¢ female pupa, seen from beneath, d closed case of 
female, e case of male, showing larva, f pupa 
of male. 
Family VI. Saturniide. Large broad-winged 
moths, with short, stout, hairy bodies, and with the 
antenne of the male strongly pectinated. In the 
middle of each wing is a large eye-like spot com- 
posed of rings and crescents of various. colours, 
which is often replaced, in foreign species, by a 
round, triangular or crescent-shaped transparent spot. 
Fig. c. Saturnia pyri, the Great Peacock Moth, 
is the largest of the European moths. On the under- 
surface, it is pale grey as far as the zigzag line, and 
then brown; the markings are nearly the same as 
on the upper surface, but paler. The appearance 
of the larva changes at each moult, and the full- 
grown caterpillar is yellowish green with blue hair- 
found in 
bearing warts. This fine moth is the 
South of Europe, 
where the cater- 
pillar feeds chief- 
ly on fruit-trees, 
as far north as 
Parisand Vienna. 
A smaller . but 
somewhat simi- 
lar insect, the 
Emperor Moth, 
isnot uncommon 
in England. Its 
green larva with 
red tubercles 
feeds on heath. 
Fig. d. Agta 
Tau, the Tau 
Emperor, may 
be known by the 
large round blue 
spot on each 
wing, with a 
white T-like mark 
in the middle. 
The female is 
larger and paler 
than the male, 
which flies wildly about in woods in spring, and is 
very difficult to catch. The pale green caterpillar 
feeds on beech, birch and lime, and is adorned with 
stiff movable spines when young, which it casts off 
at the third moult. It changes in the ground under 
moss to a rough pupa, covered with little hooks, 
and enclosed in a rough cocoon. It is a common 
insect on the Continent, but is not British. 
Attacus Cynthia, the Ailanthus Silk-worm Moth, 
belongs to the same family. It has satiny olive-green 
wings, with pirfk and white stripes and bands, and 
a transparent lunule, partly bordered with yellow. 
There is also a small blue white-bordered eye-spot 
near the tip of the fore wings. The full-grown larva 
is green wirh fleshy tubercles. Its natural food is 
Ailanthus glandulosa, but it will eat other trees. 
The moth is a native of the East Indies, but is 
often reared in Europe. 
Family VIII. Lasiocampide. These are large 
dark-coloured moths, with no eye-spot on the wings. 
The abdomen is thick, hairy, and rather longs The 
antenne of the male are strongly pectinated, and 
the caterpillars are hairy. 
Fig. e. Gastropacha quercifolia, the Lappet 
Moth, has some resemblance to a dead leaf. When 
at rest, the fore wings are sloped over the body, 


Ailanthus silk-worm, with cocoon and moth. 

Zl 
and the zigzag border of the hind wings projects 
beyond their edges. The brown larva feeds on 
various trees in May, but only at night. It becomes 
a pupa in an oval dark grey cocoon covered with 
whitish dust. 
Fig. f. Clstocampa neustria, the Lackey Moth, 
is one of the most destructive insects to fruit and 
forest-trees. It is pale ochre-yellow, or reddish, 
with two brown stripes on the fore wings. The 
female lays her eggs in a ring round a_ small 
branch. The caterpillars hatch in the spring, and 
live together for a long time in a silker nest, to 
which they resort at night, and which renders it easy 
to destroy them in this stage. When they are older, 
they separate, and then spin themselves a cocoon 
between leaves. 
Family IX. Bombycide. The wings are emar- 
ginate, and the antenne of the male are pectinated. 
The larva is nak- 
ed, and provided 
with a horn, like 
a Sphinx. 
Bombyx mori, 
the Mulberry 
Silkworm moth, 
is ofa dirty white, 
with darkerlines. 
The female lays 
from 200 to 300 
eggs, and the 
caterpillars feed 
on mulberry 
leaves, until they 
form their co- 
coons, and 
change to pup. 
They make white 
or yellow co- 
coons of a single 
thread which 
may measure as 
much as 600 feet 
in length. This 
is secreted by 
two long slender 
cavities which open in a narrow tube at the mouth. 

Silkworm, with pupa, cocoon and moth. 
The liquid secretion hardens into a thread as soor 
