THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



233 



trees, and was industriously filling a large bag with the required fruit, while 

 I was listlessly exploring the wood around, which at this place happened to 

 be planted with young ash trees. On the pale bark of these trees the Chilo- 

 chorus abounded, both as larvae, pupae, and perfect insects. The larvae resem- 

 bled those of the " lady-birds " in general appearance, being of a dark slate 

 colour, with six small tufts or projections on each segment of the body. The 

 pupae were attached to the bark of the trees by their tails, and had the old 

 larval skins, which were split down the middle of the back, still upon their 

 lower portions. The larvae which I took home pupated 1 8 days later, and 

 after remaining in that state a short time, emerged in the imago form. The 

 imago is also " lady -bird " like in form, and is black with one red spot on 

 each elytron. It appears to be a common beetle, This year a member of 

 of our " Louth Naturalists' Society " has found these larvae plentifully on 

 willow. In this case they pupated on the stems and leaves of the tree. 



The larvae of the Tortoise beetle (Cassida viridis) are known to almost 

 every one. Their peculiar method of holding a pile of their excrement over 

 their bodies is related in nearly every book on Natural History, which 

 touches upon Coleoptera. On the 29th July last I took several of these flat 

 bristly-sided larvae from an arable field, where they were extremely numerous, 

 feeding on the thistles. This larva measures about 3 lines by 2 lines and is 

 greenish, except the head which is black. The mass of excrements which is 

 held over the back is nearly as large as the larva itself. The larvae taken 

 pupated 13 days afterward. Before this change they remained motionless on 

 the underside of the leaves of the thistle for a day or two, having dropped 

 the mass of excrements previously. The pupa is brownish and very flat, still 

 having spines on its sides, and retaining the forked apparatus at the end of 

 the abdomen. The pupae which I had, remained in this state from 11 to 14 

 days, the first perfect insect appearing on the 21st August. 



I boxed a larvae and some pupae of the Seven-spot lady-bird (Coccinella 

 1 -punctata) on the 27th July last, while returning home, through an arable 

 field, after a country ramble. They were taken from the stems of barley. 

 The appearance of this larvae is, of course, well known. It is of a pale slate 

 colour, with six small tufts on each segment (except the first— the head), 

 except also the fourth and seventh segments, which have the two dorsal tufts, 

 and an orange spot on each side, taking the place of the other tufts. The 

 larva I took pupated two days later, and had emerged as an imago on my 

 return from a visit to the east coast, on the 11th of August. The pupa is 

 shining black, spotted on all its parts with orange. 



A member of our " Louth Naturalists' Society " (Mr. R. W. Goulding) 

 has reared numerous specimens of the somewhat local Adimonia tanaceti. 



