NOCTUAS. 



THI: NOCTUAS, OWL MOTHS, OK PULL-BODIES (in 

 science Nuctuai), constitute the next principal 

 division. They arc very numerous ; in Britain 

 alone, three hundred species have been dis- j 

 covered, and in Guenee's great work on the 

 Vociuelites, no less than eighteen hundred and 

 eighty-four are characterised : the three hun- 

 dred species inhabiting Britain arc remarkably 

 uniform in appearance, size, and tint ; there 

 are, indeed, a few grand and striking depar- 

 tures from the usual brown and sombre 

 colouring, but these exceptional instances, 

 like gleams of sunshine in a dark cloudy day, 

 seem to make the pervading gloom still more 

 oppressive. This uniformity adds greatly to 

 the difficulty of the describer ; for, although 

 the more striking differences may be rendered 

 intelligible without much difficulty, it is com- 

 paratively a hard task to distinguish, either by 

 irds or representations, objects that closely 

 mble each other, and seem almost to defy 

 powers of discrimination, even when 

 ced side by side. 



Although this general uniformity pervades 

 e Noctuas in their perfect state, there is a 

 eat difference among the caterpillars, both as 

 their appearance and economy. In the two 

 species which stand at the head of the list, the 

 puff-arches and the Peach-blossom, the cater- 

 pillars are smooth and velvety, and feed ex- 

 posed on the leaves of the bramble : they 

 attach themselves by their ventral claspers, 

 and hold the anal claspers slightly elevated, 

 in the same manner as the Cuspidates. In the 

 next genus Cymatophora, the caterpillars live 

 between two leaves, the edges of which they 

 spin together ; in this home they remain all 

 day, with their heads turned round towards 

 the middle of their bodies : they come out to 

 feed by night. The caterpillars of the genus 



I iceu i 



tinjvphila, reside in cases formed of silk and 

 fragments of lichen, and come out to feed at 

 night, and also in wet weather. In the large 

 and interesting genus Acronycta, the cater- 

 pillars are generally hairy, sometimes exces- 

 sively so, and greatly resemble the bear 

 caterpillars of the Tiger-moths ; they feed per- 

 fectly exposed, having no means of conceal- 

 ment. Many of the genera which follow 

 these, have perfectly smooth caterpillars, which 

 feed on herbs, coming abroad only by night, 

 and, when disturbed, roll themselves in a 

 compact ring, and, thus disguised, fall to the 

 ground, and, feigning death, remain motionless 

 at the roots of the herbage until the supposed 

 danger has passed. As regards the number 

 of claspers, ten . is the general number, the 

 last, or anal, pair being always present. In 

 the genus Erastria, the first pair are wanting 

 and in the beautiful genus Plusia, the first 

 and second pair are wanting, the number being 

 thus reduced to eight in Erastria, and to six 

 in Plusia. 



These caterpillars, as well as those of the 

 grand genus Catocala, comprising the Clifton 

 Nonpareil and the Eed and Crimson Under- 

 wings, crawl with arched backs, like the Geo- 

 meters, and hence were called by my prede- 

 cessor, Half-loopers or Hcmigeometers. 



The pupation of the Noctuas is as various 

 as the economy of the caterpillar ; the greater 

 number undergo this change underground ; 

 the numerous chrysalids found by gardeners 

 in digging for the winter crops are those of 

 Noctuas, for they abound everywhere ; but 

 others are found spun up among the leaves of 

 trees, and others, again, on the ground ; they 

 are generally very shining, and of a bright 

 reddish-brown colour, or black ; the body is 

 conical and pointed. The chrysalids of the 



