 existence caterpillar, chrysalis, and moth. 



