218 



BEITISH MOTHS. 



has a dark streak on each side at the base of 

 the wing. 



The CATERPILLAR rests in nearly a straight 

 position, with all the claspers attached to the 

 food plant : the head is rather narrower than \ 

 the second segment, the body is nearly uni- 

 formly cylindrical as far as the twelfth segment, 

 which is perhaps the deepest of any, being 

 dorsally produced into a kind of hump ; the 

 colour of the head is dull olive green, that of 

 the body yellowish green, but of different 

 shades in different individuals, some inclining 

 to glaucous : it has a narrow yellowish white 

 collar and five narrow whitish stripes ; one of 

 these is medio-dorsal, and extends from im- 

 mediately behind the head to the extremity 

 of the anal flap : another on each side runs 

 from immediately behind the head below the 

 spiracles : this is tinged with yellow and 

 bordered above by a delicate dark-brown line : 

 the spiracles are white, each surrounded by a 

 black ring which touches the dark line I have 

 just described ; exactly intermediate between 

 the medio-dorsal and lateral line is a slender 

 white line which begins on the fifth segment, 

 runs straight from thence to the tenth segment, 

 and then turns upwards towards the medio- 

 dorsal stripe, which it nearly touches on the 

 twelfth segment ; it then again descends to- 

 wards the anal extremity, where all the stripes 

 meet. It feeds on oak (Quercus Jiobur], from 

 which tree I have repeatedly beaten it in 

 June ; it falls into the umbrella with its feet 

 sprawled out as wide as possible, whence per- 

 haps the name of the moth ; in confinement 

 it is a perfect cannibal, devouring its com- 

 panion caterpillars without mercy. When 

 full-fed, it buries itself in the earth as deep 

 as the breeding cage will allow, and changes 

 to a smooth brown CHRYSALIS. 



The MOTH appears on the wing in October, 

 and has occurred in several English counties 

 both north and south. The males, probably 

 from their being more volatile, are much more 

 frequently taken than the females, which 

 are very rarely indeed, if at all, procured 

 otherwise than by rearing from the cater- 

 pillar. (The scientific name is Petasia cas- 

 sinea.} 



891. The Rannoch Sprawler (Petasia nubeculusa}. 



391. THE RANNOCH SPRAAVLER. The an- 

 tenn3 of the males are decidedly pectinated, 

 those of the female simple : the fore wings 

 are rather narrow, the costal margin straight 

 and the tip obtuse ; their colour is rich bistre- 

 brown with paler markings, the principal of 

 which are a large reniform stigmoidal spot, a 

 short interrupted basal line, a transverse zig- 

 zag line beyond the middle, and a marginal 

 zigzag line : the hind wings are smoky-browi 

 with a darker discoidal spot, darker wing-rays 

 and a continuous series of darker hind-mar- 

 ginal dots : the head, thorax, and body 

 bistre-brown, and densely clothed with long, 

 loose down. 



The EGG is laid about the middle of April, 

 either on the slender twigs or young leaves of 

 the birch, and is hatched about the 1st of May. 

 The caterpillar rests in the form of a horse- 

 shoe, the head thrown back until it nearly 

 touches the elevation on the twelfth segment ; 

 when in this position, it often adheres by three 

 pairs of claspers only, the first and fifth pairs 

 being raised : it does not fall off its food, feign 

 death, or roll itself in a ring when touched or 

 disturbed. The head is of slightly less dia- 

 meter than the body, and is susceptible of 

 being partially withdrawn into the second 

 segment : the body is of uniform diameter 

 throughout, the twelfth segment being elevated 

 on the back into an obtuse angle ; the divisions 

 of the segments are marked by conspicuous 

 incisions. The head is shining glaucous or 

 blue-green : the body is delicate apple-green, 

 with a narrow, transverse, oblique yellow 

 stripe on each side of the fourth segment ; on 

 the back of each segment from the fifth to the 

 tenth, both inclusive, is a Avhitish cloud, 



