CYB0SIA MESOMELLA. 35 



On May 5th and 25th, 1871, larvae were received 

 from Mr. Harwood, which had been found on the 

 trunks of oak trees, feeding on a pale lichen growing 

 intermixed with moss, but not sufficiently developed in 

 its growth to enable us to make sure of its name. 

 These larvse soon spun up, and the moths, extremely 

 fine examples, were bred on June 9th and 18th. 



The full-grown larva is nearly an inch long, figure 

 moderately stout, and tapering only at the head and 

 second segment, and at the thirteenth segment. On 

 each segment behind the second are eight raised tuber- 

 cles densely tufted ; the colour of the body is deep 

 velvety slaty-blackish ; the head shining black ; a deep 

 velvety-black patch on the second segment; the ante- 

 rior legs shining black, the ventral prolegs pellucid, 

 pale greyish, tipped with black ; the second segment 

 bears only simple black hairs, and similar hairs are 

 found along the sides of the other segments just above 

 the legs ; but the tufts on their upper parts are com- 

 posed of black hairs so densely feathered that they 

 catch the light and receive quite a greyish effect from 

 their peculiar softness, and almost entirely hide the 

 skin beneath. In this peculiar featheriness of the larval 

 clothing, this species comes so close to Miltochrista 

 mdniata, that it might well stand in the same genus 

 with it ; and it seems no improvement on the arrange- 

 ment of Doubleday's List, in which they do actually 

 stand close together, though in different genera, to 

 separate them, as Staudinger has done, by the insertion 

 of irrorella and others between them. 



The stout pale brown pupa is enclosed in a com- 

 paratively large cocoon, formed of semi-transparent, 

 thin, greyish silk web, spun in any convenient hollow 

 under the moss or lichen. (W. B. and J. H., 9, 12, 

 71 ; E.M.M. VIII, 172.) 



