243 



3, Bombyx huttoni (Westwood). 



Bombyx Huttoni, Westwood, Cabinet, Orient. Ent. p. 26. pi. 12. 

 f. 4 (1847); Walker, List Lep. Het. Brit. Mus. pt. 6. p. 1506 ; 

 Moore, Catal. Lep. Mus. India House, ii. p. 379. 



Hab. Mussooree (Hufton). 



"This species," says Capt. Hutton, "is an inhabitant of these 

 hills (Mussooree), occurring abundantly from the Doon upwards to 

 at least 7000 feet ; and the caterpillar, like that of B. mori, feeds 

 on the leaves of the wild mulberry which grows here in our forests. 

 Unlike the larva of B. mori, however, the present species has the 

 caterpillar covered with long spines, although in colouring and shape 

 there is great similarity between the two. The cocoon is spun in the 

 leaf, which is drawn round it, and the silk is very fine and of a very 

 pale yellow tint. I discovered this species on the 7th May 1842, 

 on some mulberry trees growing at an elevation of about 6500 feet 

 above the sea, with a southern aspect. Some of the caterpillars were 

 of a large size, and nearly full-grown at this time, whilst others were 

 in all their intermediate stages of growth. The caterpillar is of a 

 pale yellowish cream-colour, mottled or marbled down the back and 

 sides with a mixture of grey, yellow, and rufous or brownish lines ; 

 the anterior segments of the body are mottled above with livid grey, 

 and ornamented with four blackish oblong spots or ocelli placed ob- 

 liquely ; along the back are two rows of long black spines curving 

 backwards, and on the anal segment is one long spine in the middle ; 

 the two anterior pair of spines spring from the ocelli, and the last 

 pair are curved forwards, instead of backwards, like the rest ; there is 

 also on each side a row of short spines springing from the base of 

 the true legs. The anterior segments swell up into a hump like 

 those of the larva of B. mori. As the caterpillar becomes mature, 

 the rufous colouring fades away and gives place to a mottling of pale 

 livid grey ; the head is also mottled. It grows to about 2\ inches 

 in length, and spins in the leaf early in May. They are double 

 brooded, for mine all hatched in June, and deposited their eggs, a 

 few of which produced caterpillars that year, but the greater number 

 remained until the following spring." — Westwood' s 'Cabinet of 

 Oriental Entomology' 



Capt. Hutton, in reply to some inquiries by J. Bashford, Esq., 

 relating to this species, states* that "Bombyx huttoni cannot be 

 treated like the domestic kinds, but must (at least for the present) 

 be reared upon the trees. The worms will not remain in the trays, 

 nor even upon twigs placed in water, when once the freshness of the 

 leaf is gone. On the tree it is perfectly free from restlessness, and 

 saves a vast expense in feeding, besides possessing the advantage of 

 always having perfectly fresh food at command, — an essential point 

 in forming good silk, as the quality of this substance must always 

 be greatly influenced by the healthy secretions of the animals pro- 

 ducing it. 



* Journ. Agri-Horticult. Soc. India, ix. p. 391 (1857). 



