PARAPONYX STRATIOTATA. 83 



undulation is connected with the respiration of the 

 larva is evident from the fact that the branchial fila- 

 ments are then all in strong action; for, instead of 

 radiating as they do in repose, they become depressed 

 a little, and point forwards in the direction of the 

 head. 



As to their method of feeding, I noticed that the 

 smaller larvae ate only the green cuticle from the 

 leaves, thus bleaching them ; but the larger ones ate 

 completely through the leaves, cutting out circular 

 pieces ; when frass was ejected, the dark alimentary 

 canal was seen suddenly to lose its contents as far 

 back as the beginning of the third segment from the 

 anal extremity (that is the eleventh segment counting 

 in the usual way), and to discharge them with such 

 great velocity that the frass was carried about an 

 inch outside the opening of the silken residence, the 

 larva having first moved backwards to the opening, 

 and afterwards retiring within to its former place. I 

 found in each of the above-mentioned bottles every 

 morning, at the same distance from the web, an 

 accumulation of rejectamenta, consisting of small 

 ovate particles of olive-greenish vegetable debris, 

 little changed in colour from that of the plant; in one 

 instance, after cleaning out this accumulation, and 

 supplying fresh water with no apparent disturbance 

 to the larva, I found that, at the end of twenty-four 

 hours, it had expelled twenty-six pellets of frass. 



On the 10th of September, 1874, I had the great 

 satisfaction of breeding one moth from a larva that 

 had spun up in a bottle ; but I got out no more, for 

 although I bad then and previously so many other 

 pupae, yet they, like most of the larvae, seemed stand- 

 ing over for another season ; indeed, two larvae were 

 not much more than half grown by the 5th of 

 October ; up to that date all seemed going on very 

 well, but as winter approached they and the others 

 became somewhat torpid, ceased to feed, and carried 

 on their peculiar motions in a slower manner, at 



