158 ZOOLOGY. 



wings. Caterpillar: Nearly f inch long, tolerably- 

 thick, especially in the middle, and variegated. Head, 

 thorax, and last body segment shining black, the last 

 two regions with reddish-yellow margin, and the 

 thorax, in addition to this, divided into right and 

 left halves by a longitudinal yellow line. The rest 

 of the body is olive green ; a broad orange-coloured 

 line divides it into a darker dorsal and a lighter 

 ventral side. On the back many ill-defined warts of 

 a shining black colour. Habits : In March and April 

 many of the carrot moths which have survived the 

 winter come out of their hiding-places ; they only fly 

 at night. The eggs are laid separately on umbelli- 

 ferous weeds, carraway, or carrot plants. The cater- 

 pillars are first seen when the plants flower; they 

 live on the flower-stalks, which they bind together 

 by a few threads, and devour the flowers and young 

 fruits, sometimes even the flower-stalks. The cater- 

 pillars are very active, and let themselves down by 

 a thread when disturbed. Usually they are fuUy 

 grown in five weeks, and then bore into the stalks 

 of the plant, where they become pupae. It is not 

 known whether there are one or two generations. 

 The caterpillars are found at very various times, from 

 May to August. 



The Diamond-back Moth {Plutella cnwiferarum 

 = Tinea xylostella). 



Moth : About \ inch long ; span of wings | inch. 

 Fore wings small, lancet-shaped, with long fringes. 

 Ground colour yellowish brown, darkly speckled. 

 Hind wings brownish grey, small, strongly fringed. 

 When at rest the long fringes form a sharp backward 

 and upwardly directed comb, while the antennse are 

 applied together and stretched straight forwards. 

 Caterpillar : About \ inch long, tapering in front and 

 behind. A beautiful green, with a black head. Lives 

 hidden under a very thin web or under a few fibres. 



