LUPERINA TESTAOEA. 75 



The moth of the true testaceous colouring emerged 

 on the 28th of August, one fore-wing shorter than the 

 other. (W. B., Note Book III, 270.) 



LlJPERINA CESPITJS. 



Plate LXV, fig. 4. 



In September, 1864, I received a number of eggs 

 from Mr. Terry, of St. Mary Church ; they were all 

 loose, but probably, in a state of freedom, the moth 

 would attach them to grass, &c. 



The eggs at first are pale straw-colour, soon turning 

 pale purplish-brown, and again becoming dingy grey a 

 long time before the larra appear. This is singular, for 

 the last change of colour usually precedes the hatching 

 of the larva but a few hours, or days at the outside. 



One half of my eggs I kept in a pill-box, the other 

 half I dropped on a bit of wall-moss, Tortula ruralis, 

 which was planted with some tufts of various common 

 grasses in a flower-pot. Here they were exposed to 

 every change of weather — snow, rain, or frost — all 

 through the winter ; till on April 4th, which was a 

 warm day, I put the flower-pot under a sunny wall, 

 and thus prevailed on the larvae to come forth. The 

 eggs in the pill-box shrivelled up, every one. 



The larva at first is a little dingy fellow, but after a 

 moult or two puts on the gayest dress worn in all its 

 existence, becoming of a clear full green, with white 

 dorsal, subdorsal, and broader spiracular lines. As it 

 grows bigger the green becomes tinged with olive, and 

 at the last moult the colour of the back is of an olive- 

 brown, shining with a metallic lustre (reminding one 

 of bronzy morocco leather) ; and the lines, which are 

 clearly defined, are of a dirty freckled white. The 

 figure is stoutest in the middle, tapering towards either 

 end ; the head horny, brown in colour ; the plates 

 on segments 2 and 13 nearly black ; the belly of a pale 

 olive-green. 



