BURNET-MOTH. 113 



winter months, and others will be mentioned in the 

 course of this work. 



The moth itself may be seen figured on plate B, 

 fig. 4. It is called the Puss-moth, on account of the 

 soft furry down with which its body is covered, and 

 it is fancifully thought to resemble the fur of the 

 cat. 



It is rather a difficult moth to preserve effectually, 

 as it is apt to become " greasy " — that is, to have its 

 whole beauty destroyed by an oiliness that exudes 

 from the body, and gradually creeps even over the 

 wings. The best preservative is to remove the 

 contents of the abdomen, and stuff it with cotton- 

 wool that has been scented with spirits of turpen- 

 tine. But even that plan is rather precarious, and 

 the delicate, downy plumage is apt to be sadly 

 damaged during the process of stuffing. 



Still keeping to the same plate, and referring to 

 the right-hand corner at the top, a moth of strange 

 aspect will be seen; and immediately below it an 

 object that somewhat resembles the hammock of 

 the Tiger-moth, affixed in a perpendicular instead of 

 an horizontal direction. This moth is called the 

 Burnet-moth, and the hammock is the pupa case of 

 the same insect. 



The colouring of this moth is very rich and beauti- 

 ful. The two upper wings are green, and of a tint 

 so deep that, like green velvet, they almost appear 

 to be black. On each of these wings are several red 



