dbO BRITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



Hofmann notes that the larvae of the var. sieboldii are to be found in 

 early spring in sunny meadows in woods usually in great numbers in 

 one circumscribed spot, but can only be found readily among the dry 

 grass culms after long practice as they rest near the ground and only 

 move about freely in the warm sunshine. 



Larva. — At what appears to be its hybernating stage, the larva is 

 6'25mm. in length, and about l-5mm. at its greatest width, the middle 

 abdominal segments being the stoutest, the thorax much less bulky, 

 whilst it tapers slightly towards the head, the anal end being blunt. 

 The head is small, rounded, polished and black, with a white dash 

 beneath and up either side of the triangle bounding the clypeus. The 

 prothorax long, the mesothorax shorter and the metathorax shortest, 

 all these segments being horny, polished (the corneous portions 

 exhibiting a minute and faint scale pattern as in other Psychid larvae), 

 black, with broad mediodorsal, subdorsal and lateral white bands (very 

 broad relatively to the black areas) ; the folds of skin at the junction 

 of head and prothorax are white, giving the head and thorax together a 

 greyish appearance (to the naked eye). The abdomen is red-brown in 

 colour, the setae long and slender (longest as usual on the head, 

 thoracic, and anal segments), their position on the abdominal segments 

 being that usual in the more specialised Psychids ; the venter is some- 

 what flattened, the larva having marked projecting lateral flanges ; the 

 small chitinous plates at base of setae are large and towards anus very 

 strong ; the anal plate is almost black, rather rough, and has a very 

 horny-looking surface. The abdominal segments are most distinctly sub- 

 divided into two subsegments, the contractions being more marked 

 dorsally than in any other Psychid larvae examined. The spiracles 

 are not large, but are raised as short tubes (and are very prominent as 

 seen from above), paler than the ground colour of the larva but with a 

 dark brown rim. The true legs are dark in colour ; the prolegs of the 

 usual Psychid form, with strong hooks, the central depression of those 

 on 3rd-6th abdominals being very marked, and apparently slightly 

 horny ; this depression is not noticeable on the anal pair, but there is in- 

 stead just a suspicion of the horny lunule that replaces the central depres- 

 sion in the anal prolegs of A. ojKicella (Ba,cot. Described October 8th, 1899, 

 from larvae from case with eggs sent by Mr. Burrows from Mucking) . The 

 full-grown larva is 7mm. -10mm. in length, of ordinary Psychid build, 

 the third legs on a projection making them look very large, whereas 

 they are of about equal size to others. Head deep brown (nearly 

 black), with a paler vertical mark on either side of clypeus. Thoracic 

 segments with the usual chitinous plates, that on prothorax single, 

 meso- and metathorax with accessory marginal plates ; from the pro- 

 to metathorax they become narrower from side to side, wider from back 

 to front ; the plates are deep black-brown in colour, but about half 

 their area occupied by longitudinal bands of pale terra-cotta, (1) 

 median, (2) subdorsal, (3) at margin of primary plates. The median 

 pale stripe has two very dark spots in it (on prothorax) marginally ; 

 the subdorsal has three such marks, two in one dark cloud on meso- 

 thorax and one on metathorax (these are like processes of the outer 

 margin of the pale band) ; the secondary plates are dark and are in 

 line with a corresponding dark mark at the outer margin of the plate 

 on prothorax. The head and these plates carry long hairs (two-thirds 

 the diameter of larva). The anal plate is dark brown, slightly pale 



