THE DOUBLE-LINE. 475 



ground hue is bright green, across which four pure white 

 p*Tire5 are drawn longitudinally, and three black jagged bars 

 transversely. The two middle white stripes are the widest, the 

 two others being quite narrow, one running close to the costal 

 margin of the wing, and the other equally close to the hind 

 margin. The hind margin is edged with a row of spots having 

 the centre white and the exterior black. The head is green, 

 like the upper wings, and the thorax is green in the middle, 

 black in front, and black and pale green behind. The lower 

 wings are smoky-grey, and with a dark spot on the disc, and a 

 few white lines at the anal angle. 



The caterpillar is a very pretty larva, blue-black on the back, 

 and adorned with orange and pale yellow on the sides. It has 

 been known to feed both on birch and oak, and Mr. Crewe, who 

 reared some of these insects from the egg, thinks that the 

 caterpillar feeds alternately on oak and birch, passing from one 

 to the other at will. I scarcely see how this can be the case, 

 as oak and birch trees are not always in proximity to each 

 other, and, unless their branches actually touched, it is difficult 

 to see how the larva could pass from one tree to another. The 

 pupa forms for itself a cocoon of gnawed wood, and the perfect 

 insect appears in June. It is a rare species, but has been 

 found in Kent, the New Forest, near Ipswich, and one or two 

 other localities. 



The Moth which is represented on Woodcut LIV. Fig. 1, is an 

 instance of an insect, which was once plentiful, becoming rare. 

 Its popular name is the Double-line, and its scientific title is 

 Leucania turca. It is an example of the group Genuinse, and 

 the family Leucanidse. 



The colour of this Moth is simple. The ground hue of the 

 upper wings is brick-red, very much like that of red blotting- 

 paper, but rather duller and browner, and across them are 

 drawn two dark brown bars, which have gained for the insect 

 its popular name. In the middle of the wing is a small, 

 curved, white spot. The lower wings are pale brown, becoming 

 reddish on the margins. 



The larva feeds on wood grasses, and is mostly to be found in 

 the southern parts of England, especially those which are near 

 the coast. The Moth appears in June. 



