AND THEIR TRANSFORMATIONS. 15 



SPECIES 1.— AGLAOSOMA LAUTA.— (Piate V.) 



In July and August, these showy caterpillars may frequently he met with conspicuously placed on the various species of 

 Casuarina, Acacia, Lcptospcrmum, and Styphelia, not heing constant to any one of these plants ; this fact we have verified by 

 supplying them with one kind during one day, and varying it the next, merely consulting our own convenience in the selection, 

 a proceeding evidently not to their distaste, as tlioy fed voraciously. "When young, they congregate on the lower parts of the 

 trunks of those plants uj)on wliich tliey have been bred, dispersing only when in search of food, and again returning for greater 

 shelter and security, but when nearly adult, they separate and establish themselves soUtarily upon neighbouring shrubs, selecting 

 those most suitable to their wants. At maturity, they attain to nearly 3J inches in length, the ground colour being dark brown, 

 thickly spotted over with white, and possessing a lateral line, also white, along the abdominal segments ; the lower half of which, 

 togctlier with tlie whole of the thoracic portion, contains bright cobalt-blue tubercles, eacli omitting brushes composed of long stiff 

 hairs ; the upper part above the line, not tubercvilated, but with a dorsal row of velvety-brown flattened tufts, eight in number. 



The cocoon, consisting of a slight silken texture, coated abundantly with the brown hairs of the dorsal tufts, is 

 constructed in some concealed situation ; in this is enclosed the chrysalis (fig. 1, female) of about 1:} inelios in lengtli, of a rich 

 reddish-black colour, and rounded at the extremities, -vvith the wing-cases short. 



The female motli is in expansion of wing 2i inches ; the male 2; inches. 



The Antenna; . . . (fig. 2, male) bipeotinatcd, each pectination ciliated and terminating in a seta curving upwards ; female 

 moderately bipcctinated. 



The LnMal palpi (fig. 3, female) are minute, densely hairy ; 2nd joint 3 times longer than basal, apical minute; male 

 rather larger. 



T\\c Lei/s, 2nd pairs with 2 apical, and po.sterior (fig. 4) with 4 rather long spurs on tibiae, femora and tibiae 



clothed with long hairs. 



In repose the wings are deflexed. 



Pore wings of the female brown, mottled with irregular patches of white : several tortuous lines of white towards the base, 

 and a transverse, irregular, undulating band crossing the wing a little beyond the disc, in which are placed two vermilion spots ; 

 under wings light brown, with white spotted margins ; abdomen orange yellow, broadly banded with black ; liaving a dorsal row 

 of tufts and a terminal brush, both of orange yellow. The thorax is tliickly set over with brown and white hairs. 



The male presents similar markings, but the white prevails to a much greater extent, more particularly on the under 

 wings, which have additionally two brown patches near the abdominal margin ; the red discal spots on the upper wings are 

 nearly obsolete. 



The entire under surface of Ijoth sexes is light brown, paler in tlic males. 



The illustrations consist of the caterpillar resting on a branch of the Casuarina paludosa, about which are the male and 

 female moths. 



C E 11 U R A . 



Cemra, Sclirank, Steph., Lc.acli, &c, 



Marpyia, Ochs. 



Dicranowa, Latreille. • 



Pania, Dalman. 



Furcula, Lamarck. 



" Corpus crassum, pilosum. Ocelli nuUi. Proboscis brevissiina. Palpi brevissimi, porrecti, caput non superantcs ; articulus 

 3-us minimus. Antennas usque ad apices pcctinata?, thorace longiorcs. Abdomen alas posticas superans. Pedes validi, pilosi ; 

 tibiae posticoe calcaribus duobus minutis apicalibus. Ala; lajves, longiusculae ; antics areola appcndiculari, apud costam fore 

 rcctse, apico rotundatao, margine exteriore perobliquo." Walker, Cat. Brit. Mus. Lcp. Hot., p. 982. 



Larva crassa, glabra, carnosa, variogata, versus apioem attenuata, tentaculis duobus moUibus filiformibus tcrminata. 



PoUiculus validissimus, flrmus, scobe gummique tenacc eompositus. 



E 



