Insects Injurious to the Apple. 15 



THE EYED HAWK MOTH. 



{Smeriiithus occllatvs. Linn.) 



The large caterpillars of this beautiful Hawk Moth are sometimes 

 reported from apple trees, upon which their presence is soon detected 

 by the great amount of foliage they devour and the large pellets of 

 " frass " dropped by them. 



The damage done may be serious if numbers occur. Miss 

 Ormerod (1) records these larvte as stripping the leaves of apples at 

 Bewdley, her correspondent saying, " The caterpillar is very destruc- 

 tive " ; another communication from Meldrith, Cambridgeshire, stated, 

 " They entirely denude the trees of all their leaves." 



They have been sent me from several places in Worcestershire, 

 Suffolk, Kent and Surrey, with notes regarding the damage they 

 have done. The damage is more apparent than real. Knowing, 

 however, the ravenous habits of the Hawk Moth caterpillars when 

 young, it is not unlikely that any undue increase might lead to 

 much loss occasioned by the young larvae. 



The chief food plants are willow, sallow and poplar, but they also 

 occur on sloe, peach and almond. 



Desceiptiox and Life-History. 



The moth measures from 2J inches to nearly 3f inches in wing 

 expanse (Fig. 1). 



The fore wings are of a rich grey-brown, with pale chocolate or 

 olive-brown markings, a median bar being noticeable ; the hind wings 

 are rosy-red, becoming rather greyish at the edges, and with a large 

 greyish-blue eye-spot on each, encircling a black pupil and sur- 

 rounded by black, as seen in Figure 1 ; the broad thorax is dark 

 in the middle, greyish-brown at the sides, and the abdomen is also 

 greyish-brown. 



The moth frequents gardens and orchards, but especially osier 

 beds and willows. 



It appears from the end of May until the middle of July, and 

 may be found all over England, but is rare in Scotland. The ova 

 are laid singly on the leaves. The egg is plump and oval, the upper 

 surface shrunken in the middle, the shell shiny, but finely reticulate ; 

 in colour it varies from pale-greenish to yellow. 



The larvae may be found in the months of June, August and 

 September, the majority in the last two months. 



When mature the larva is 3 inches long; in colour it is 



