THE SMALL ERMINE MOTHS (Ayponomeuta). 

FH. padella I. 
Moth, twice natural size ; larvee and web about natural size. 
The genus Yyfonomeuta contains a number of species, most 
oi which so closely resemble each other in appearance and in 
mode of life as to be difficult to distinguish. They are all 
small moths (A/zcrolepidoptera), measuring } to 1 inch from tip 
to tip of the wings. The general colour of the fore wings is 
white or grey, sparsely traversed on the upper surface by 
irregular rows of small black spots, hence the name “Ermine 
Moths.” The thorax, or portion of the body from which the 
wings spring, is usually also supplied with similar marks. 
The hind wings are provided with a long fringe, and they, as 
well as the lower surface of the fore wings, are brownish. 
The caterpillar is about three-quarters of an inch in length, 
of a greyish or yellowish colour, plentifully supplied with 
