Report of Consulting Entomologist. 
169 
from beetle or fly grubs by being sixteen-footed. They are to be 
found at work at this time of the year a little below the surface of 
the ground, and presently change to chrysalids in cells in the earth, 
from which the smallish, clay-coloured and white-marked moths come 
out in May. 
Where the ground has no growing crop on it, the best way to 
prevent recurrence of the attack is to plough or skim, so as to turn 
the caterpillars out on the surface, or thoroughly loosen the soil 
round them ; and, even later on, amongst growing crops, cultivating 
as deeply as could be managed would do some good by throwing the 
caterpillars out to the weather and birds. 
We had a very good instance of this just lately in the case of 
the Cockchafer grubs found near Skene, in Aberdeenshire. These 
great grubs, of which specimens were sent me on February 2, were 
found, in ploughing up lea to a uniform depth of 5^ inches, to the 
amount of a few hundreds per acre. Those which were thrown out 
were found not to have sufficient vitality to rebury themselves ; and 
as the plough was commonly followed by large birds, specified as 
Common Coc-kcliafer, with larva, and pupa. 
crows, starlings, etc. which cleared the grubs thoroughly, the work 
was done very satisfactorily. 
The grubs sent me appeared to be full-grown, at which stage 
they are usually considered to go down much deeper than six 
inches ; but on inquiry I received information that they had not 
been further down, for they were all found at the bottom of their 
burrows. There was, however, so much "foggage" — that is to say, 
old grass remaining on the grass-land which was being broken up — 
that this acted in some degree as a protection from the frost. 
The above notes appear to be worth special attention as being 
practical observations of the serviceableness of turning out cater- 
pillars in the winter. 
With regard to the Winter Moths, and some others of the 
Orchard Moths, we have also trustworthy observations of even the 
unusually long-continued cold of the past December and January 
not having availed either to prevent development of the moths from 
their chrysalids, or to destroy the vitality of the eggs. 
On the evening of January 29 (about 9 or 10 o'clock), moths 
were found in plenty at Seaford Grange, near Pershore, and amongst 
these the wingless females of the Winter Moth {Cheimatohia bru- 
