EUDOREA CEMBRiE. 185 



hieracioides, a phanerogamous plant. The part of the 

 plant attacked is the fleshy tap-root, upon which, 

 under a loose web, the larvae live either singly or 

 several together, scoring and channelling the surface, 

 and occasionally cutting short tunnels through it when 

 the root is small and tender. 



The first larva was found on the 3rd of April, 1887, 

 whilst I was examining the stems and roots of various 

 plants growing in a disused limestone quarry for any- 

 thing that might turn up. A month later another 

 solitary one was obtained, as well as four others of 

 different ages, feeding together on another root. It 

 was astonishing how far beneath the surface these 

 small larvse — and some of them were not more than 

 three or four lines long — had managed to get. In the 

 loose ballast-heaps the Picris had rooted deeply, and 

 as far as the plant had penetrated, so far had the 

 larva been able to follow, even to a depth of five or six 

 inches. The spinning it uses to protect itself is not 

 at all of the nature of a gallery, but is simply a weak 

 flimsy web, probably just sufficient to keep any loose 

 particles of soil from falling in ; though afterwards, 

 when reared in vessels exposed to the light, they 

 naturally spin more freely for the purpose of conceal- 

 ment. I kept them in ordinary glasses covered with 

 glass slides, with pieces of the root tied into small 

 bundles that they might the more readily conceal 

 themselves. They proved most easy to rear, five 

 moths and an ichneumon coming out in the last week 

 of June and in July. 



About this time I learned from Mr. Stainton that 

 among the papers of the late Mr. Buckler was the 

 description of some larvas feeding on the roots of 

 Tnssilago farfara, that had been sent him by Mr. 

 J. Gardner, of Hartlepool, and were supposed to be 

 this species. No moth, however, was reared. That 

 Mr. Buckler's larva was E. cembrse there can be little 

 doubt, from the correspondence of our respective 

 descriptions ; although, as might have been expected, 



