﻿258 
  . 
  BRITISH 
  LEPIDOPTERA. 
  

  

  Small 
  larvae 
  may 
  be 
  obtained 
  in 
  early 
  May, 
  the 
  larvae 
  being 
  fullfed 
  

   towards 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  June. 
  Warren 
  says 
  there 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  really 
  no 
  

   difference, 
  except 
  in 
  size, 
  between 
  the 
  smallest 
  spring 
  larvae 
  observed 
  and 
  

   f 
  ullgrown 
  ones 
  ; 
  he 
  once 
  found, 
  on 
  a 
  small 
  isolated 
  rose-bush, 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  

   young 
  larvae, 
  mostly 
  close 
  to 
  the 
  ground, 
  and 
  feeding 
  there 
  on 
  the 
  young 
  

   leaves 
  ; 
  a 
  fact 
  that 
  led 
  to 
  the 
  supposition 
  that 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  eggs 
  may 
  

   be 
  laid 
  close 
  together 
  near 
  the 
  ground 
  ; 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  buds 
  form, 
  the 
  larvae 
  

   attack 
  the 
  inside 
  of 
  them, 
  but 
  will 
  always 
  feed 
  on 
  young 
  top 
  green 
  leaves. 
  

   When 
  coming 
  to 
  maturity, 
  they 
  undoubtedly 
  prefer 
  the 
  large 
  unopened 
  

   flowers; 
  and, 
  in 
  a 
  high 
  hedge, 
  where 
  the 
  rose-bushes 
  rise 
  to 
  the 
  top 
  and 
  

   flower 
  there, 
  fullfed 
  larvae 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  obtained. 
  The 
  threads 
  the 
  larvae 
  

   spin 
  are 
  viscous, 
  and 
  the 
  frass 
  is 
  not 
  granular, 
  but 
  in 
  small 
  sections, 
  

   the 
  ends 
  of 
  which 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  attached 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  eminently 
  characteristic 
  ; 
  

   the 
  best 
  time 
  for 
  the 
  larva 
  in 
  Middlesex 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  from 
  the 
  end 
  

   of 
  May 
  through 
  June 
  (in 
  litt., 
  June 
  15th, 
  1904). 
  Nolcken 
  long 
  since 
  

   mentioned 
  this 
  gregarious 
  habit, 
  observing 
  that, 
  on 
  June 
  4th, 
  1858, 
  on 
  

   some 
  young 
  rose-bushes, 
  buried 
  in 
  grass, 
  he 
  found 
  a 
  colony 
  of 
  the 
  

   larvae, 
  whilst 
  in 
  his 
  garden 
  at 
  Arensburg, 
  and 
  at 
  Pichtendahl 
  and 
  

   Ilpel, 
  he 
  has 
  always 
  found 
  the 
  larvae 
  in 
  moderate-sized 
  colonies. 
  

   Porritt 
  notes 
  (Ent. 
  Mo. 
  Mag., 
  xii., 
  pp. 
  88-9) 
  that, 
  in 
  May, 
  1875, 
  the 
  

   larvae 
  were 
  found 
  in 
  Chattenden 
  woods 
  " 
  feeding 
  on 
  wild 
  rose, 
  beneath 
  

   the 
  leaf 
  overlapping 
  the 
  rosebud, 
  eating 
  into 
  the 
  unexpanded 
  bud 
  from 
  

   the 
  side 
  ; 
  almost 
  as 
  many, 
  however, 
  were 
  found 
  feeding 
  in 
  similar 
  

   positions 
  at 
  the 
  tips 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  shoots." 
  South 
  says 
  that 
  the 
  larva 
  

   usually 
  bores 
  a 
  hole 
  through 
  the 
  upper 
  portion 
  of 
  a 
  flower-bud, 
  and 
  

   feeds 
  on 
  the 
  folded 
  petals 
  ; 
  sometimes 
  the 
  larva 
  may 
  be 
  found 
  feeding 
  

   on 
  the 
  stamens 
  of 
  a 
  flower, 
  the 
  petals 
  of 
  which 
  are 
  fastened 
  together 
  

   by 
  their 
  outer 
  edges 
  with 
  silken 
  threads 
  ; 
  when 
  feeding 
  on 
  flower-buds, 
  

   the 
  larva 
  conceals 
  itself 
  by 
  drawing 
  down, 
  and 
  securing, 
  a 
  leaf 
  to 
  the 
  

   bud. 
  Chapman 
  observes 
  that 
  the 
  larvae 
  bore 
  through 
  the 
  calyx 
  into 
  

   the 
  petals 
  and 
  stamens, 
  burying 
  themselves 
  to 
  various 
  degrees; 
  a 
  larva 
  

   does 
  not 
  disdain 
  to 
  attack 
  petals 
  direct, 
  when 
  exposed, 
  and 
  goes 
  through 
  

   these 
  to 
  stamens, 
  which 
  are, 
  no 
  doubt, 
  its 
  favourite 
  food. 
  South 
  observes 
  

   that 
  the 
  larvae 
  feed 
  in 
  flowers 
  of 
  dog-rose 
  in 
  hedges, 
  and 
  also 
  in 
  gardens 
  

   on 
  those 
  of 
  moss-rose, 
  in 
  the 
  neighbourhood 
  of 
  Mill 
  Hill. 
  Hofmann 
  

   states 
  that, 
  in 
  Germany 
  and 
  Austria, 
  the 
  larva 
  lives, 
  in 
  May 
  and 
  June, 
  

   on 
  garden- 
  and 
  wild-roses, 
  boring 
  into 
  the 
  flower-buds 
  under 
  the 
  

   shelter 
  of 
  a 
  slight 
  web, 
  and 
  being 
  often 
  destructive 
  in 
  gardens, 
  e.g., 
  

   in 
  Dessau, 
  in 
  1849 
  (see 
  Stett. 
  Ent. 
  Zeity., 
  1850, 
  p. 
  25). 
  The 
  larvae 
  

   have 
  recently 
  been 
  recorded 
  as 
  attacking 
  the 
  rose-trees 
  in 
  gardens 
  about 
  

   St. 
  Louis, 
  U.S.A., 
  it 
  being 
  supposed 
  that 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  imported 
  

   at 
  some 
  recent 
  date 
  with 
  the 
  rose-trees. 
  The 
  only 
  actual 
  dates 
  

   recorded 
  for 
  the 
  larvae 
  of 
  this 
  species 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  : 
  June 
  4th, 
  1858, 
  

   at 
  Magnusholm 
  (Nolcken); 
  May 
  26th, 
  1875, 
  larvae 
  common 
  at 
  Chatten- 
  

   den 
  ; 
  very 
  small 
  larvae, 
  May 
  16th- 
  18th, 
  1880, 
  at 
  Chattenden 
  (Porritt) 
  ; 
  

   fullfed 
  larvae, 
  May 
  26th-June 
  16th, 
  1899, 
  June 
  lst-8th, 
  1903, 
  in 
  

   Middlesex 
  (Rothschild) 
  ; 
  June 
  16th-21st, 
  1903, 
  several 
  larvae 
  on 
  

   dog-rose 
  on 
  the 
  East 
  Horndon 
  side 
  of 
  Thorndon 
  Park 
  (Whittle) 
  ; 
  two 
  

   larvae 
  taken 
  May 
  29th, 
  1901, 
  in 
  loosely 
  spun 
  leaf-buds 
  of 
  wild-rose 
  ; 
  

   exceedingly 
  common, 
  and 
  widely 
  distributed, 
  on 
  June 
  24th, 
  1902, 
  

   feeding 
  in 
  a 
  loose 
  web 
  both 
  in 
  leaf-buds 
  and 
  flower-buds 
  ; 
  also 
  

   abundant 
  in 
  1903, 
  some 
  being 
  almost 
  fullfed 
  by 
  June 
  4th 
  ; 
  halfgrown 
  

   larvae, 
  May 
  23rd-27th, 
  1904, 
  in 
  the 
  Bexley 
  district, 
  exceedingly 
  

  

  