92 MOTHS 



PLATE XLVIII 



THE BEAUTIFUL YELLOW 

 UNDERWING (i) 



This is really a most lovely little moth. It is 

 something like a very, very small "large yellow 

 underwing." But instead of having the front 

 wings plain light or dark brown, with hardly 

 any markings at all, it has them bright red- 

 brown with pure white spots and wavy lines, 

 while the hind-wings are of the brightest possible 

 yellow, with a broad edging of glossy black. 



If you want to see this very pretty insect, you 

 can easily do so. All that you have to do is to 

 ramble over a heathy common on a hot, sunny 

 day in May or June, and you are sure, before 

 long, to notice a Beautiful Yellow Underwing 

 flying about over the heather. It hardly looks like 

 a moth. It looks more like a brightly-coloured 

 little bee. And it flies so quickly that you will 

 have some little difficulty in catching it. 



The caterpillar of this moth feeds on heather 

 and bilberry, and is bright green in colour, with 

 five white lines running along its body. Down 

 its back is a line made up of short white streaks. 

 Below this, on each side, is another line, made 

 up of white spots. And lower down still is a 

 third line, also made up of spots, which run up 

 and down in a zigzag. Look for this caterpillar 

 in August. 



