106 Second Report on Economic Zoology. 
wine bottle, which it had completely eaten so as to cause the wine to 
escape ; and that it had made a small case for itself of bits of cork. 
Mr. Hope mentioned that in India it was well-known that the 
Blcittce will not attack anything coated with resin anime, and which 
is accordingly employed as a defence against their attacks in covering 
the corks of bottles, etc. 
The Lepidopteron referred to by Babington was evidently the 
0%. V-flava. 
[Since first going to press, Dr. Newton Pitt has sent me the necks 
of some champagne bottles from the Armourers’ Hall, all of which 
had leaked and become spoilt owing to infection of the corks. All 
five sent were of different brands of champagne, showing probably a 
common source of origin, which, evidently, was in the cellars of the 
company at Armourers’ Hall. These specimens clearly showed the 
damage to be due to Oinophila V-flava, and, in one, I found the 
cocoon of the moth embedded between the cork and the upper part of 
the neck of the bottle. In all there was a distinct hole to the exterior. 
There were also enclosed a number of Psociclce, the so-called Death 
Watch and Book Mite Insects. These proved to be another species 
than that mentioned on p. 104 — the common Clothilla pulsatoria. 
They feed upon cork, but do not do very much harm.] 
Other Animal Pests. 
Crustacea. 
A single species of Woodlouse now and then occurs in cellars 
and devours corks, both when in bottles and loose ; this species is 
known as Oniscus murarius. 
Mollusca. 
The large slug Limax flames occurs in cellars and will feed on 
any refuse. It is accused, sometimes, of devouring corks and eating 
into those in bottles. Jeffreys, on the other hand, says, “they are 
sometimes useful in eating that kind of fungus which causes dry rot 
and another kind which infests cellars and makes choice port wine 
what is termed ‘ corked ’ (‘ British Conchology,’ vol. i., p. 130, 1863) 
I have recently found numbers of this large species feeding upon the 
fungus formed round beer drippings.” 
Mr. George Massee writes from the Koyal Gardens at Kew, that 
he “ knows of no literature whatever on the subject of fungi attacking 
corks, and I have,” he says, “ no personal experience. Some years 
ago a similar question was asked at Kew by a wine merchant, but, 
although I asked for material, I did not receive any.” 
