THE YOUNG 



NATURALIST. 



317 



Red Spider.— This insect is not a 

 spider, but a mite, and is sometimes very 

 troublesome in greenhouses, where they 

 exist in countless numbers. 



Remedies. — Procure some sulphuret of 

 lime, or make it by boiling ilb. flour of 

 sulphur and 2 lbs. of fresh lime in four gal- 

 lons of water. Of this sulphuret, take 4 oz., 

 soft soap, 2 oz. ; hot water, one gallon. 

 Mix the soap and sulphuret well, and pour 

 on the water while stirring. When cool 

 enough to bear the hand, syringe with 

 powerful engine, dip infested shoots, or 

 brush stems and bark. — [Miss Ormcrod's 

 Manud.) 



BRITISH MOTHS. 



By John E. Robson. 

 2. GALII. 

 The Bedstraw Hawk-moth. 

 " Galii, F., Gal'ii, feeds on Bedstraw 

 ( Galium verum ) . ' ' — A. L. 



Imago.— Fore wing dark olive green 

 along the costa, followed by a pale yellowish 

 band from the tip to the anal angle; the 

 costal markings and this band are irregu- 

 larly indented into each other, but the lower 

 edge is well defined ; hind margin greenish 

 grey, and between it and the central band is 

 an olive-green triangular mark as in the last 

 species, but broader at the base, and only 

 reach the tip as a narrow line. 



Larva. — Dull greenish yellow to pale 

 brown, with a faintly darker dorsal line ; 

 on each side of this is a row of black rings. 

 The larvai with greenish ground have the 

 centres of these rings yellow, the brown 

 larva; have the centres paler brown. There 

 is one of these rings on every segment but 

 the second and last, the fourth segment has 

 two, and that on the twelfth is oral in shape. 

 Horn black at tip ; spiracles encircled by 

 black. 



Pupa. — Dark reddish brown ; it changes 

 on or just below the surface, among leaves, 

 &c. 



Food Plants. — its natural food is un- 

 doubtedly yellow bedstraw Galium verutn), 

 but it has been found on the white bedstraw 

 (G.molliigo) also, and in gardens on fuchsia. 

 It will also eat willow herb. 



Time of Appearance. — The perfect 



insect appears in this country from June to 

 August, and the larvae feed up that same 

 Autumn. I have seen it feeding as late as 

 November. The pupa remains over the 

 winter, and sometimes for more than one. 



Habitat. — it seems to be rather partial 

 to the coast, the yellow bedstraw generally 

 growing profusely on sand banks near the 

 sea. It has been taken in most of the Eng- 

 lish counties around the coast, but appears 

 to be most abundant on the south or south- 

 east. It has also been taken in some inland 

 places, and also in Scotland and Ireland. 

 Abroad it is much commoner and more 

 generally distributed, being widely spread 

 over Europe, and occurring also in Western 

 and Northern Asia. 



A WALK UP THE WREKIN. 



By W. Harcourt Bath. 

 On Friday, 28th July, having occasion to 

 be passing through Wellington on the way 

 to Birmingham, I thought it would afford 

 me a good opportunity to go up the Wrekin 

 (1320 feet above the level of the sea). 

 Having arrived at Wellington at 8.45 a.m., 

 and leaving my luggage at the station, I 

 made my way quickly out of the town and 

 got on to the main road up to the Wrekin. 

 About five minutes' further walking 1 turne.l 

 to the left and commenced the ascent of the 

 Ercal Hill, and arrived at the top after 

 fifteen minutes' hard but pleasant walking 

 through line oak trees and bracken fern. 

 On the summit were numerous pieces of 



