MANDUCA ATROPOS. 413 



earliest larva of the year at Chichester on August 7th, 1901 

 (Anderson), August 7th (fullgrown) to September 28th, 1901, at 

 Sudbury (Ransom), larvae abundant at Ringwood, August 8th-October 

 5th, 1901 (Fowler), larvae August 14th, August 15th, several nearly 

 fullgrown, August 16th six, August 17th five, and 20 from August 19th- 

 September 10th, 1901, at Dovercourt (Mathew), larvae August 16th, 

 22nd, 28th, 1901 (this last pupated on September 2nd), September 

 14th (this pupated on the 16th), October 4th, a pupa at Elstow, all 

 these died (Pestell), August 17th, 1901, larva at Hull (Walsh), August 

 2oth-September nth, 1901, several larvae and pupae in the Norwich 

 district (Moss), August 20th, 1901, two larvae at Hayling Island 

 (May), larvae August 24th, 1901, at Sherburn, September 3rd, 1901, 

 at Brompton, September 5th, 1901, at Ayton (Lownsboro), larva 

 August 28th, 1901, at Ilford (Adams), September 14th, at Chathill 

 (Allhusen), 2 larvae on September 21st, 1901, and one pupa on Novem- 

 ber 3rd, at Kildale (Sachse). It is remarkable that there is not a 

 single record for Britain earlier than July, although, occasionally, full- 

 fed examples are recorded as having been captured in early July. We 

 place no credence in Packman's offhand assertion (South, Ent., xix., 

 p. 147) that almost fullfed examples occur in Kent in June. We have 

 lived in Kent for nearly half a century, and never heard of or saw 

 larvae earlier than July. 



Larva. — Final instar. — A small larva at full stretch measured only 

 3ins. in length ; at rest the head is slightly retracted. Head : A 

 tall, slightly-rounded trapezoid, somewhat bulged at the sides ; 

 the surface, although shiny, is very rugose, and the hairs are 

 very fine and small (I fail to trace any on the face); in colour 

 the head is of a vivid apple-green with a broad black band up 

 the sides from the ocelli to near the crown ; the clypeal and median 

 sutures are not deep, the crown only very slightly notched ; the mouth- 

 parts and antennae black with white at joints. True legs : Black with 

 comparatively large white areas surrounding the bases of hairs. 

 Body : The body is stout and plump, tapering but little for a Sphingid 

 larva. Thoracic segments stout and compressed, having a swollen 

 and hooded appearance ; they are of a clearer and more pellucid 

 green than the rest of the body ; the prothoracic scutellum present 

 but not markedly prominent ; the meso- and metathorax appear to be 

 subdivided into five subsegments. The 1st abdominal segment is 

 considerably shorter than the following segments, and I can only 

 count six subsegments on it, but the abdominal segments 2 to 7 

 have eight subdivisions. The spiracles are black, bordered with white; 

 the hairs and mammillae (shagreen-tubercles) are all but atrophied, 

 but the coloured areas surrounding the hair-bases are still strongly in 

 evidence on the dorsal area. The caudal horn is stiff, its roughness 

 due to the large and thorn-like mammillae at bases of hairs ; these 

 mammillae are white, the horn itself yellow, the tip black. The 

 oblique stripes are strongly pigmented, yellow beneath and purple-blue 

 above. The shagreen-spots (pigmented areas surrounding hair-bases) 

 are dark purple, shading off into blue and green at the edges (Bacot. 

 August 21st, 1900.) Two other examples (preserved by inflation and 

 well done) have dimensions as follows : (1) Length 83mm., girth 

 12mm., size of head 8*5mm. in height and nearly 8mm. in width, 

 length of head and thorax 22*5111111. (2) Length nomm., girth 



