314 THE entomologist's record. 



hybernates m the egg-stage under natural conditions, and that the 

 premature emergence of the two larvfe in Ziirich was probably due to 

 the change of altitude, combined with the extreme heat. Of these two 

 larvte one died immediately, the other fed up well to the 3rd instar, 

 and then prepared to hybernate, remaining hidden under a dead leaf. 

 In the spring, no signs of it being forthcoming, it was presumed that 

 it had died. The remaining eggs were placed in a cardboard box in a 

 cool place on a window ledge until their emergence in the spring. 

 The winter of 1905-6 was a very mild one in Germany, there being 

 scarcely any frost or snow, and during some exceptionally warm days, 

 in the latter part of February, I was horrified to discover that the 

 young larvae were already making their appearance. A potted food- 

 plant that I had secured in the previous autumn was at once brought 

 into the warm room, and liberally watered, in the hopes of inducing it 

 to send up a few green shoots for my starving progeny. A change in 

 the weather fortunately checked the emergence of larvte and left me 

 with about half my number of eggs and still some hopes of success. 

 On February 25th, further emergence of four larvte took place, and I 

 was enabled to place them immediately on a young leaf of geranium, 

 still unexpanded. They at once forced a way into the centre of the 

 bud, and remained there hidden, eating small holes in the parenchyma. 

 By March 10th, all the larvte that had survived the winter had eaten 

 their way out of the ova. A large proportion of these, however, I was 

 obliged to destroy owing to the scarcity of the foodplant, no signs of it 

 having put in an appearance out-of-doors. From the above it seems fairly 

 probable that the young larvae in their natural state emerge during the 

 first warm spring days after the disappearance of the snow, and when the 

 geranium shoots are just appearing above ground. Boring their way into 

 these, they are carried upward, enclosed in their protecting sheath, with 

 the growth of the leaf. By the time the leaves have expanded, which 

 they only do after attaining a height of several inches, the young larvae 

 are sufficiently strong to take a firm hold of the leaf with their claspers. 

 In the earliest stages it is very noticeable that the main hold on the 

 leaf is obtained with the jaws and the prolegs, the claspers, especially 

 when the larva is feeding, being not used at all, and the body often 

 projecting up into the air. Owing to the hairy nature of the geranium 

 stalks, it is very difficult for the young larvae, even in the second instar, 

 to ascend them, and I observed that, whenever shaken from their leaf, 

 they were unable to return, but wandered about as if seeking some bud 

 just above the ground, into which to bore their way. With increased 

 growth they remained resting either on the upper or lower side of the 

 leaf, being very sluggish, and only shifting their position when 

 requiring food. In the last two instars they showed a great predilection 

 for the fleshy portions of the stalk, boring their way through the 

 epidermis and eating out all the interior portions, thus causing the 

 leaf to droop and die. This is probably due to the fact that in their 

 natural existence, they would, at this stage, be able to feed upon the 

 buds of the flowers ; as the plants they were upon had not yet reached 

 this period of their growth, the larvae were obliged to content them- 

 selves with the stalks, often to my great annoyance, for food was 

 scarce. 



The following is a detailed description of the various stages. For 



