132 



THE BRITISH NATURALIST. 



[June 



wards and turning when nearly to the top, and again working down- 

 wards in a serpentine manner. This is the mine of the greenish larva 

 of Bucc. maritimella, and a little later on their beautiful ribbed cocoons 

 may be found attached to the long, wiry grass stems. 



By searching the Artemisia maritima, the long, whitish cases of 

 Col. maritimella will be found, for now they are getting full grown, and 

 some of the cases of Col. arteinisiella, which are short and mealy-looking. 

 The autumn is the best for the latter species, when they may be taken 

 in abundance. We must also keep a sharp look-out for the curved, 

 black cases of the recently discovered and extremely rare Col. vibici- 

 gerella, which are now about full grown, and in the drawn-together 

 shoots the fat larva of C. wimmerana will be found. The thistles which 

 are growing close to the posts and rails should be examined, for it is 

 in these plants the larva of D. s2ihpropinquella will be found making 

 quite a gallery along the mid-rib of the leaf. 



In sandy places on the sea shore, where the sea holly (Evynginm 

 maritimum J is growing freely, some of the topmost shoots, which are 

 now getting well above the ground, will be found black and discoloured, 

 this is caused by the larva of/), cnicella, which feeds in the top of the 

 shoot and edges of the leaves, curling them over ; they are of a dull 

 green colour, with blackish-green head, and several of them are often 

 found in one shoot, some about half grown, and others certainly not 

 more than a day or two hatched. They are an easy species to rear, 

 and when they occur are generally pretty plentiful. 



We will now*work our way back along the lanes, and are soon 

 busy filling a tin with the larva of the very handsome Antispilla 

 pfeifferella. These larvae mine the leaves of the Dogwood f Conn^s 

 sanguinea) between the upper and lower cuticle, when full fed cutting 

 out an oval case and falling to the ground, remaining among the 

 rubbish till the following May, when they emerge. A little further on 

 along the edge of the wood, the shoots of the rose bushes, now coming 

 into bud, have some of them drawn together by the delicate, pinkish 

 larva of P. rliododactyhis. On the leaves of the poplars growing by the 

 wayside the snail-like tracks of the larva of Phyll. suffusella cannot fail 

 to attract our notice. We hurry onward, for time is getting short, 

 but cannot resist the temptation of gathering a few of the pretty blue 

 flowers of the common milkwort (Polygala vulgaris J, and are pleased 

 to find one of the tops drawn together by the pretty larva of Hypercallia 



