THE BROWN TAIL MOTH. 83 
the inspection of the churchwardens, overseers, or 
beadles of the parish; at the first onset of this 
business, fourscore bushels, as I was most credibly 
informed, were collected in one day in the parish of 
Clapham.” 
The Brown-tail Moth is found in many parts of 
Europe. Albin, who published in 1720, says the 
caterpillars lay themselves up in webs all the winter, 
and as soon as the buds open they come forth, and 
deyour them in such a manner, that whole trees, 
and sometimes hedges, for a great way together, 
are absolutely bare. Geoffroy describes it as the 
most common of all insects about Paris, where it is 
found on most of the trees, which it often strips 
entirely of their foliage in the spring. It is also 
noticed by Ray. 
These caterpillars have happily many enemies, 
they are eagerly devoured by birds ; the ichneumon 
fly destroys them by myriads; and it is supposed 
that the absence of the latter, from some unknown 
cause, might have contributed, for one or two sea- 
sons, to their immense increase. As soon as they 
quit the egg they begin spinning the web, and, 
having formed a small one, they proceed to feed on 
the foliage, by eating, like most other larvee, the 
upper surface and fleshy part of the leaf. In these 
webs they are progressively increased in size, as 
necessity requires ; they live in societies till they 
attain their last skin, when each spins a separate 
