THE YOUNG NATURALIST 



168 



wings. It occurs in Syria and Greece. 

 Ghirda^ Ld.. scarcely differing from the last. 

 It occurs in the same part of the world, 

 being referred to Asia Minor. 



^ EUPITHECIA CENTAUREATA. 



The Lime Speck. 



The "pugs" are a very distinct genus, 

 not to be confounded with any other. They 

 have ample fore wings, considerably elon- 

 gated, and when at rest do not cover the 

 hind wings with them so much as most even 

 of the Geometers do, but they are stretched 

 out from the body, and the insect sits with the 

 wings in much the same position as an ento- 

 mologist places them in setting them for his 

 cabinet. But though no one can mistake a 

 " pug " for anything else, many of the spe- 

 cies present considerable difl&culties in dis- 

 tinguishing them from others, and there are 

 few indeed who can name at sight any cap- 

 tured specimen. In no genus of Macro- 

 Lepidoptera have so many new species been 

 added of late years as in the genus Eupithecia. 

 Forty were described in Stainton's Manual, 

 and there are now forty-seven given on our 

 Exchange lists, and the actual number of 

 species occurring in this country is certainly 

 not exhausted yet. The Rev. Harper Crewe 

 made this genus his special study a few 

 years ago, and by c'ose attention to them 

 and careful rearing from their earlier stages 

 was able to add very largely to our know- 

 ledge. 



The present species is selected because it 

 presents no difficulties to the beginner, being 

 very easily recognised in the perfect state, 

 and very easily obtained. The larvae may 

 be collected on the food-plant later in the 

 season, and are very easy to rear. The 

 imago may be found on palings during the 

 . day, or at night on flowers. I have found 

 it most abundant on Heracleum Sphondy- 

 lium. It also comes rather freely to sugar. 



Centaureata, W.V., Centaurea'ta, feeds 

 on the Great Knapweed [Centauna scabi- 

 oso)." — A.L. But the larva feeds on other 

 plants also. 



Imago. — Fore wings white, with pale 

 grey hind margin. A dark costal blotch 

 beyond the middle and a paler plotch on 

 the inner margin. It is nearest to meeentu- 

 riata, but it is easily distinguished by the 

 costal blotch. Consigtiata has two dark 

 marks on the costa ; but, besides being a 

 rare insect, the ground colour is darkish 

 grey, not white. In fine specimens of Cm^ 

 taureata the inner portion of the markings 

 at the hind margin are tinned with reddish. 



Larva. — The following description is 

 copied from the Rev. Harper Crewe's 

 paper on the genus Eupethecia in the 

 "Entomologists' Annual" for 1S62 :~"Long, 

 rather slender, and tapering towards the 

 head. Has a slightly wrinkled appearance. 

 This larva is almost as variable as E. absyn- 

 thiata, and so dissimilar are some of the 

 varieties that I am not surprised at many a 

 tyro being ' awfully puzzled,' The following 

 are those most commonly met with : — Var. 

 I., Bright yellowish or bluish green, with a 

 number of dorsal and sub-dorsal spots and 

 lines of a darker shade ; the dorsal markings 

 very often forming a series of disjointed lo- 

 zenge-shaped spots. Var. — Uniform yellow, 

 yellowish or bluish green, without any spots 

 or markings whatever. Var. 3. — Greenish or 

 pinkish white, with a chain of deep red, 

 trident shaped dorsal spots, connected to- 

 gether by the central prong, and becoming 

 confluent towards the head. Belly whitish, 

 with a short red line or spot in the centre 

 of several of the segments." 



Pupa. — Wingcase and thorax green, 

 abdomen, yellowish, enclosed in a slight 

 earthen cocoon below the surface of the 

 ground. Sometimes the pupa is uniformally 

 pale reddish,. 



