SESIA STELLATARUM. 17 



narrow median band prolonged from the area round the anus (A). 

 The latter is very distinct. The surface of the pupa is everywhere 

 marked by circles, with a dot in the centre of each, representing the 

 (bristle-bearing) shagreen tubercles of the larva. The figure was drawn 

 from a transparent object." The pupa is about 35mm. long, stoutest in 

 the middle, tapering to the head, which is prolonged into a flattish pro- 

 jecting tongue-case; the abdomen tapers gradually to near the end, when 

 it slopes off rapidly ; it has a short sharp spike with two tiny straight 

 spines at the tip; the pupal skin is thin, slightly shagreened, but 

 showing some gloss; the colour dull drab, with the spiracles, wing- 

 nervures, and a line on the belly from the head to the end of the 

 wings, all dark brownish (Hellins). Elongate, lighter or darker 

 brown in colour, with protuberant head. Sometimes the pupa is 

 bluish-green, with a black-brown longitudinal stripe dorsally. 

 The cremaster is slender and pointed (Bartel). The cremastral 

 spine of the pupa of Sesia stellatarum is much more slender, and 

 tapers more evenly than that of Theretra porcellus; it is also straight 

 instead of curved, and appears to be bifid at the tip. There are no 

 traces of a lateral dorsal ridge of spines on the 5th, 6th and 7th 

 abdominal segments. The pupal envelope is very delicate, and 

 would appear to be very badly adapted for passing an English 

 winter in this stage (Bacot). The pupa turns black two days 

 before emergence (Ransom). 



Foodplants. — Galium, Rubia (Linne), Galium verum, G. mollugo, 

 G. aparine (Raynor), G. palustre (Hamm), G. saxatile (Sich), G. verum, 

 flowers preferred (Ransom), G. verum, seeds preferred (Guthrie), 

 Stellaria, % Rubia tinctorum (Bartel), Epilobium (Moeschler). 



Parasites. — Cry plus migrator, F. (Marshall), Alysia breviventris, 

 Gour. (Rondani), Apanteles stellatarum, Be. (Rondani), Apanteles 

 glomeratus, Linn. (Rondani). 



Habits. — This is one of the most remarkable of the moths 

 that visit this country. It has a distribution that covers the 

 greater part of the Old World, and an ability to fly rarely 

 witnessed in lepidoptera. It abounds in some of the hottest parts 

 of its area, producing a continuous series of broods throughout 

 the year, the spring examples of which often distribute themselves 

 over the whole of the north temperate parts of the continents of 

 Europe and Asia, where they increase during the summer in an 

 incredible manner. Then for a series of years the species will 

 be almost or quite absent. In 1865 and 1870, it swarmed locally 

 in Britain, and was generally abundant throughout the whole of 

 central Europe, Graeser observing that, in these years, the larvae 

 occurred in countless thousands in districts where, in other years, 

 they only occurred singly. In 1872, again, it was also very abundant 

 in Britain, and Newman refused (Ent., vi., p. 112) to publish 

 further records of its occurrence. In 1899, it also appeared in great 

 numbers in most parts of the British Islands. The continuous- 

 brooded habit is almost certainly the cause of its repeated extermination 

 in the British Isles, for, although its very limited hybernating habit is 

 sufficient to carry it through the short winter in southern Europe, 

 allowing the ?s to oviposit in February and March, our more 

 severe winter not only kills off most of the hybernators, but our 

 late spring probablyj does not allow of a sufficient advance in 



