This species (Plate149, Figs. 1, 2) has been mainly found on the coasts of North-east Essex and South-east Suffolk, but it has also been taken at Hemley in Suffolk, and has been recorded from near Southend in Essex, and Rochester in Kent. In 1906 six specimens were captured in the Isle of Sheppey. So far as is known at present this is its range in England, and it does not seem to occur anywhere abroad. It was first discovered by Paymaster-in-Chief G. F. Mathew, in 1895, and was described by the late Mr. C. G. Barrett in 1896.
Plate 148
Plate 149
In the typical form the fore wings are of a smooth soft honey colour, or colour of the honeycomb, having the nervures faintly perceptible, but not paler; a black discal dot, and two more dots with some faint blackish dashes indicate the usual second line. Tutt has named several forms, the most important being ab.lutea, bright yellow buff with discal dot and two dots beyond; and ab.rufa, deep reddish with discal dot and two others beyond. Besides these there are ab.ænea, Mathew, deep orange, with only one dot representing second line; and ab.obscura, Mathew, cinnamon-brown, with smoky shading between some of the nervures. The hind wings vary from whitish with darker nervures, to smoky grey; but the fringes always remain whitish.
The caterpillar is a warm putty colour, or pinkish brown, mottled and shaded with darker shades; three pale whitish brown lines on the back, the central one bordered on each side by a darker shade, and the outer ones shaded inwardly with darker and edged below by a darker line; a brown or pinkish stripe above the spiracles, and a pinkish yellow stripe below them; head yellowish-brown, shining, and dotted with darker colour. It feeds on grasses from July to April (adapted from Mathew). The moth flies in June and July, and frequents the flowers of the large grasses growing on salt marshes. Sometimes specimens of a second brood appear in August or September.
The range of this common species (Plate147, Figs. 3♂, 4♀), in the British Isles is almost the same as that ofL. pallens, but it does not extend further north than Moray in Scotland. The hind wings are greyish or blackish grey. A form with reddishfore wings is var.punctina, Haw., which sometimes has a row of black dots on the outer margin. The caterpillar is greyish ochreous above, greenish tinged beneath; a brown stripe along the middle of the back is intersected by a very fine white line; above the reddish black-edged spiracles is a brownish stripe; usual dots black; head pale brown, shining, netted with brown and lined with blackish. It feeds on grasses from August to May. The moth is out in July and August; rather later in the north. Distribution abroad extends to Amurland and Japan.
In its more usual form this species (Plate147, Fig. 5) has pale whity-brown or pale straw-coloured fore wings, and the black dots forming the second line not infrequently absent, at least as regards some of them. Var.rufolinea, Tutt, has the fore wings reddish ochreous, the rays whitish, and the shade under the median nervure reddish. Var.nigrostriata, Tutt, has the ground colour of the fore wings obscured by a thick powdering of black scales. The hind wings in all forms are whitish, sometimes greyish tinged. Generally there is a central black dot, and a more or less complete series of black dots beyond it; but some, or all, of these dots may be absent. The caterpillar, which feeds on the leaves of reeds,Phalaris, and other coarse grasses from October to May, is ochreous with an orange tinge, and dusted with grey; three white lines on the back are broadly shaded with bluish grey; on the sides are two grey shaded white lines; head shining brownish ochreous (Fenn). The moth flies in July and August, sometimes earlier.
Hammersmith Marshes, a once noted locality for this, the Obscure Wainscot, and other good species, have long since been built over; but the present insect, and perhaps some of the other ancient inhabitants of the said marshes, possibly still occur along the banks of the Thames. Anyhow, it does lowerdown in the Kentish marshes. It is found in most of the eastern counties from Essex to Huntington and Lincoln, and also, but less frequent, in Sussex, Devon, and Cornwall. Kane gives Dromoland, Co. Clare, and Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, Ireland.
This is a rather larger insect than either of the last four species. The fore wings are whitish ochreous, powdered with blackish scales, and often tinged with pinkish. The black shading along the median nervure is sometimes very conspicuous. The caterpillar is ochreous brown, with three blackish-edged whitish lines on the back and dark stripes along the sides; head pale brown marked with darker. It feeds on the leaves of the reed (Phragmites) in June. The moth flies in July and August in fens, boggy heaths, and marshy ground, and is found in such places in most of the eastern counties, in Yorkshire, and from Berkshire and Kent to Devon, also in South Wales and in Galway, Cork, and Kerry, Ireland. Abroad the range extends to Siberia and Amurland. (Plate147, Fig. 6.)
This species (Plate147, Figs. 7♂, 8♀) will be recognized by the fine blackish lines on the fore wings, the white dot at lower end of the cell, and the row of black dots representing the second cross line. It is a very local species, chiefly found among reeds in Norfolk and Cambridgeshire, and may also occur in marshy places along the banks of the Thames from Bucks to Kent. The caterpillar is greyish ochreous above and paler beneath; three white lines on the back, the central one edged with greenish on each side, and the others edged with brownish; the line along the black-edged spiracles is greyish; head palebrown striped with darker. It feeds from August to October on the leaves of the reed (Phragmites), hiding by day in the stems. It also hibernates in the reeds when full grown, but does not change to the chrysalis state until the spring. The moth flies in June and July.
The white line running through the pale ochreous brown fore wings is the chief character of this species. (Plate150, Figs. 4, 5.) The caterpillar (Plate152, Fig. 2) is whity-brown with three lines on the back, the central one is whitish, shaded with dusky on each side, the others brown edged with whitish; the spiracles are whitish, outlined in blackish; head, and plate on first ring of the body, bone colour, shining. It feeds from August to May on marram grass (Psamma arenaria), but will eat meadow grass (Poa) and other kinds in confinement. The moth is out in June and July, sometimes earlier or later. It is a coast species, occurring only on sandhills where the marram grass flourishes, and in such localities is found all round England and Wales; on the east coast of Scotland to Forfarshire, and on the west to Clydesdale and Arran; and in Ireland on the north, south, and east coasts.
On Plate144, Fig. 9 represents the type of this specimen, and Fig. 10 ab.sinelinea, Farn. This form, which has also been referred to as "alinea," is without the typical black streak at the base of the fore wings. The caterpillar is pale pinkish grey; dorsal line pale yellow or bone colour; subdorsal stripes of the same colour, edged on each side by a grey line, and each divided down the middle by a slender pale brown line; spiracular stripe of a dull opaque yellowish white edged above with grey; head, and plate on the first ring of the body, pale brown, the latter striped with pale yellow (Barrett). It feeds in the upper part of reed stems until nearly full grown, and then upon the leaves. April to July. Barrett states that it prefers the reeds near small trees or bushes to those growing in masses. The moth is out in July and August, and may be netted as it flies at dusk along the edges of the reed beds, etc.; later on it resorts to the honeydew-covered leaves of sallow and alder, and also visits light. This species was first taken in 1864 at Ranworth in Norfolk; it is now obtained in Barton Broad and several other localities in the Norfolk fens, but not in any other part of the British Isles. It does not appear to occur abroad.
Plate 150
Plate 151
The striking features of this moth (Plate147, Fig. 10) are the white median nervure, and the black streak below it, of the fore wings; there are also black marks on the veins before the outer margin. The caterpillar is very like that ofL. impura, but there is a dark line on the back between the central and outer whitish lines. It feeds on cocksfoot and other grasses from June to August. The moth flies in June and July, and is not uncommon in meadows and grassy places, even by the roadside. Except that it does not, apparently, extend beyond Perthshire in Scotland, it seems to be widely, or even generally, distributed over the British Isles. Abroad it ranges to Siberia and Amurland.
Leucania l-album.—Barrett, "Lepidoptera of the British Islands," vol. ix. p. 450 (1904), remarks: "This species now seems to have made its way to this country, though it is still doubtful whether it has established itself. Mr. Eustace R. Bankes has captured a female specimen in South Devon, and he mentions the occurrence of one or two other specimens. It is a very pretty species, and widely distributed abroad."
So far as the British distribution of this species (Plate147, Fig. 9) is known, it seems to be confined to the coasts of South Devon and South Wales. It was first noted at Torquay in the year 1859, and about twelve years later was detected in Carmarthenshire. Abroad it occurs somewhat locally in France, Italy, Dalmatia, and in North-west Africa.
The caterpillar is pale brown with three whitish lines on the back, the central one edged on each side with blackish, the others shaded above with blackish with black dots in the shading, and edged below by a blackish line; all these lines become faint on the last three rings of the body; the usual dots are black; head rather paler, somewhat shiny, the lobes conspicuously edged with black, and the jaws marked with blackish. It feeds on grasses from September to January. The figure on Plate148, Fig. 7, is from one of a few caterpillars kindly sent by Mr. J. Walker, of Torquay. He writes: "They are full fed by the beginning of January as a rule, and although they go down, they do not turn until the beginning of June." Mine unfortunately died in the cocoon. The moth flies in July and August, and favours particular coves and banks by the sea. It visits sugar, and also the flowers of wild sage.
This moth (Plate149, Fig. 4) is known in America, where it is exceedingly abundant and destructive, as the "Army Worm." It ranges through India, China, and Japan, and occurs in many other parts of the world, including Madeira and the Canary Isles. It is rare in Europe, and appears to have been noted in parts of Spain, Portugal, and France. Since Haworth described andnamed itunipunctain 1803 it has been renamed many times, and was long known in England asextranea, Guenée. About a score have been recorded as taken in the British Isles altogether, and of these two only in Ireland; the others were captured in England and Wales, and nearly all on the south or south-west coast, chiefly in the month of September. The most recent being one in the New Forest, Hampshire, 1896, one in Devon, 1903, one in 1907, and one in 1911. Also in Isle of Wight, 1912.
Barrett accepted this species as British, chiefly on the strength of two specimens captured at sugar by a sedgy ditch, nearer to Worthing than to Brighton in Sussex; the date was 1862. More recent records are one specimen at Torquay on September 27, 1900, and another, also in South Devon, September 6, 1903. The former taken at sugar, and the latter netted when "flying wildly over rough herbage at dusk." Ireland in 1908.
The species has a wide range through Southern and Eastern Asia, etc., but in Europe it is only found in the south and along the Mediterranean. The specimen shown on Plate149, Fig. 6, is from India.
The first recorded British specimen of this species (Plate149, Fig. 3) was captured at Brighton, Sussex, some fifty odd years ago. The species has occurred in and around that locality several times since, but seems to have been found more frequently at Torquay and other places on the Devonshire coast. It has also been recorded from the Scilly Isles, Cornwall, the Isle of Wight, the New Forest, and Chichester; Kent, on the coast, and inland at Canterbury, Sussex. In 1902, a year in which several specimens were obtained on the south coast,one example was taken at Navestock, in Essex. August and September are the months during which it is seen in this country, but abroad it occurs also in June and July. The caterpillar, which feeds on grasses in the spring, is described by Hofmann as pinkish ochreous with three white lines on the back and black dots between them, two on each ring; below the black spiracles is a yellowish stripe; head brown with black dots.
This species (Plate149, Fig. 5) appears to have been confused with the following one. It may be distinguished by its generally smaller size and the pure white spot on the fore wings. The colour of the fore wings is brownish red, rather than rusty tinged as in some reddish forms ofL. lithargyria; the second cross line is more distinct, and the series of black marks beyond less so. The hind wings are paler than those of the next species. The caterpillar is yellowish wainscot brown above, inclining to flesh-colour on the sides and beneath; three white lines on the back, the central one edged on each side by a wavy blackish line, the outer ones edged above by a blackish line and below by a brownish line; a pale stripe low down along the sides; head ochreous, shining, and lined on the face with greyish. It feeds from autumn to spring on grasses. The moth is out from August to October. It occurs more or less frequently, and chiefly on the coast, in Kent (first taken at Folkestone, in 1868), Sussex, Hants, Isle of Wight, South Devon, and Essex (Shoeburyness).
Two specimens of this species are shown on Plate150, Figs. 7 ♂, 8 ♀. The colour of the fore wings varies from pale ochreous brown, often with a pink tinge, to a deep rusty red; the reniform stigma is generally represented by a pale crescent with a white or whitish dot at its lower end; the cross lines are rarely distinct, but a series of black dots before the outer margin are usually well in evidence. The caterpillar is pale brown tinged with pinkish or yellowish; central line white edged with dark brown, and on each side of this is an interrupted broad blackish line edged below with white; a whitish line below the blackish spiracles; head and plate on the first ring of the body, pale brown, rather shining, the former freckled with blackish. It is found in April and May on grasses, probably after hibernation, The moth is out from late June to early August and is common in woods, and woody places throughout the greater part of the British Isles.
Plate 152
Plate 153
This species (Plate150, Figs. 1 ♂, 2 ♀) ranges in the colour of fore wings from pale ochreous brown to a dusky tawny hue; the cross lines are sometimes very faint, but otherwise the markings are constant. Var.suffusa, Tutt, is described as rusty red suffused with darker scales, markings typical, but deeper in colour and more distinct. The caterpillar is ochreous or greyish brown; three yellow lines on the back are black edged; a yellow line along the sides is often edged with black, and the line below the black spiracles is blackish; head pale brown marked with black. It feeds on grasses, and may be found in April and May. The moth appears in June and July and is pretty generally distributed. It is regarded as a common species in South England, but in the north seems to be rather local and most frequently found on the coast. In Scotland it does not appear to have been noted north of Ross or in the isles. Abroad the range extends through Northern and Central Asia to India and Japan.
The sexes of this species are shown on Plate150, Figs. 3 ♂, 6 ♀. The general colour of the fore wings may be paler or darker than in the specimens shown. Sometimes the central area enclosed by the black cross lines is darker than the other parts of the fore wings; var.obscura, Tutt, has the fore wings obscure smoky grey, with a dull coppery tinge, much suffused with dark scales; markings indistinct.
The caterpillar is pale brown freckled with darker; a whitish line along the middle of the back is edged on both sides with blackish merging into black at the ring divisions; a rather wavy, but less distinct, whitish line on each side of the central one edged above with blackish; spiracles black ringed with pale brown and set in a broad dark brown line below which the colour is pinkish; head shining pale brown, freckled with darker on the cheeks. It feeds on cocksfoot and various other grasses occurring in woodlands. August to May. The moth, which inhabits woods and well-timbered parks, is out in June and July. It is, perhaps, most frequent in the New Forest, Hampshire, thence it is found more or less sparingly to Cornwall. Sometimes not uncommon in Savernake Forest, Wiltshire, and occurs in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex (Epping Forest, etc.), Surrey (Richmond Park). Recorded from Cheshire and from South Wales. In Scotland it is said to have been taken at Newfield, Ayrshire. The only records from Ireland are Clonbrock (1), and Merlin Park, Galway (2). Abroad it ranges to Amurland, China, Corea and Japan.
The fore wings range in colour from whitish or greyish brown to ochreous brown; the cross lines are usually distinct,and the central one is often broad. (Plate151, Fig. 1.) In var.approximans, Haw., the cross lines fall nearer together on the inner margin; and in var.semi-fuscans, Haw., the basal half is greyish or reddish grey, and the outer half is suffused with brownish (Fig. 2). Then there is a somewhat rarer form, with dark grey, brown, or blackish brown fore wings, with the cross lines more or less distinct, as in Fig. 3; or with the central one absent (var.bilinea, Hübn.); or all the lines may be obscured by the dark colour. Kane states that var.obscura, Tutt (=bilinea, Haw.), is pretty common at Howth and other places in Ireland, and, according to Barrett, it is not infrequent in Wales. The caterpillar is greyish or dingy reddish brown; three pale lines on the back, the central one partly edged with black, and the outer ones are broken and inwardly edged with blackish marks; the stripe along the black spiracles is ochreous brown; head brownish. From July to April on plantain and other low plants. The moth is out in June and July. In Scotland it is local and rare, but has been recorded from Clydesdale, Arran, and once from Perthshire. Local but widely distributed in Ireland.
A local species, but sometimes not uncommon on heaths, or in rocky places by the sea. It is found from Surrey westward to Cornwall; and from Staffordshire, in which county it has been seen in abundance on Cannock Chase, it ranges into Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Cheshire, Wales (North and South), Lancashire, Yorkshire (commonly at Saltaire), Durham (once), and Cumberland. Generally distributed in Scotland, including the Orkneys. It occurs in the Isle of Man, and seems to be pretty widely spread in Ireland, but found chiefly on the coast. Abroad it seems to be only found in France and in Central and Western Germany. In Southern Spain it isrepresented by var.andalusiaca, Staud., and in Syria by var.syriaca, Staud. A typical male is shown on Plate151, Fig. 4.
The caterpillar is green, inclining to yellowish between the rings of the body; three lines on the back are whitish, edged with dark green; a stripe low down on the sides is whitish, shaded above with dark green merging into the ground colour; head shining bright green, obscurely mottled with darker. In other forms the general colour is reddish or pinkish brown, with the lines edged and shaded with darker brown; the head is ochreous brown, mottled with darker brown. The green form is figured on Plate152, Fig. 6, but the browner forms are more frequent. It feeds on grasses from the autumn until about March.
A specimen of this species is shown on Plate151, Fig. 5. There is some variation in the darker mottling and suffusion of the ochreous or pale brown fore wings. The dark brown or blackish stigmata are generally distinct. Hind wings whitish, tinged with smoky on the veins, and in the female on the outer marginal area. The caterpillar is brownish or greyish brown, inclining to ochreous on the back; central line whitish, with a broken edging of brown; on each side of the central line there is a series of blackish arrow heads; spiracles blackish; head dark brown, and very glossy. It feeds from August and through the autumn on various low plants, including goose-foot, knot-grass, dandelion, etc. The moth flies from June to August, and occasionally there is a second flight in October. The species is generally distributed and often common over the greater part of England, but is less frequent in the more northern counties, and in Wales, Ireland, and Scotland. Abroad the range extends to Amurland and Corea.
Plate 154
Plate 155
This species (Plate151, Fig. 6) and the next one—The Rustic—are often confused, but the present one may be recognized by the more ochreous tinge of its fore wings, the more distinct markings, and the general rougher appearance of all the wings. The hind wings are more smoky, or sometimes brownish tinged.
The caterpillar is ochreous brown, frequently with a reddish tinge; three whitish lines on the back, edged with black, the edging of the central one interrupted at the ring divisions; a dusky area along the sides is edged above and below by a black line; head ochreous brown. It feeds from September to March on dock, chickweed, primrose, and various other low plants. The moth flies in July and August, and, like most of its congeners, is partial to the blossoms of privet. The species is widely distributed over England, but seems to occur more commonly in the south and east. It is also found in Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.
Note.—C. superstes, an inhabitant of Central and Southern Germany, Hungary, Southern Europe, and Asia Minor, has been mentioned as British, but the record needs confirmation.
Compared with the last species, the one now considered (Plate151, Fig. 7) has browner fore wings, inclining to brownish or blackish, smoother and glossy; and the markings are usually rather obscure. The hind wings are silky, and whiter in the male.
The caterpillar is greyish brown, with an olive tinge; central line dark brown, expanding on each ring; on either side of this is a brown-edged white line; a light brown line along the spiracles; head ochreous brown. It feeds from September to April on low plants, such as dock, chickweed, plantain, etc.The moth flies from late June to early August, and its range in the British Isles is pretty much as in the last species, but more generally distributed thanalsinesin Ireland.
The fore wings of this species (Plate151, Fig. 8) are rather greyer than those of the last, and the hind wings are shining white, tinged with greyish brown in the female, especially on the veins.
Barrett describes the caterpillar as follows: "Plump, cylindrical; head round, the lobes dark brown, but the face paler; dorsal region between the subdorsal lines broadly yellowish brown, with slender, delicate, oblique lines on each segment; dorsal line a row of black dots, one on each segment; lateral space from the subdorsal lines to the spiracles darker brown or umberous, containing a row of ovate, oblique, yellowish spots, each rather raised into a knob by the wrinkling of the skin; spiracles black; under surface, legs, and prolegs pale rosy brown, except the anal prolegs, which are brown." It feeds from October to May on dandelion, plantain, chickweed, and other low plants; also on lettuce and grass. The moth flies in August and September. Sometimes the caterpillars will feed up and attain the moth state the same year in November or December. The species was not known to occur in England until some specimens were taken by Mr. Vine at sugar, near Shoreham, Sussex, in 1879. Since that year it has been taken more or less freely at several places on the south and south-west coast, from Deal, in Kent, to Truro, in Cornwall.
The black spots on the front margin of the fore wings of this species (Plate151, Figs. 9, 10) are pretty constant characters,and are usually present even when most or all the other markings are absent. The caterpillar is greyish brown, often tinged with green above; the lines are faintly paler, and edged with darker; head blackish. It feeds from September to May on grasses, seeds of plantain; also on peas and corn; often common in stacks of wheat and other grain.
The moth flies chiefly in July and August, but it is sometimes seen as early as May and as late as October. Generally distributed, and often very common. Except that it does not occur in America the range abroad is almost as extensive as that of the next species.
This species (Plate151, Fig. 11) practically ranges over the globe. It is the "Beet Army-worm" of American economic entomologists; whilst in South Africa it is known in the early stage as "The Pigweed Caterpillar." In Asia, and especially in India, where it is destructive to the indigo plants, maize, etc., it is a familiar pest, but does not seem to bear a common name. As regards our own country, it was apparently unnoticed until somewhere about the middle of the last century, when a specimen was captured in the Isle of Wight. Its occurrence here is always considered a noteworthy event, but the records are very scanty except for the years 1896, 1897, 1900-03, and 1906. In the latter year there seems to have been an invasion on quite a large scale, and captures in some localities on the south and south-west coasts must have been in hundreds, whilst the species was also taken in fewer numbers in Essex, Surrey, Wiltshire, Somerset, Devon, and South Wales. A specimen occurred at Crosby, Lancs., in 1884. In 1903 one example was taken at Chester, Cheshire. At Keighley, Yorks, eight were secured, which, added to three taken in other years, gives a total of eleven specimens for the county. In Ireland one example wasobtained at honeydew, September, 1899, at Timologue, Co. Cork.
The eggs (Plate152, Fig. 7a) are laid in batches on a leaf, and more or less covered with whitish hairs. Some deposited on Sept. 8, 1906, hatched on the 20th of that month. When just hatched the caterpillar is greenish, paler on the last rings; head and plate on first ring shining black; when a week old a black plate appears on the last ring also. Later on the colour varies from green to olive green, brownish, and dark greyish. Green examples are figured on Plate152, Fig. 7. The central line is ochreous, and there are series of black bars and blackish marks on the back; along the black-edged white spiracles is a pinkish brown band, edged above by an interrupted black line; the pinkish brown colour runs up the front part of each ring four to eleven; head blackish. The caterpillars were fed upon plantain, dandelion, and groundsel, but they would eat the foliage of any weed that was put in their cage. They formed fairly tough earthen cocoons on, or just below, the surface; but, although they pupated, the moths failed to emerge, probably because they were kept too dry. The ochreous or pinkish brown colour of the orbicular stigma, and sometimes of the reniform, distinguishes this moth; the hind wings are white with a very distinct pearly gloss.
This pale whity-brown insect (Plate134, Figs. 19 to 21) is often without markings, and where these are present on the fore wings they comprise two series of dusky dots representing two cross lines, and sometimes there is a dot at the end of the cell. These wings may be shaded with brown, and occasionally there is a dark band-like shade between the series of dots, in the male as well as in the smaller and narrower-winged female. Var.morrisii, Dale, seems to be a whiter form of this species.The caterpillar, which may be found in May and June in the flower stems ofAira cæspitosa, is of a pale pinkish ochreous with three darker bars on each ring, and a brown, glossy head. The moth flies in July and part of August, and may be found, often in abundance, in most English and Welsh counties, in Scotland to Aberdeenshire; and widely spread in Ireland.
Both sexes of this reddish tinged grey-brown species are shown on Plate153, Figs. 1 ♂, 3 ♀. As will be noted, the female is much smaller than the male. Except that it has been recorded from the Isle of Wight and from Bloxworth, Dorset, in the past, this species is restricted to certain portions of the New Forest, Hampshire. Even in these favoured haunts its numbers have become far less than formerly. The moth is out in July. Apparently it has no taste for sugar, neither does it seem to visit blossoms of any kind. It may be disturbed from its retreat among the grass by day, or netted as it flies at dusk. The caterpillar is stated by Hofmann to live on saw-wort (Serratula tinctoria); it is sap-green, yellow at the ring divisions, and marked with fine white lines.
The fore wings of the male of this species (Plate153, Fig. 2) are greyish brown in colour, and more or less tinged with violet; the cross lines are dusky, and the reniform and orbicular stigmata are represented by black dots, the former the larger; hind wings whitish with a smoky tinge. The female is much smaller, darker, and the cross lines heavier; hind wings blackish grey.
Stainton ("Manual," 1857) refers to a specimen taken at Compton's Wood, near York, and this, no doubt, is the same asthat stated by Barrett to have been captured in a moist place at Stockton-in-the-Forest, about four miles from York, certainly before the year 1855. Then there is a record of a specimen from Quy Fen, Cambridgeshire, in May, 1862. Seven years later the late Mr. C. G. Barrett took a specimen as it fluttered about a gas-lamp outside Norwich. In 1877 and 1878 the use of bright collecting lanterns in Wicken Fen may have led to the capture of nearly twenty Marsh Moths, anyway it seems to have been a record for the time.
Very few specimens were taken in the fens between the year last mentioned and 1898, when the total secured by several collectors visiting the fens in June of that year amounted to something like fifty examples, all males. Two female specimens were captured in the Carlisle district, one in 1896, and the other in 1897. No male was noted in that locality until 1899, when a specimen was netted as it flew along a hedgeside at night, on May 20. Two other males have since been taken there, in much the same way. The life history of the species is little known. Hofmann describes the caterpillar as reddish brown with white dots, and a white line along the middle of the back; spiracles and head black. It feeds in the summer on low-growing plants in meadows, and hides in the daytime on the underside of a leaf.
The range of the species abroad extends to Siberia and Amurland.
Here, again, the female is smaller than the male, as will be seen on Plate153, Figs. 4 ♂, 5 ♀. Sometimes the general colour of the fore wings is of a blacker tint, and in such specimens the fine black cross lines are obscured.
The caterpillar is dark cinnamon brown; three whitish lines on the back, the central one, most distinct on the front rings, is edged on each side with dark brown, and the shading of the outer lines is interrupted by oblique pale dashes; head, shining dark brown, almost blackish. It feeds on grasses, and many low-growing plants from August to May. (Plate152, Fig. 4.) The moth flies in June and July, sometimes earlier. The species is generally distributed over nearly the whole of England, but more local in the north than in the south. It is found in North and South Wales. In Scotland it is locally abundant and widely distributed up to Ross, and occurs in the Hebrides. It is also widely spread in Ireland, and common in some parts.
Umbratica, Goeze, is said to be an earlier name for this species, and will probably have to be adopted.
Plate 156
Plate 157
The striking species shown on Plate154, Figs. 1 to 3, varies somewhat in the tint of its brown-coloured fore wings, and in the greater or lesser amount of blackish shading on the central area; the latter is sometimes quite absent, and not infrequently the outer marginal area is pale ochreous brown. The hind wings, normally of a coppery colour, are occasionally paler, and sometimes of a reddish hue.
The caterpillar is green with three interrupted whitish stripes on the back; the dots are yellowish; and the stripe along the black-edged white spiracles is whitish; the back of ring eleven is raised, forming a cone, the apex of which is hornlike and slightly curved backwards; the head is green. It feeds from April, or in forward seasons from March, to June, on the foliage of oak, birch, sallow, plum, rose, and other trees and shrubs. The moth flies from late July to September, and sometimes later. Although somewhat local in Southern England, it is often common enough in the New Forest, and most of the larger woods from Essex to Devonshire. Northwards from Oxfordshire it becomes more local, less frequent, and even rare,except, perhaps, in Worcestershire (Malvern district, common) and Herefordshire. Apparently not recorded from Scotland. In Ireland it is sometimes plentiful in the south, but does not seem to occur north of Sligo on the west, and Howth on the east.
The English name of this generally distributed, and usually common, greyish-brown moth (Plate154, Figs. 4, 5) applies more especially to the mouse-like way it scuttles off when discovered in its retreat by the collector. In colour, however, it is sometimes not unlike the familiar little rodent. The caterpillar (Plate156, Fig. 3) is green with white lines and stripes along the back and sides; spiracles white, margined with black; head yellowish-green. In another form the ground colour is pale reddish brown. It feeds from April to June on sallow, hawthorn, and many other plants. Barrett states that it is partial to the blossoms, particularly yellow ones, of garden as well as wild plants. The moth flies in July and August, sometimes later.
The range abroad extends to Central Asia and to the Atlantic States of America.
Note.—Some recent authors refer this and the preceding species toPyrophila, Hübn.
The general colour of the fore wings of this species (Plate155, Figs. 1, 3 ♂, 2 ♀) is ochreous brown, more or less reddish tinged; sometimes greenish grey. The cross markings are bright or dull reddish brown; the orbicular and reniform stigmata are white, or outlined in white, sometimes connected by a white line along the median nervure; occasionally these marks are united, forming a blotch.
The caterpillar is green with three broad white lines along the back, the outer ones edged above with black; a yellow, inclining to reddish orange, stripe along the black spiracles; head reddish brown. It greatly resembles the needles of the Scotch fir (Pinus sylvestris), upon which it feeds from May to July. The moth is out in the spring and continues on the wing until early May, and is often common at sallow bloom, where this occurs in the immediate vicinity of pine woods; it also comes to the sugar patch not infrequently, and may occasionally be seen on the trunks of fir trees, or beaten from the boughs. The species seems to occur wherever there are fir woods or plantations throughout England, Wales, and Scotland to Ross, and is found locally in Ireland.
A portrait of this moth will be found on Plate155, Fig. 4. The fore wings are reddish brown, sometimes tinged with purplish, or clouded with blackish. The reniform and orbicular stigmata are usually yellowish grey, often only outlined, but not infrequently indistinct, and sometimes absent. The cross lines are rarely well defined, although the second line may be indicated by blackish dots flanked by whitish ones on the veins.
The caterpillar is green freckled with whitish; three whitish lines along the back are edged with dark green, the outer ones with oblique dark-green dashes spreading to the central line; head paler green. In another form the general colour is pale reddish brown, lines yellowish, and dashes darker reddish brown. It feeds on sallow, bilberry, dock, plantain, and other low plants. May and June. The moth flies in March and April, and may be found at sallow bloom around woods. The species is obtained more or less frequently in Kent, Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire, Somerset, and Devon; also in Buckinghamshire and in Suffolk. In Herefordshire it is local but notuncommon, and I have taken it in the Malvern district. British specimens were first obtained near York. Porritt ("List of Yorks. Lep.," 1904) states that it is still abundant in Bishop's Wood, and is found in other Yorkshire localities; also occurs from Lancashire to Durham. In Ireland it has been reported from Clonbrock, Galway.
The fore wings of this moth (Plate155, Figs. 5, 6) are purplish red and more or less suffused with greyish. Sometimes these wings are more distinctly reddish and without the greyish suffusion (var.rufa, Haw.). The egg is pale straw colour, with a reddish-brown girdled dot. The caterpillar (Plate159, Fig. 3) is pinkish brown with three yellowish lines along the back, the central one rather obscure; a yellowish stripe along the sides; usual dots yellowish or whitish margined with blackish; head yellowish brown, lined with darker brown. It feeds from April to June on dock, dandelion, groundsel, and other low plants. The moth is out in March and April, and is often not uncommon at sallow and plum blossom. It seems to be pretty generally distributed throughout the British Isles, including the Orkneys.
This species (Plate155) varies in the general colour of the fore wings from pale purplish grey to dark reddish brown. Figs. 7♂ and 8♀ represent the more usual form. The black markings, often very conspicuous, are in the somewhat smaller var.gothicina, reddish (Fig. 9). Sometimes in Scotch specimens they are very indistinct or absent (Fig. 10).
The early stages are figured on Plate156. The eggs (Fig. 1a) are laid in a batch, two deep towards the centre of theheap. In colour they are whitish with a dark grey ring and dot. When five days old the young caterpillars were pale whitish green with black dots; head and plates on first and last rings of the body black. The nearly full-grown caterpillar (Fig. 1) is green above and yellowish green below; three whitish lines on the back and a yellowish stripe along the sides; usual dots black, ringed with whitish; head shining yellowish, dotted with black. Feeding on dock, dandelion, etc., it will also eat sallow and hawthorn, and the foliage of other trees and bushes, in April, May, and June. The moth is common at sallow bloom all over the British Isles. The range of the species abroad extends to Amurland.
A portrait of this species will be found on Plate158, Fig. 8. The fore wings are pinkish, or reddish grey, and the redder central area is often tinged with orange; the hind wings are whitish, faintly shaded or tinged with pink.
The full-grown caterpillar is bluish, inclining to black on the sides; three yellow lines on the back, the central one broad; and a white blotched yellow stripe along the sides; head shining black. (Adapted from Fenn.) The eggs are laid in batches on the twigs of oak, usually just below a bud. When the caterpillars hatch out they spin a web of silk under which they live in company for a time; later on they separate, and then either continue to feed on the oak or betake themselves to birch, hawthorn, bramble, or some low-growing herbaceous plant. The "nests" of young caterpillars are found chiefly on oak bushes rather than trees.
The moth flies in March and April, and generally occurs only in oak woods. It is most frequently met with in the South of England—from Middlesex and Essex to Hampshire; but it occurs in most of the southern counties, and also northwardsup to Yorkshire. It has been found in Wales (Pembroke and Dolgelly), and appears to be rare in Ireland, except at Glenmalure, Co. Wicklow.
Most specimens of this species (Plate158, Figs. 9♂, 10♀) have the fore wings pale greyish ochreous, more or less mottled or dusted with reddish brown. Occasionally these wings are pale grey (var.nana, Haworth); or dark grey brown and more rarely blackish. The dingy brownish dots representing the first and second cross lines are sometimes distinct and not infrequently absent.
The egg is whitish with brown girdled dot.
The caterpillar is greenish grey and rather greener between the rings; there are five yellow or whitish lines, that along the centre of the back being the broadest, usual dots black and glossy; head greenish, much marked with black: plates on first and last rings of the body black. It feeds from April to June on oak, hawthorn, sallow, rose, etc. (Plate159, Fig. 2.) The moth flies in March and April, and is a constant visitor to the sallow catkins, also to the blossoms of plum, damson, and sloe. It appears to be common throughout England and Wales; more or less frequent in Scotland to Moray; and is not uncommon in some districts of Wicklow and Galway, but local and rather scarce in other parts of Ireland.
The ground colour of the fore wings of this species (Plate158, Figs. 1, 2) ranges from whitish or pale grey brown through tints of reddish brown to dark brown; the stigmata are outlined in pale ochreous, the centres often darker than the general colour of the wings; the orbicular is of large size and frequentlytouches the reniform; the ochreous submarginal line is usually inwardly edged with, and sometimes obscured by, blackish; very often the submarginal line and the dusky central shade are the only distinct cross markings.
The caterpillar is green, minutely dotted with yellow; three lines on the back, and a stripe on the sides, yellow, the latter most distinct, edged above with black, and united by a yellow bar on the last ring. It feeds on oak, birch, sallow, beech, elm, etc., from April to June. The moth flies in March and April, and is generally common throughout the British Isles, except, perhaps, the islands of Scotland.
The ground colour of the species shown on Plate157, Figs. 7, 8, is usually some shade of purplish grey, ranging from very pale to dark; the cross lines are often indistinct, but occasionally they show up clearly; the central shade, usually in evidence, is sometimes almost blackish and broadened out to the second line; the orbicular and reniform have pale margins but the centres are frequently no darker than the general colour.
The egg is greyish white with dark grey girdled dot.
When full grown the caterpillar is whitish or yellowish green, but always whitish on the back: three white lines on the back, the central one rather broad; head ochreous brown with a blackish spot on each side. It feeds from April to June on aspen chiefly, but also on other kinds of poplar, hiding by day between two leaves. The moth is out in March and April, and may be found on the sallow catkins. It seems to be more or less rare in the South of England, but it is locally not uncommon in many parts of the country from Middlesex northwards to Yorkshire. Farther north it is again infrequent, and this is also the case in Scotland and in Ireland.
Six specimens of this most variable species are shown on Plate157, Figs. 1 to 6. To refer in detail to all the forms, named or otherwise, would occupy much space, so that it can only be stated here that the general colour of the fore wings ranges from pale greyish brown, through various shades of reddish brown, to deep brown or purplish brown; the darker greys range through slaty grey to purplish black. In all the lighter shades the wings are usually much variegated, but they may be nearly or quite plain.
The egg is yellowish white with brown girdled dot.
The caterpillar is green, minutely freckled with whitish; three white lines on the back, the central one broadest; a white stripe, edged above with black, along the sides; usual dots black, minute, ringed with whitish; head yellowish green with a few black dots. It feeds on sallow, oak, hawthorn, also on apple, elm, etc. (Plate156, Fig. 2.) The moth is generally to be found at sallow-bloom in almost every part of the British Isles.
The fore wings range in ground colour from very pale ochreous (typical) or pale greyish (var.pallida, Tutt), through reddish shades to a dingy brown. The black or brownish twin spots on the middle of the submarginal line are sometimes accompanied by others above and below them (var.geminatus). In var.immaculata, Staud., the "twin spots," and also the others, are absent. (Plate158, Figs. 11, 12.)
The caterpillar (Plate159, Fig. 1) is pale brown minutely freckled with darker; a whitish line along the centre of the back finely edged with black; a broad velvety black stripe along the sides, edged with whitish; head reddish brown, freckled with darker. It feeds from April to June on elm, oak, sallow, plum, etc. The moth is out in March and April, but a specimen has been taken at "ivy bloom" in the autumn. Plum blossoms, as well as the sallow catkins, are an attraction to this moth, and it will also visit the sugar patch. The species probably occurs in most woodland districts throughout the greater part of England and Wales. It seems to be found in South Scotland, but is local and infrequent; in Ireland it is widely spread in the north, but uncommon in the south.
Plate 158
Plate 159
The dark form (var.brunnea, Tutt) (Plate157, Fig. 10 ♂) has the outlines of the orbicular and reniform stigmata, and the submarginal line pale and distinct; sometimes the general colour is much blacker than in the specimen shown. In the more typical greyish form (Fig. 9 ♀) the central area is blackish or dark reddish brown. The caterpillar is olive green above, inclining to yellowish beneath; three pale lines on the back, and a yellow stripe along the black-edged white spiracles; head olive green. It feeds from April to June on sallow, willow, birch, rose, etc. The moth flies in March and April.
As suggested by the English name, this moth was supposed to be confined to the northern counties from Cheshire to Cumberland and Northumberland, but it occurs more locally in Herefordshire, Worcestershire (Wyre Forest), Somerset, Gloucester, and Wales; also in Essex, Surrey, and Sussex. Renton records it from Roxburghshire in Scotland, and Kane states that it is local in Ireland.
In the ordinary English form of this species (Plate158, Figs. 3 ♂, 4 ♀) the fore wings are pale whity brown, more orless tinged with grey; the submarginal line, and the stigmata, are usually distinct, but the other cross lines are only indicated by blackish dots on the veins. In Ireland the specimens are creamy white and very often tinged with pink (Fig. 5), but in the New Forest, Hants (Fig. 7), and in the marshes of North Kent (Fig. 6), deep purplish grey, purplish brown, and reddish (var.rufescens, Cockerel) forms occur.
The caterpillar is green, sometimes tinged with yellowish or with bluish; usual spots whitish; three whitish or yellowish lines along the back and one along the sides, the latter shaded above with dark green or blackish; head ochreous brown. It feeds from May to July on meadow-sweet (Spiræa), fleabane (Inula), purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), yellow loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris), sweet-gale, sallow, bramble, etc. The moth is out in April and May, and is often plentiful at damson and plum blossom, as well as sallow catkins. The species is widely distributed throughout the greater part of the British Isles, but is perhaps more generally common in the southern and eastern counties of England. The range abroad extends to Japan.