66 MOTHS 



PLATE XXXV 



THE BRIMSTONE MOTH (l) 



There is a Brimstone Moth, just as there is 

 a " brimstone butterfly," and you may find it very 

 commonly indeed in almost any part of the 

 country, and at almost any time from April until 

 October, or even November. During the day- 

 time it generally hides away among the leaves 

 of ivy, or of some thick bush, like the " swallow- 

 tailed moth." But you may sometimes see it 

 resting on a fence, or on the trunk of a tree; 

 and after dark it often comes flying into a lighted 

 room through an open window. The caterpillar 

 feeds on hawthorn, and blackthorn, and apple, 

 and sometimes on bramble. It is pale brown 

 in colour, with a bluish spot on each side of its 

 neck, and with three little humps on its back, 

 just like the tiny leaf-buds on a bit of twig. So 

 although it is so common you will not find it 

 unless you look very carefully indeed, and even 

 the sharp eyes of the insect-eating birds often 

 pass it by. As soon as it reaches its full size 

 it spins a thick silken cocoon and turns into a 

 brown chrysalis, out of which the moth appears 

 two or three weeks later. 



