70 STENIA PUJSCTALIS. 



Stenja PUNCTALIS. 

 Plate CL, fig. 7. 



After several fruitless attempts by others in former 

 years at unveiling the life-history of this species, 

 complete success has been achieved during the past 

 season by Mr. W. H. B. Fletcher, who has reared the 

 imago from the egg, and again from larvae taken at 

 large in their habitat [at Freshwater, Isle of Wight, 

 W. Buckler, Note Book IV, 217]. For instructions as 

 to when and where the moth could be found he was 

 indebted to the Hev. C. H. Digby, who, like myself, 

 had captured it in more than one locality, sometimes 

 almost ou the beach, sometimes at the top of the cliff, 

 but always close to the sea ; the larva, when at large, 

 must, in stormy weather, be quite within reach of the 

 salt spray, but it has thriven very well without any 

 such seasoning to its food in captivity. 



Towards the end of the second week in August, 

 1883, Mr. Fletcher captured several moths, and some 

 more again a little later, and in both cases he ob- 

 tained eggs from them ; the larvae were hatched in 

 about a fortnight or rather more, and fed away 

 readily on flowers and leaves of Lotus comiculatus, 

 making awnings (not tubes) of very sticky silk; Mr. 

 Fletcher carried his stock through on the same food, 

 supplemented at times with clover. About Michael- 

 mas, Mr. Buckler, who had received eggs from him, 

 sent me a larva, which I placed in a bottle, and, after 

 a little time, rather neglected ; however, to my sur- 

 prise I found that my neglect had done no harm, for 

 this larva seemed to enjoy its food when damp and 

 rotten rather more than when freshly gathered. Be- 

 fore long Mr. Buckler made the same discovery ; he 

 had been giving his larvae knapweed and plantain, 

 and on one occasion when changing the food was 

 obliged to put back a decaying leaf, because a moult- 



