LEPIDOPTERA. 
not found in England. The larva of the male moth makes a larger and more con¬ 
spicuous case, than does the grub which will produce the wingless female. The 
larvie hibernate securely enclosed in their cases, which are spun on a tree-trunk or 
other convenient object. In the spring the silken attachments are severed, and the 
larva continues to feed until the time of pupation has arrived, when it again spins 
up the mouth of the case to a tree or post, and changes within it to the pupa. 
The male then emerges as a perfect moth, but the female, which is devoid of eyes, 
ovipositor, or any appendages worthy of being styled antennse or legs, remains in 
the larval-case even after it has emerged from the pupa. The organs for the 
production of eggs are, however, complete, and parthenogenesis must, as in many 
other cases, be looked upon as exceptional. 
Family CossibjE. 
The moths belonging to this family, like those of several others, do not possess 
any proboscis ; the antennae being pectinate in both sexes. The larvae are smooth, 
and feed sometimes for several years before pupating in the centre of tree-trunks of 
various kinds ; a cocoon being formed of chips of wood within which the pupa awaits 
its final development. The family is typified by the goat-moth ( Cossus ligniperda), 
in which the front-wings are of a rich brown, streaked and mottled with darker 
tints, while the hind-pair are dull brown. The larva—often known as the auger- 
worm—is exceedingly destructive to forest trees, the holes which it bores in its 
ravages being often half an inch, and even more, across. Its odour recalls that of 
a goat, hence the name given to the moth. A large, long, flat, broad larva, flesh- 
coloured, with short hairs scattered over the body, it is seldom met with, though it 
sometimes may be found as it crosses a road or footpath when seeking for a suitable 
place in which to. spin its cocoon. It lives for over three years in the larval state, 
and makes a very tough cocoon from wood chips, glued together with a gum which it 
secretes. It is a native of Europe and Western Asia, generally appearing in June and 
July. It is figured on p. 101. 
Allied Families. 
The next family ( Arbelidca ) must be dismissed without further remark. The 
Hepialidce include the insects known as ghost-moths, one of which, the largest 
British species (Hepialus lupidinus) has the wings white above and brown below, 
so that when it flies in the dusk of the evening it appears and disappears in rapid 
sequence owing to the practical invisibility of the dull colour of the under side, in 
sharp contrast to the vivid white of the upper side. A near ally of the ghost-moth, 
likewise referable to the family Hepialidce, is the splendid giant-swift moth 
(Zelotypia stacyi ) of Australia, which has been selected for illustration in our 
coloured Plate, as being one of the finest of all moths. As the coloration and 
characters of this magnificent insect are sufficiently indicated in the illustration, it 
will only be necessary to give some account of its habits. Originally described 
from imperfect specimens found at the Manning River and in the neighbourhood 
of Newcastle, this moth was subsequently obtained in some numbers by the miners 
of the latter district. Mr. A. S. OlifF writes that “as the insect is rarely found in 
