CUSPIDATE8. 



extends some distance along the inner margin ; 

 this hlotch is almost confined to the fringe ; 

 the head and thorax are umber-brown, spotted 

 with gray ; the body brown and unspotted. 



The CATERPILLAR rests with the anal ex- 

 tremity elevated, and the anal claspers not 

 touching the food-plant ; the head is about 

 equal iu width to the second segment ; the 

 fifth, sixth, and seventh segments have each a 

 medio-dorsal pyramidal hump ; the twelfth 

 segment is almost produced into a kind of 

 dorsal hump ; the colour of the head is brown, 

 of the body glaucous-green. This description 

 is made from Hiibner's figure. 



The caterpillar was once taken at St. Osyth, 

 in Essex, by Mr. Douglas, who succeeded in 

 rearing the moth. One or more European 

 specimens are sometimes sold as British in the 

 tales of British insects by auction in London. 

 (The scientific name is Notodonta trilophus ) 



Obs. The name has been changed into 

 Tritopltm by modern entomologists, but 1 

 think without reason ; indeed, I have a great 

 objection to the change of a specific name 

 under any circumstances, unless it be a dupli- 

 cate name in the same genus : the derivation 

 is from the Greek word Tn'lopJn'a, that is, 

 jeariug three crests, lobes, or humps, in allu- 

 sion to three dorsal protuberances of the 

 cateipillar. (See fig. 13, p. 203.) 



407. The Pebble Prominent (Notodonta ziczac). 



407. THE PEBBLE PKOMIXEKT. The an- 

 tenna) of the male are slightly pectinated, 

 those of the female quite simple: the fore 

 wings are nearly straight on the costa, blunt 



at the tip, and have a decided .tooth or angle 

 near the middle of the inner margin ; their 

 colour is clear ochreous brown except a large 

 pale-gray blotch occupying the middle third 

 of the costal margin ; this blotch is bounded 

 towards the base of the wing by a straight 

 dark line extending half way across the wing, 

 and towards the tip it is bounded by a dark, 

 crescentic mark, the cusps of which are turned 

 towards the hind margin, and this crescentic 

 mark combines with other darker and lighter 

 markings in forming a large eye-like ornamen- 

 tation, which occupies the apical portion of 

 the wing ; there is a slender dark line on the 

 extreme hind margin, and a brown fringe 

 beyond this : the hind wings are dingy-brown 

 with an indistinct crescentic discoidal spot, 

 and an indistinct transverse pale bar : tlie 

 head is plain brown, the thorax variegated with 

 different shades of bro\vu, and the body uni- 

 form dingy-brown. 



The CATERPILLAR has a large head, and its 

 body has one hump on each of the sixth, 

 seventh, and twelfth segments ; that on the 

 sixth is largest, and points backwards ; the 

 colour of the head is brown : of the body 

 purple-brown, with darker patches on the 

 back of the second, third, and fourth segments, 

 also on the front of the dorsal humps; these 

 darker patches are bordered with paler mar- 

 gins, and there are also paler oblique lines on 

 the sides of the segments : the eleventh and 

 twelfth ' segments are yellowish, dorsally 

 marbled with brown : there are two pale 

 approximate lines on the back of the eighth, 

 ninth, and tenth segments. It feeds on several 

 species of poplar (Populus), and sallow (Sali.c), 

 and is full-fed at the end of September, when 

 it spins its slight cocoon on the surface of the 

 earth, and remains in the CHRYSALIS state all 

 the winter. (See fig. 12, p. 203.) 



The MOTH appears on the wing in May, and 

 in our breeding-cases continues to make its ap- 

 pearance throughout June, July, and August. 

 It occurs in all parts of England, and Mr. 

 Birchall says it is not uncommon in Ireland. 

 (The scientific name is Notodonta ziczac, so 

 called from the extraordinary appearance of 

 the eat ei pillar when at rest.) 



