254 BRITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



at times, but when found they were feeding upon potato." The 

 larva figured by Curtis (Brit. Ent., fo. 626) was taken in 1832 

 at Teignmouth ( Ent. Mag., ii., p. 116). 



Larva. — The young larva is yellow with a very long black caudal 

 horn (Boisduval). At the time of its first moult, the larva is bluish- 

 green, agreeing exactly with the tint of the leaves of the Nerium, on 

 which it rests motionless during the day, and is thus difficult to detect. 

 The subdorsal line is broad and yellowish, and extends from the 

 4th to the 1 2th segment inclusive. The head is small, concolorous, 

 with three ocellated spots on either side. The legs are washed 

 with carmine at their extremity. The caudal horn is haired through- 

 out its length, and presents three colours — yellowish laterally, black 

 above, with the extremity of the point of a clear white. The 

 stigmata, which are whitish-yellow, are invisible to the naked eye. 

 Below the subdorsal line, from segments 4 to 9, there is a series of 

 whitish dots encircled by azure-blue. The two ocellated spots of 

 the 4th segment, of a bright azure-blue, are already very conspicuous, 

 and, when the larva is disturbed, they increase in brightness, and 

 then acquire a sort of " fulguration " that disappears with the danger. 

 [This peculiarity has not been observed in the adult larva.] The 

 most striking feature of the young larva is the enormous development 

 of the caudal horn on the nth segment; one might say that this 

 is, in its length, in direct opposition to its smallness in the later 

 larval stadia (Milliere). The larva in its early stages is yellowish 

 with a strikingly long, finely, but roughly, granulated, black horn. 

 On the sides are ocellated spots which it retains until pupation. 

 Later, the larva becomes green or light rose-red, with a slight bluish 

 tinge dorsally. The thoracic segments, the last, and sometimes 

 also the 4th, are either yellowish, citron-yellow, or light green. 

 More rarely the whole body is, according to the age of the larva, 

 orange, ochre-yellow, brown-yellow or bronzy-green. When fullgrowti 

 the larva measures from 120mm. to 150mm. in length; a large, 

 reniform, blue, ocellated spot with a blue-black margin is situated on the 

 upper part of either side of the 3rd segment; it has a double white 

 pupil, sometimes faintly surrounded by yellow, and occasionally 

 has, instead of the double white pupil, only a bluish-white shade 

 medially. From segments 4 to 1 1 is a white, light yellow, or full 

 yellow, stripe, running along the sides of the dorsum, and in which 

 appear white dots, surrounded with bluish, whilst above and below 

 this stripe similar dots are scattered over the ground-colour. This 

 stripe is bluish-margined beneath, and, in it, stand the black, yellow- 

 margined spiracles. The true legs are brown-red, in the nearly full- 

 grown larva bluish. Head of the ground-colour. The short and ill- 

 developed caudal horn is thicker below, chiefly citron- or wax-yellow, 

 exteriorly white, and black at the tip, at its base aculeate (Bartel). 

 Elongated and attenuated anteriorly ; the three anterior segments retrac- 

 tile (as in larva? of Eumorpha elpenor and Hippotion celerio). Head small 

 and globular ; caudal horn small, short and thick, and bent back- 

 wards, of a pale carrot colour ; two large round ocellated spots, 

 bright blue in tint, paler towards the centre, bordered by black, 

 and then surrounded by green on the 3rd segment ; the ground- 

 colour is of a pale glaucous-green, inclining to dull yellow on the 

 anterior and posterior segments ; a broad lateral white line, 



