THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



131 



this peculiar structure of the fibre, it is very probable that it will never 

 become commercially valuable. 



Cricula trifenestrata belongs to the family Drepanulidse. It occurs in 

 Assam and Burmah. The larvae are gregarious and feed on the soom tree, 

 and in one district are said to feed on the cashew-nut tree (Anacardium 

 orientale), constructing silken bags, in which their cocoons are found in 

 colonies, which cocoons are of a beautiful yellow colour and of a rich lustre, 

 generally opaque, but frequently reticulated, or like net- work. They are very 

 abundant in British Burmah, where they rot in the jungles for want of gather- 

 ing. The fibre is strong, rich, and glossy, and is spun in Assam in the same 

 way as the Eria silk. The cocoons are of a rich golden yellow after they are 

 prepared for manufacturing. There are several other kinds of cocoons which 

 are reelable, and several hundreds which could be carded and spun ; in fact, 

 almost any silken fibre produced by insects if collected in sufficient quantities 

 could be used for manufacturing purposes. 



Spider silk has been utilised and made into garments. A British species, 

 Meta menardi, constructs a very compact and beautiful cocoon which is 

 generally found in caves. 



Pinnae silk which is made from the byssus of mollusca (such as the mussels), 

 and the Pinna by which they attach themselves to rocks and other bodies, 

 has been utilised. The Rev. H. H. Higgins, M.A.., informed me that he 

 had a very beautiful pair of gloves made of Pinna silk. 



ZYG^ENA MELILOTI, ESP. 



By W. H. TUGWELL, Esq. 



In concluding my remarks on this subject, I reply to the Messrs. 

 Briggs' letters in the June number of Y.N. I fully accept Mr. 0. A. Briggs* 

 postulate " that the burden lies on those who set up a new species to prove 

 their case." Unfortunately this cannot now be done, for two good reasons. 

 In the first place, the species was added to our British list on the high 

 authority of the late Mr. H. Doubleday, and I take it that no English 

 entomologist would lightly and without well founded reasons controvert his 

 sound ripe judgment in differentiating our macro-lepidoptera. And secondly, 

 as it appears from reported evidence, that the insect under discussion is no 

 longer to be obtained in the New Forest, it is not possible to continue the 

 investigations. I can only regret that Mr. T. M. Briggs, if he was quite 

 certain in 1875, that he had fully proved by his breeding experiments that 

 Meliloti was only a dwarf form of Trifolii, then I repeat, it is to be regretted 



