THE ENTOMOLOGIST’S 
WEEKLY INTELLIGENCER. 
No. 150.] SATURDAY, AUGUST 13, 1859. [Price Id. 
CASES. 
Since the time when Reaumur so 
completely broke the ice on the sub- 
ject of case-making larva, these crea- 
tures have always received a certain 
amount of attention from entomologists; 
but yet, even only twenty years ago, 
we do not find that any entomologist 
had attained to the knowledge of this 
subject which Reaumur had possessed 
more than a century back. 
But the progress which has been 
made in the study of the case-making 
larvas of the genus Coleophora , since 
1839, has been prodigious. From 1839 
to 1849 the progress was great, but 
from 1849 to 1859 it has been far 
greater. Is it still to proceed at an 
increasing ratio? 
We have been led to these con- 
siderations by the reflection that the 
fourth volume of the ‘Natural History 
of the Tineina’ is now published, and 
this volume is entirely devoted to the 
genus Coleophora; and, so far from this 
exhausting the subject, it will be fol- 
lowed by another volume on the same 
genus. 
The discoveries made during the past 
year have not been unimportant; the 
habit of the larva of Coleophora binola- 
pennella is quite peculiar, and the 
occurrence of larvae of C. fuscocuprella 
in the vicinity of London shows that 
the metropolitan district is not yet 
fully explored. 
In 1849 it was held that Goniodoma 
differed from Coleophora mainly in the 
larva quitting the case in order to 
assume the pupa state. Now it has 
been found that the larva of a species 
allied to Annulatella quits its case and 
enters the ground, and Mr. Scott has 
remarked that the larvae of Binotapcn- 
nella actually form silken tubes to some 
depth in the ground, leaving the empty 
case erect above its retreat, like a 
tombstone, on which we can quite 
fancy we read the inscription — 
“Hero lies Coleophora binotapennella," 
Salt marshes will no doubt be well 
ransacked this autumn for the larva of 
this species, and perhaps some further 
observations of- interest may yet be 
made on the habits of the larva of 
Binotapennella. 
The case of Binotapennella reminds 
one of an ancient bark canoe; it is 
scarcely a work of art; the larva has 
hollowed out a stem by eating it, and 
has then adopted this tubular stem for 
a case. There seems no similarity 
whatever between such a simple con- 
trivance as this and the elegant and 
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