﻿422 
  

  

  BRITISH 
  LEPIDOPTERA. 
  

  

  being 
  slightly 
  disturbed 
  by 
  my 
  efforts 
  to 
  view 
  it, 
  the 
  larva 
  turned 
  

   round 
  and 
  went 
  head 
  downwards 
  into 
  the 
  shoot. 
  Next 
  day 
  the 
  larva 
  

   had 
  left 
  its 
  first 
  burrow, 
  and 
  was 
  now 
  feeding 
  at 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  3rd 
  

   leaf 
  from 
  the 
  centre 
  of 
  the 
  plant, 
  and 
  had 
  spun 
  a 
  slight 
  web 
  of 
  silk, 
  

   mixed 
  with 
  the 
  hairs 
  of 
  the 
  Hieracium 
  and 
  debris. 
  I 
  put 
  it 
  under 
  the 
  

   microscope 
  ; 
  it 
  was 
  still 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  instar 
  — 
  6|- 
  days 
  old. 
  By 
  this 
  time 
  

   several 
  of 
  the 
  other 
  eggs 
  had 
  hatched. 
  In 
  nearly 
  all 
  cases 
  the 
  larva 
  

   finally 
  made 
  its 
  way 
  into 
  the 
  heart 
  of 
  the 
  plant, 
  and 
  burrowed 
  down, 
  

   a 
  little 
  over 
  its 
  own 
  length, 
  at 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  innermost 
  leaf. 
  In 
  one 
  or 
  

   two 
  cases, 
  where 
  the 
  heart 
  was 
  a 
  poor 
  one, 
  the 
  larva 
  lived 
  on 
  the 
  upper 
  

   surface 
  of 
  the 
  youngest 
  leaf, 
  hiding 
  in 
  the 
  still- 
  rolled 
  edge 
  of 
  the 
  leaf. 
  

   At 
  first 
  the 
  larvae 
  scrape 
  off 
  the 
  fluff, 
  usually 
  from 
  the 
  underside 
  of 
  a 
  leaf 
  at 
  

   its 
  base, 
  and 
  eat 
  the 
  green 
  substance, 
  but, 
  afterwards, 
  burrow 
  downwards 
  

   as 
  already 
  mentioned. 
  Apparently 
  it 
  is 
  only 
  quite 
  late 
  during 
  the 
  

   1st 
  stadium 
  that 
  the 
  larva 
  spins 
  any 
  covering 
  over 
  its 
  burrow, 
  perhaps 
  

   only 
  when 
  about 
  to 
  undergo 
  ecdysis. 
  The 
  hairs 
  of 
  the 
  plant 
  and 
  the 
  

   fluff, 
  however, 
  hang 
  about 
  the 
  dwelling. 
  The 
  only 
  other 
  outward 
  sign 
  

   of 
  its 
  presence 
  is 
  the 
  brown 
  excrement 
  that 
  clings 
  to 
  the 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  

   plant 
  attacked. 
  However, 
  it 
  must 
  not 
  be 
  forgotten 
  that, 
  at 
  this 
  stage, 
  

   the 
  dwelling 
  required 
  by 
  the 
  larva 
  is 
  so 
  small 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  practically 
  

   invisible 
  without 
  a 
  lens, 
  as 
  usually 
  it 
  is 
  only 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  it 
  that 
  meets 
  

   the 
  observer's 
  eye. 
  On 
  July 
  17th, 
  the 
  above-mentioned 
  larva, 
  at 
  this 
  

   time 
  nine 
  days 
  old, 
  had 
  just 
  passed 
  through 
  its 
  first 
  ecdysis 
  and 
  was 
  there- 
  

   fore 
  in 
  its 
  second 
  stadium. 
  Though 
  the 
  head 
  is 
  lighter 
  in 
  colour, 
  the 
  

   general 
  appearance 
  of 
  the 
  larva 
  is 
  not 
  altered. 
  I 
  must 
  have 
  destroyed 
  the 
  

   silken 
  covering 
  of 
  this 
  larva's 
  burrow 
  in 
  getting 
  the 
  larva 
  out, 
  as 
  my 
  next 
  

   note 
  concerning 
  it 
  states 
  that, 
  two 
  days 
  later, 
  it 
  had 
  spun 
  a 
  new 
  cover. 
  

   A 
  second 
  larva, 
  which 
  hatched 
  on 
  July 
  10th, 
  had 
  assumed 
  the 
  second 
  

   instar 
  on 
  the 
  21st 
  of 
  that 
  month. 
  A 
  third 
  example, 
  which 
  I 
  had 
  kept 
  

   in 
  a 
  glass 
  tube 
  instead 
  of 
  sleeving 
  it 
  in 
  a 
  pot 
  on 
  the 
  growing 
  plants 
  

   like 
  the 
  rest, 
  changed 
  its 
  first 
  skin 
  on 
  July 
  23rd. 
  On 
  July 
  27th, 
  the 
  

   plant 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  first-mentioned 
  larva 
  had 
  been 
  living, 
  showing 
  signs 
  

   of 
  failing, 
  I 
  took 
  out 
  the 
  larva 
  and 
  placed 
  it 
  on 
  a 
  fresh 
  plant. 
  The 
  

   vacated 
  burrow 
  showed 
  that 
  the 
  larva 
  had 
  entered 
  the 
  stem 
  of 
  the 
  

   plant 
  at 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  leaf, 
  not 
  that 
  it 
  had 
  actually 
  bored 
  into 
  the 
  

   stem, 
  but 
  had 
  eaten 
  out 
  a 
  deep 
  irregular 
  groove 
  running 
  perpendicu- 
  

   larly 
  down 
  the 
  stem 
  to 
  the 
  distance 
  of 
  about 
  3mm. 
  My 
  observations 
  

   were 
  now 
  somewhat 
  interrupted. 
  On 
  August 
  1st, 
  I 
  made 
  a 
  search 
  for 
  

   two 
  of 
  the 
  larvae 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  on 
  plants 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  pot. 
  I 
  could 
  

   not 
  find 
  either 
  of 
  them, 
  and 
  concluded 
  that 
  they 
  had 
  ceased 
  feeding, 
  

   and 
  would 
  hybernate 
  in 
  the 
  second 
  instar. 
  The 
  slow 
  growth 
  

   of 
  the 
  larvae 
  convinced 
  me, 
  even 
  when 
  they 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  

   stadium, 
  that 
  none 
  of 
  them 
  would 
  yield 
  August 
  imagines. 
  I 
  searched 
  

   again 
  in 
  another 
  pot 
  on 
  August 
  6th, 
  and 
  then 
  found 
  No. 
  10 
  larva 
  

   (hatched 
  July 
  22nd). 
  This 
  was 
  in 
  a 
  burrow 
  similar 
  to 
  that 
  just 
  

   described 
  in 
  the 
  second 
  instar, 
  and 
  very 
  stout. 
  This 
  was 
  the 
  last 
  

   larva 
  I 
  saw 
  in 
  1905. 
  From 
  time 
  to 
  time 
  I 
  searched 
  the 
  pots, 
  but 
  

   could 
  not 
  see 
  either 
  larvae 
  or 
  any 
  traces 
  of 
  them. 
  The 
  pots 
  were 
  

   plunged 
  in 
  earth 
  in 
  the 
  garden, 
  November 
  6th. 
  The 
  following 
  notes 
  

   may 
  be 
  of 
  interest 
  : 
  

  

  July 
  10th. 
  — 
  No. 
  3 
  larva 
  still 
  feeding 
  at 
  base 
  of 
  innermost 
  leaf. 
  

  

  July 
  12th. 
  — 
  No. 
  3 
  not 
  visible. 
  

  

  July 
  13th. 
  — 
  No. 
  3. 
  After 
  dissecting 
  plant, 
  found 
  it 
  at 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the. 
  

   rather 
  outer 
  leaves. 
  Transferred 
  it 
  to 
  another 
  plant. 
  

  

  