COMMON VAPOURER MOTH. 
79 
palings, and in these the caterpillar changes to chrysalis, from which 
the moth appears in summer in about a fortnight. It is noticed by 
Edw. Newman, in his ‘British Moths,’ p. 40, that:—“The eggs do 
not hatch together like those of moths in general, but come out a few 
at a time over a period of ten weeks, so that the caterpillar, chrysalis, 
and moths are all found together throughout the summer and autumn.” 
In 1886 caterpillars were sent me on July 22nd from Linton-on- 
Ouse, with a report that two fruit trees had been stripped bare of leafage 
through the ravages of the caterpillars, and that they might be counted 
by thousands in all parts of the garden, and that this had been the case 
for four years, but that none of the neighbouring gardens were touched. 
In the same year I had a note of them as injuring Pear trees in another 
locality, and as having destroyed the leaves of most of the trees in that 
same locality in the previous summer. 
Cocoons of 0. antiqua, respectively covered with eggs, and showing chrysalis within. 
Excepting, however, these observations, I am not aware of any 
notes of its presence having been sent until the past season, in which 
I had an observation in the early part of July of the caterpillars doing 
great damage to Plum (especially to Victoria and Greengage) in an 
orchard house in some well-known nurseries in the South of Ireland, 
where it was noted as being “most destructive if neglected.” 
The real trouble from its presence, however, is where it gets hold 
in regular orchard growths, and relatively to this point I was favoured 
in November last with excellent specimens of the egg-covered web- 
cocoons, and also an opened web showing the chrysalis skin still 
remaining within, which were sent to me from Croome Court, Severn 
Stoke, Worcestershire, by direction of the Earl of Coventry. 
By kind permission of Lord Coventry I give the above figures of 
two of these specimens, and the short note of observation following:— 
