Passing by a number of species, we come to the Button 3. ^ Fig.

This IS the insect of which so many varieties have been I recorded. So variable an insect cannot be described in detail.

but there are one or two points about it which are the same in all the varieties. The upper wings are always brown of some shade, and much darker than the lower pair. Each of the upper wings has in the middle a little button-like tuft of greyish-white scales, from which the popular name of Button Moth is derived ; and along the lower edge of the wings there is a streak or dash of the same hue.

is not rare, though it is rather local, occurring in

This Moth spots wherein it takes up its residence.

some profusion in those are the localities which it generally pre-

Woods and forests from the end of summer throughout the

aut fer,5, limn. and it appears

{Teras caudana) deseiwes

The very conspicuous Notchwing on account of the peculiarity of tlie upp

a short description,

wings. If one of these wings be taken by itself, it looks exactly as if the insect had met with an accident, and had a large piece torn out of the upper edge. This notch, from which the insect takes its name, occupies fully one-third of the length of the wing, and is rather deeper towards the base than the tip. It is rather a variable insect, but the deep and long notch is suflBcient for identification. Generally, the ground colour of the upper wings is soft grey-brown with a satiny gloss. About the centre of the wing the colour warms into chestnut, and a narrow edging of the same colour surrounds the wing. The edge of the scallops is white, and a dark grey band is drawn beneath them, and taking the same outline.

The caterpillar of this little Moth feeds on the sallow, and is green, with a yellow head. The Notchwing prefers the north of England to the south.

On the rose-tree is often seen a little white caterpillar with a black head. If approached quietly, it can be detected while feeding on the leaves, but if the branch be jarred, the caterpillar drops for some distance, letting itself down by a silken line. This is the larva of a very destructive little Moth, called the Bergmannian Tortrix {Dictyopteryx Bergmanniana).

The upper wings of this insect are rather long, and their upper edge is decidedly arched in front. The colour of these wings is grey with a dash of ochreous yellow, pencilled indistinctly with brown, and across them are drawn two diagonal whitish marks having a silvery lustre. On the hind margin there is a brown band, variegated with minute white spots. The best way of getting rid of the insect is to tap the stem of the rose gently, when the larvae will let themselves drop, and can easily be taken as they hang suspended by their silken lifelines.

About the exact position of the little Moth which comes next on our list there has been considerable uncertainty, some entomologists placing it in the genus Lozotaenia. As, however, we accept in this work Mr. Doubleday’s well-known catalogue, we place it in the position which he gives it. The popular name of this Moth is the Afternoon Tortrix, and its scientific title Cnephasia musculana. Both these names refer to its colour, tlie former word being taken from the Greek, and signifies

dusky, or anything which comes out in the dusk ; wliile the latter name is Latin, and signifies a little mouse, in allusion to the nocturnal habits of the mouse. i

The upper wings of this insect are dull grey. At the base is a patch rather darker than the ground colour of the wing, and very indistinct. The central band is dark-brown with a greyish tint, the other marks are light-grey brown. The larva of this Moth feeds on the common bramble, drawing two leaves together with silk, and remaining hidden between them. The Moth is tolerably plentiful.

Another species of this genus is the Eight-Spot Moth {Cnephasia octomaculana), a figure of which is given on Woodcut LIX. Fig. 4.

Although its colours are simple, they are very pleasing and prettily arranged. The ground colour of the upper wings is white, minutely speckled with grey, and each wing has fom.’ dark greyish-black marks, from which the insect derives its name of octomaculana, or eight-blotched. There is some variation in the size and form of the marks, but as a rule they are found as they appear in the illustration. The under wings are simply grey.

The larva of this insect feeds on the thistle, and is more common in Scotland and the northern parts of England than in the southern counties.

It is with much regret that I find myself obliged to omit many insects which are well deserving of notice. Our space, however, is so rapidly diminishing that we must content ourselves with only a very few out of the many pretty little JMoths which form this large group.

Another of the rose-feeding pests is the caterpillar of the Moth which goes by the popular name of the Brown Cloak {Spilonota roborana).

In the insects belonging to this genus the upper wings are very narrow, being twice as long as they are broad. The hind wings, however, are so wide that they carry otf the narro^vness of the upper wings, which none but a practised eye would notice. The palpi are broad and flattened, and the male is known from the female by his tufted abdomen.

This is a pretty Moth, tliough the colours are very simple.

The upper wings are creamy white, with a large triangular patch of dark-brown at the base, and a blotch of lighter brown at the tip. The space between these dark patches is mottled with blackish-grey, and there are one or two black spots scattered about it. The under wings are pale greyish-brown. The larva of this Moth can be found about the end of April or May, and the perfect insect appears in June.

Closely allied to this is another rose-eater, the Cbeam Shortcloak (SpiloTiota ocellctTici) which derives its popular name from the creamy white of the upper wings, and the bold brown spots upon them. It is a very pretty little insect. The upper wings are, as above-mentioned, of a creamy-white, and upon them is a large, dark-brown patch at the base, occupying more than a quarter of the wing. A bold spot of the same colour is placed at the tip of the wing, and another at the middle of the inner margin, a similarly shaped spot, but of dark-grey, occupying the middle of the costal margin. The spots are, however, exceedingly variable, both in number, form, and position. The lower wings are plain dark-brown.

Next on our list comes the lovely, but destructive Codlin Moth {Tortrix or Gaipocapsa pomonana), which is drawn on Plate XVII. Fig. 3.

This is a most exquisitely coloured insect, but a magnifying glass and a good light are required in order to bring out all its beauties. The upper wings are rich brown, banded at the base and tip with a darker and warmer brown. In the dark band at the tip of the wing is an oval mark of brilliant goldcoloured scales, having a very dark centre. In certain lights this dark centre takes a reddish hue, while a golden gloss Svades viewed the in whole a side of light, the shine wing. as Even if the outer wings, when per-

So excellent a description of the of light, the ravages a rather of curious this little effect Moth can I By a proper adjustment made of the richest satin.

be produced, the wings of one side glittering and shining in full splendour, while the corresponding wings of the other side are nothing but dull grey, brown, and black.

1 IS given by Mr. E. Newman in his ‘ Letters of Eusticus ’ that > I cannot do better than allow so excellent an observer and so amusing a writer to speak for himself : —

‘ It is the most beautiful of the beautiful tribe to wliicli it belongs ; yet from its habits not being known, it is seldom seen in the Moth state, and the apple-grower knows ^ | no more than the man in the moon to what cause he is indebted for his basketfuls of worm-eaten windfalls in the stillest weather.

‘ To find the Moth in the daytime, the trunks of the appletrees should be carefully looked over ; or if your orchard be surrounded by a wooden fence, the Moth may often be found sitting against it, with its pretty wings neatly folded round its body. Towards evening — in fact, at sunset — it begins to move, and may then be seen hovering about the little apples, which by ; the time the Moth leaves the chrysalis — the middle of June — j are well knit, and consequently fit for the reception of the eggs,| which it lays in the eyes, one only in each, by introducing its| long ovipositor between the leaves of the calyx, which form a tent above it, that effectually shields it from the inclemency of; the weather, or any other casualty. [ F

‘ As soon as the egg hatches, the little grub gnaws a hole in' the crown of the apple, and soon buries itself in its substance ; and it is worthy of remark that the rind of the apple, as if to afford every facility to the destroyer, is thinner here than in any other part, and consequently more easily pierced. The : apple most commonly attacked is the codlin, a large, early sort, which ripens in July and August.

‘ The grub, controlled by an unvarying instinct, eats into the apple obliquely downwards, and, by thus avoiding the core and pips, in no way hinders its growth. At first it makes but slow progress, being little bigger than a thread, but after a fortnight its size and operations have much increased ; it has now eaten half way down the apple, and the position of the hole at the r; top, if the apple continue upright, or nearly so, is inconvenient y; for a purpose it has up to this time been used for, that is, as a pass to get rid of its little pellets of excrement, which are ; something like fine sawdust or coarse sand. Another communication with the outer air is therefore required, and it must l>e so constructed as to allow the power of gravity to assist in keeping it clear ; it is accordingly made directly dow-nwards towards that part of the apple which is lowest, and thus the trouble of thrusting the pellets upwards through the eye of the

apple is saved, and a constant admission given to a supply of air without any labour.

‘ The hole now made is not, however, sufficiently open for an observer to gain by its means any knowledge of what is going on within ; this is only to be obtained by cutting open a number of the apples as they gradually advance towards ripeness ; the hole is, however, very easily seen, from its always having adhering to it on the outside an accumulation of little grains which have been thi-ust through.

‘ Having completed this work the grub returns towards the centre of the apple, where he feeds at his ease. When within a few days of being full-fed, he, for the first time, enters the core through a round hole gnawed in the hard, horny substance which always separates the pips from the pulp of the fruit, and the destroyer now finds himself in that spacious chamber which codlins in particular always have in their centre. From this time he eats only the pips, never again tasting the more common pulp which hitherto had satisfied his unsophisticated palate ; now nothing less than the highly-flavoured, aromatic kernels will suit his tooth, and on these for a few days he feasts in luxury.

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