PoRRiTT : The British Pyrales. 



85 



There are three species also in the next genus, Spilodes : sticticalis, 

 palealis, and cinctalis. None of them are rare, although all are rather 

 local. The first, I believe, has been taken in this neighbourhood, and 

 also at Halifax, though I have never met with it myself ; my late 

 friend, Mr. T. Wilkinson, used to get it at Scarboro', and no doubt 

 it is to be obtained in other parts of Yorkshire. Palealis has its head 

 quarters at Folkestone, where it is plentiful, and indeed this used to 

 be considered its only British locality. The last year or two, however, 

 it has been taken much nearer London ; and in August last the Rev. 

 P. H. Jennings, M.A., sent me some larvaj he had found feeding in 

 webs amongst Baucus Carota, near Gravesend, which I have little 

 doubt will prove to be those of this insect. Cinctalis, so far as I 

 know, is entirely a southern species. Sticticalis feeds on Artemesia in 

 June and July ; cinctalis on broom in June ; and palealis on wild 

 carrot in August. The two former fly in July and August, palealis 

 in June and July. 



The only species contained in the next genus, Margarodes unionalis, 

 is exceedingly rare, and I know absolutely nothing of its life history 3 

 the only specimen I remember to have ever seen is in a collection of 

 Mr. J. P. Barrett, who took it on a gas lamp between Camberwell 

 and Forest Hill, October 17th, 1869. Two others were captured the 

 same year. Its caterpillar has been said to feed on privet in May, 

 but this I cannot vouch for. 



The next genus, Scopula, is an interesting and well-known one, as 

 it contains amongst its six species, alpinalis, lutealis, olivaliSj pmnalis, 

 ferrugalis, and decrepitalis — several of our most plentiful Pyrales. 

 Liitealis, olivalis, and prunalis all occur freely in this neighbourhood ; 

 lutealis, indeed, swarms on every weedy bank in July and August, 

 flying in scores at dusk, and is constantly disturbed as we walk along 

 in the daytime. Notwithstanding its abundance, however, nothing is 

 known of its larva, except that it is said to feed on coltsfoot. I have 

 done my best to work out its life history, but although I have had 

 numbers of the females imprisoned amongst a variety of plants, not 

 an egg could I ever induce one of them to deposit. I have also 

 watched repeatedly the moths at large, both at dusk and late at night, 

 in the hope of seeing them deposit their eggs, but although I have 

 carefully seen them fly and settle on almost all kinds of plants, I could 

 never detect one in the act of oviposition, nor could I find an egg on 

 any of the plants frequented by them. Searching for the larva, too, 

 has always been equally futile, although I have been convinced there 

 must have been scores within a few feet of me. I fancy I have had 



