182 LBPIDOPTEKA (MOTHS). 



The Notodontidse, another family, contains the well-known 

 Puss Moth (Cerura vinula), which lives upon Willows and 

 Osiers, sometimes causing them much loss of leafage, and thus 

 of wood. The large hairy moth is greyish-white, with black 

 wavy markings, three inches in expanse of wing in the female, 

 smaller in the male. The curious larvse are provided with two 

 protrusible red tails, -which can be extended some distance and 

 waved about to frighten off the Ichneumon flies that prey upon 

 them. 



Noctuina. — The Noctuse are all, or nearly aU, nocturnal in 

 habits. They are mostly dull-coloured insects, with thread-like 

 antennae in the female, pectinate in the male. The abdomen is 

 broad, but slightly tapering to a point at the hind end. The 

 legs have strong tibial spurs. The front wings are generally 

 narrow, and usually darker than the under-wings. The posterior 

 pair are often coloured, as we see in the red and yellow under- 

 wings. The moths have a long trunk and projecting palpi. 

 There is a great superficial resemblance between many of the 

 species. The larvse are but slightly hairy, and are provided 

 with sixteen legs. If the PlusiadcB are included in this group, 

 the number of legs must not be taken as a characteristic, as they 

 are reduced to fourteen, and some forms have only twelve. The 

 pupae of K"octu88 are generally found underground. Some are 

 naked, others surrounded by a case of earth in the soil : they 

 are brown in colour, and devoid of body spines. Many of the 

 larvae, especially of the genus Agrotis, are called Surface Larvse. 



Surface LarvoB {Noctuce). 



One is constantly turning up dull-coloured caterpillars in the 

 soil at all times of the year, especially in the autumn, winter, 

 and spring. These sluggish larvse (fig. 83, 2) can at once be 

 identified as moth larvae by the number of their legs. They 

 are of a variety of species : the majority, however, belong to 



