130 STEEOPES PANISOUS. 



with flat base, its colour white and shining, like porce- 

 lain. On the 11th of June some few showed a dark 

 spot at or near the top, and on the 12th this had 

 spread to a large, dingy-greyish blotch, and sullied the 

 entire surface as the shells became more transparent. 

 On the 13th this dark central blotch seemed to change 

 to a blackish round spot, and on the 14th was perfectly 

 black and shining, when it soon became evident it was 

 the naked head of the larva eating its way through the 

 shell ; and in the course of another hour or two the 

 larva crept out of this hole in the top of the shell, on 

 which it made its breakfast, eating away the sides of 

 it until but very little remained. 



The newly-hatched larva has a largish head and 

 uniformly cylindrical body, which is velvety white ; 

 the head is black and shining, and there is a shining 

 black linear plate on the second segment. 



Various plants were put with the three larvse first 

 hatched besides grasses, and in the evening I had the 

 satisfaction of seeing a small notch was eaten quite 

 through the edge of a leaf of Brachyjpodium sylvaticum, 

 and a larva lying along the leaf close by. 



After feeding a couple of days the colour of the body 

 changes from white to a very faint tint of bluish-green ; 

 the larva crawls very slowly and keeps near to that 

 part of the leaf it has attacked, showing no disposition 

 to wander away. 



The hatching continued, but in a desultory way, 

 being evidently delayed by the cold north winds at this 

 time. On the 19th three or four seemed to have made 

 their arrangements for moulting, by drawing the tips 

 of the leaves together, so as to form little cylindrical 

 retreats ; these were securely fastened by spinnings of 

 silk. In two instances these retreats were made near 

 the middle of the leaf with a portion curled round and 

 fastened, this process being made practicable by the 

 larva having previously eaten out a notch from the edge 

 both above and below the part that was curled round. 



By the 22nd they had doubled their length, but 



