Chapter VII: Part 7

Six examples of this very variable species are shown on Plate 66, and these have been selected to illustrate the more important forms. There are a number of modifications of each of the forms, and several of these have been named. Fig. 1 of our plate represents the typical form, and this is Haworth's _centumnotata_ (Common Marbled Carpet); Fig. 2 is ab. _commanotata_ of Haworth (Yellow Marbled Carpet); Fig. 3 is ab. _perfuscata_, Haworth (The Brown Marbled Carpet), and Fig. 4 is a modification of the same form. A specimen from Arran is shown in Fig. 5; this example agrees fairly well with that figured in Wood's _Index_ as _concinnata_ from Arran. In his description of the form, Stephens does not mention fulvous bands in his type. Fig. 6 shows a specimen from Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, which appears to be a modification of the typical form of _truncata_, but it has some of the character of _concinnata_. The latter, it may be mentioned, is considered by Mr. L. B. Prout to be a distinct species, and as the genitalia have been found, on examination by Mr. Pierce, to differ from these organs in _truncata_ and _immanata_, there seems to be reason to accept it as such.

2 Pl. 66.
1-6. COMMON MARBLED CARPET.
7-12. DARK MARBLED CARPET.

2 Pl. 67.
1. SPINACH: _caterpillar_.
2, 2a, 2b. CHEVRON: _eggs, caterpillar and chrysalis_.
3. PHOENIX: _eggs_.

{171} The caterpillar is long, slender, and wrinkled, especially on the sides; the ground colour is green, inclining to yellowish; three lines along the back, the central one dark green, and the others yellowish; sometimes a rosy stripe, or a series of dashes along the sides; the points on the last ring are green, or rosy. It feeds, in the autumn and again in the spring after hibernation, on sallow, birch, hawthorn, bilberry, wild strawberry, etc. It will also eat rose, but as the specimens resulting from caterpillars reared on rose are frequently small, such food is probably unsuitable; garden strawberry, on the other hand, is an excellent pabulum. A photograph of the caterpillar by Mr. H. Main is shown on Plate 69, Fig. 1. There is a second brood in late June and in July. The first generation of the moth is out in May and June, and the second emerges in the autumn; specimens, possibly of a third generation, have been seen in December in favourable localities.

The species, which frequents woods and hedgerows, and is pretty generally common, is to be found almost everywhere throughout the British Isles. It has not, however, been noted from Shetland.

The distribution abroad extends to Amurland, China, and Japan.

DARK MARBLED CARPET (_Cidaria immanata_).

This is another exceedingly variable species (Plate 66), and here again six examples have been chosen to illustrate something of the range of aberration. Figs. 7 and 8 are of the {172} typical form, and Figs. 9 and 10 show the form _marmorata_, Haworth (Marbled Carpet); while Figs. 11 and 12 represent specimens from Shetland, and are referable to the island race known as _pythonissata_, Milliere; neither of the specimens figured, however, quite agrees with the type of this form, but Fig. 12 does so fairly well. In some specimens the general colour of the fore wings is tawny or rust-colour, or they are strongly suffused with that tint (ab. _ferruginea_, Prout). I have such examples in my series of specimens from Lewes and the Shetlands. Ab. _thingvallata_, Staud., from Iceland, has the fore wings white, with black basal patch and central band, and I have seen at least one example from Yorkshire that closely approached this variety.

The caterpillar is not very unlike that of the last species, but it is rounder in appearance, the general green colour is paler, and the points on the last ring are blunt. It feeds from April to June on sallow, birch, bilberry, and wild strawberry. (Plate 69, Fig. 2, after Hofmann.) The moths are out in July and August, and may be found resting on tree-trunks, rocks, or stone walls; at night, when it is active on the wing, it is said to be often seen in numbers on the flowers of the rush, and this habit has been noted more particularly in Scotland.

The species affects woods and moors, and appears to be found more or less commonly throughout the British Isles.

MARSH CARPET (_Cidaria sagittata_).

The fore wings of this very distinct species are brown, with white-edged black bands at base and across the central area, the latter with a strong projection on its outer edge, almost reaching a white spot on the outer margin; sub-marginal line whitish, often only traceable on the front edge. The central band is always narrowed below the middle, sometimes divided, {173} and occasionally this part of the band is finely cut off from both upper and lower portions. (Plate 68, Figs. 7, 8.)

The caterpillar is yellowish green, merging into pinkish on the sides; the pink is edged below with black, and this is followed by a dark olive stripe; rings 1-3 and 10-12 are wrinkled, whilst all the others are ridged across the back and along the sides. It feeds, in August and September, on the unripe seeds of meadow-rue (_Thalictrum flavum_), also on _T. minus_, and, according to Barrett, on old withered leaves of columbine.

The moth is out in July, occasionally at the end of June, and occurs locally in "Fenland."

Doubleday introduced it as British in the _Zoologist_ for 1848. He there states, "A single example of this pretty species was obtained last season near Peterborough, but I believe it was not in very good condition. A splendid female was sent to me from the same neighbourhood this week (July 15, 1848)."

In 1853 and 1854 the species was discovered in the fens of Huntingdonshire and Cambridgeshire. Later it was found to inhabit the fens of Norfolk and Suffolk. It is still obtained in the Cambridge fens from Bottisham to Chatteris. Outside "Fenland" it has been recorded from Worcestershire (Bewdley Forest) and Warwickshire (Rugby).

The range abroad extends to Amurland.

RED-GREEN CARPET (_Cidaria siterata_).

The general colour of the fore wings of this species (Plate 68, Figs. 1-4) is greyish green, with more or less of rosy suffusion; the basal patch and central band are darker green, and the latter is outwardly edged with whitish below the front margin, and towards the inner margin. The female has rather more ample wings, and is generally of a darker hue, but in both sexes the basal patch and central band are blackish; the hind {174} wings are dark greyish brown, inclining to blackish in some females, and there is a blackish central dot and two or three curved lines.

The long caterpillar is yellowish green, with an interrupted red line along the middle of the back; two green points on last ring are usually pink-tipped. It feeds on oak, birch, ash, sloe, apple, etc., in July and August.

The moth occurs in woodlands, but is not easily disturbed in the daytime from its lurking-place in bush or tree. In the autumn it may be found at ivy-bloom, and in the spring, after hibernation, has been taken at sallow.

The species appears to be widely distributed over England and Wales, Scotland up to Moray, and Ireland.

AUTUMN GREEN CARPET (_Cidaria miata_).

Somewhat similar to the last, but the general colour of the fore wings is paler, inclining to whitish, and the basal patch and central band are pale green tinged with greyish; there is no rosy suffusion, but the wavy sub-marginal line is distinctly white. The hind wings are greyish white, with black discal dot, and dark-grey curved lines. (Plate 68, Figs. 5, 6.)

The caterpillar is pale green, inclining to yellowish, especially between the rings, and with a more or less distinct dark-green line along the middle of the back; the points on the last ring are pinkish brown, and there is a line of the same colour along the centre of the under surface of the body.

It feeds on alder, birch, oak, sallow, etc., and may be beaten out from June to August.

The moth is out in September and October, when it may be obtained at ivy-bloom, and in the following spring, after hibernation, it visits sallow catkins.

The range in the British Isles agrees pretty closely with that of the last species, but in Scotland it extends to the Hebrides and to the Orkneys.

2 Pl. 68.
1-4. RED-GREEN CARPET.
5, 6. AUTUMN GREEN CARPET.
7, 8. MARSH CARPET.

2 Pl. 69.
1. COMMON MARBLED CARPET: _caterpillar_.
2. DARK MARBLED CARPET: _caterpillar_.
3. BARRED YELLOW: _caterpillar_.

{175}

NOTE.--According to Prout, _sagittata_ is not a _Cidaria_, as its larva is of a very different form; and _siterata_ and _miata_ are referred to _Chloroclysta_, Hubner.

GREY PINE CARPET (_Thera variata_).

In its typical form, the fore wings of this species are greyish, and from this the colour ranges through various tints of greyish brown to smoky brown or blackish; sometimes these wings are shades of ochreous brown. The usual markings are a basal patch, more or less clearly defined, and a central band, and these may be either brown or blackish; the band varies in width, is not infrequently narrowed or contracted below the middle, occasionally broken at this point, and more rarely only represented by a small angular spot near the front margin.

Four examples are shown on Plate 70, and of these 1 and 2 represent our ordinary form _obeliscata_, Hubner (Shaded Broad Bar, of Newman). Fig. 6 is a blackish banded specimen of the _obeliscata_ form, and Fig. 3 is the almost entirely blackish form _obliterata_, White (_scotica_, Staud.), which is not uncommon in the Paisley district, and other parts of Scotland, and also occurs in a modified form in some pine-woods in the South of England.

The long caterpillar (Plate 71, Fig. 1), which feeds on the needles of Scots pine in April and May, also in July, and sometimes in September, is bright green, with three whitish lines along the back, the central one broad, and a yellowish line low down along the sides; the green roundish head is lined with white.

The moth is generally common in pine-woods throughout the greater part of the British Isles. The May-June flight is the most abundant, but there is occasionally a good sprinkling of moths in the autumn.

Abroad, the area of distribution includes Eastern Siberia, Corea, China, and Japan. {176}

CHESTNUT-COLOURED CARPET (_Thera cognata_).

This is a generally smaller species than that last referred to, and it is more glossy in appearance. The fore wings are brown, sometimes grey-brown, more or less tinged with reddish, and the basal patch and central band are darker; these markings are usually white-edged, and there is a wavy whitish submarginal line. Hind wings whitish, tinged with smoky grey. Specimens from the Hebrides are strongly purplish; and Kane states that some he reared from Sligo caterpillars are more richly coloured than any that he has seen from Scotland. (Plate 70, Figs. 9 [male] 12 [female].)

The bright green caterpillar is stouter than that of the last species. It is of a bluish hue along the back, and marked with three lines, the central one greenish and the others whitish and broad; there are sometimes reddish markings low down on the sides, just edging the broad white spiracular line. It feeds in May and June, earlier or later in some seasons, on juniper; it turns to a dark-green chrysalis in a frail cocoon spun up among the litter under the juniper bushes.

The moth is to be found in July and August among juniper growing in the hilly and maritime haunts of the species in North England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.

This species, long known as _simulata_, Hubner, has been referred to _cognata_, Thunberg, and as this is an earlier name it will have to be used.

PINE CARPET (_Thera firmata_).

The pale reddish-grey fore wings have a rather darker central band and round-edged basal patch, but the latter is often indistinct, and the band, which is always deeply indented about the middle of its inner edge, is sometimes not well defined. The hind wings are whitish, tinged more or less with greyish or pale brownish, but always paler than in any form of _T. variata_, with which it is often confused. (Plate 70, Figs. 10, 11.)

2 Pl. 70.
1, 2, 3, 6. GREY PINE CARPET.
4, 5, 7, 8. JUNIPER CARPET.
9, 12. CHESTNUT-COLOURED CARPET.
10, 11. PINE CARPET.

2 Pl. 71.
1. GREY PINE CARPET: _caterpillar_.
2. PINE CARPET: _caterpillar_.
3. WELCH WAVE: _caterpillar_.

{177} The caterpillar is bluish-green above, and green beneath; three lines along the back, the central one a darker tone of the ground colour, the others whitish; head reddish, marked with brown on each cheek. It feeds in April and May (June in Scotland) on Scots pine; Barrett states that there is a second brood in August. (Plate 71, Fig. 2.)

The moth is out in September and October, and may be disturbed from the pine boughs, or occasionally seen resting on the trunks, but it is more frequently met with at night when it flies naturally, and has been known to visit the sugar patch. Barrett, who considered this species to be double brooded, gives June and July for the first flight of moths. Certain it is that moths have been reared even as late as October from Spring caterpillars. As adverted to, the pale reddish forms of _T. variata_ are sometimes confused with _T. firmata_, but in addition to other differences indicated above, it may be noted that in the male of the latter the antennae are bipectinated except towards the tips. Most of the pine woods throughout England seem to produce this delicate insect more or less frequently; the same remark applies to Wales. In Scotland it is found up to Aberdeen, and also in the Hebrides. The only localities mentioned by Kane for Ireland are in counties Westmeath, Dublin, and Fermanagh.

JUNIPER CARPET (_Thera juniperata_).

On Plate 70, Figs. 4 and 5 represent the sexes of the typical form of this species, the small and rather more strongly marked Scottish form is shown by Figs. 7 and 8. In these small forms a noticeable character is the brownish band on the fore wings, between the central band and the outer margin; this band is {178} only indicated by a dusky greyish shade in the larger form. Most of the examples of the small form from the Isle of Hoy have also a dark central line on the hind wings. The central band of the fore wings is often broken below the middle, in both forms.

The caterpillar is yellowish green, inclining to a black tinge on the back, along which are three lines, the central one dark green, and the others yellow and rather broad; a whitish stripe low down along the sides is sometimes marked with yellow and red, and there is a red thread above it; head, pink tinged; two points on last ring of the body. It feeds in July and August, on juniper. The moth is out in October and November, and may be found plentifully flying at night about the juniper bushes.

Berkshire, Kent, Surrey, and Sussex appear to be the only English counties in which it is established, and it is probably most plentiful in the last named. It has, however, been recorded from Suffolk, Lancashire, York, and Durham; also from Carnarvonshire in North Wales. It is more widely spread throughout Scotland, including the Orkneys and Shetlands, where the moths fly in July. Only doubtfully reported from Ireland.

WATER CARPET (_Lampropteryx suffumata_).

The fore wings are whitish, more or less clouded with brownish, with dark brown, inclining to blackish, basal patch and central band. The variation tends in two opposite directions; in the one the general colour is so clouded and suffused with blackish-brown, that the entire fore wings become almost entirely of that colour (ab. _piceata_, Stephens), N. England and Scotland; the other extreme is ab. _porrittii_, Robson, in which the central band and basal patch are black, and the white ground colour is almost free of brown clouding; the last named occurs at Dover {179} in Kent, and Huddersfield, Yorks. On Plate 72, Fig. 1 shows the typical form, Fig. 3 ab. _piceata_, and 2 ab. _porrittii_. The caterpillar varies from greyish, with pinkish or greenish tinge, to ochreous brown; the upper surface is rather darker than the under, and there is a series of dark V-shaped marks and arrow-heads on the back of rings 4-8; there is a whitish central stripe on 1-3, and a dark one on 9-12; head, brownish, marked with black. It feeds on goose-grass (_Galium aparine_), and other kinds of bedstraw, in May and early June. It seems to thrive best, however, on the goose-grass. (Plate 74, Fig. 1, after Hofmann.)

The moth may be found in weedy lanes and along hedgerows, pretty well throughout England, Wales, Scotland to Moray, and Ireland. It cannot, however, be said to occur in all suitable places, as although it may be found in some plenty in one lane or hedgerow in a district, it may be quite absent in similar spots just around. Wherever it is noted one year it may be almost certainly obtained there in subsequent years. April and May are the months in which it is usually seen, but it has been taken in June in late seasons, and occasionally in July.

LARGE TWIN-SPOT CARPET (_Coremia_ (_Ochyria_) _quadrifasciaria_).

The ground colour of the fore wings of this species is most often of a pale reddish brown, but sometimes it inclines to grey brown; the outwardly angled central band is often black, but more frequently perhaps the middle area is pretty much of the ground colour or greyish, with a black dot in the upper portion, and limited by two black lines which approach, or join, in the lower half. A dusky basal blotch is not always present, but it is sometimes well in evidence, as also is a dusky shade before the whitish submarginal line; frequently there are two blackish {180} or brownish dots on the upper part of this line, and a third dot above them, but nearer the outer margin. (Plate 72, Figs. 4, 5.)

The caterpillar is pale yellowish brown, finely freckled with grey, and with greyish V-shaped marks on the back; three greyish lines along the back, the central one broken, and the others most distinct at each end. It feeds on bedstraw (_Galium_) and other plants, such as primrose, groundsel, etc., from August to April. The moth is out in June and July, and should be looked for on tree-trunks growing around the borders of woods or in lanes near by. It may also be beaten out of hedgerows in the vicinity of woods.

A very local species and only found with us in the southern half of England. Its chief haunts appear to be in the counties of Kent, Surrey, Hants, Essex, Suffolk, Cambridge, and Norfolk (the Breck sand district); thence its range extends through Hertford, Buckingham, and Berkshire to Gloucester, where, however, it is scarce, as it is also in Lincoln. Abroad, the range extends to Eastern Siberia, Amurland, Corea and Japan.

RED CARPET (_Coremia_ (_Ochyria_) _munitata_).

The typical form (Plate 72, Fig. 6) has pale greyish fore wings, and these are crossed by a black-edged purplish central band. In var. _hethlandica_, Prout (Fig. 7), the ground colour is ochreous and the band is reddish; this form is frequent in the Shetlands.

The caterpillar is yellowish green, with greyish clouds around white dots, tinged with pink between the rings; three lines along the back, the central one grey inclining to blackish, broken on three of the hinder rings, and edged with whitish; the others are double, wavy, brownish, a whitish stripe bordered above with grey along the area of the spiracles; head, ochreous, dotted with dark brown (adapted from Fenn). It feeds on lady's mantle (_Alchemilla_), chickweed, groundsel, etc., from September to May.

2 Pl. 72.
1-3. WATER CARPET.
4, 5. LARGE TWIN-SPOT CARPET.
6, 7. RED CARPET.
8-12. RED TWIN-SPOT CARPET.

2 Pl. 73.
1. BEECH-GREEN CARPET: _caterpillar_.
2. STRIPED TWIN-SPOT CARPET: _caterpillar_.
3. MOTTLED GREY: _caterpillar_.

{181} The moth is out in July and August, and in England is only found in the mountain districts of Yorkshire and the more northern centres. It has been reported from the high-lying district on the border of Cheshire, between Macclesfield and Buxton (Day), and from Llantrissant, Glamorganshire, S. Wales (Evan John). Generally distributed through Scotland and the Isles. Widely spread, but local, and not always common, in Ireland.

Abroad, the range extends to Eastern Siberia, Amurland and North America.

DARK-BARRED TWIN-SPOT CARPET (_Coremia_ (_Ochyria_) _unidentaria_).

Portraits of three examples of this species will be found on Plate 75, Figs. 1-3. The ground colour of the fore wings is whitish tinged with pale ochreous or greyish; the central band is blackish with darker wavy lines running through it near the edges, and not infrequently the middle area is greyish, either on the upper half, or throughout from front to inner margins; a narrow patch at the base of the wings is of the same colour as the central band, and is followed by a reddish-brown streak; as a rule, there is an irregular reddish-brown line, commencing in a cloud on the front margin, and sometimes stripe-like, beyond the pale edging of the central band; in ab. _coarctata_, Prout, the central band is much narrowed; the two black dots on upper part of the outer margin, generally well in evidence, are occasionally united, but sometimes they are very tiny. The hind wings are whitish, more or less sprinkled with dusky scales, chiefly on the basal two thirds, and crossed by dark-grey wavy lines.

Sometimes the central band and the basal patch of the fore {182} wings are dull reddish-brown, inclining to purplish. This form which has been referred to _corculata_, Hufnagel, is pretty generally distributed abroad, but is apparently only of local occurrence in the British Isles.

The caterpillar is very similar to that of the next species, it feeds on the same kinds of plants, and during the same months of the year. (Plate 74, Fig. 2.) The first generation of moths is on the wing in May and June, and the second in August.

The species is widely distributed in England and Wales, often plentiful in some districts in the southern half of the former country, scarce and more local northwards from Yorkshire. Widely spread in Roxburghshire and Clydesdale in Scotland, but less frequent than _ferrugata_; this also seems to be the case in Ireland. The range abroad extends to North America.

NOTE.--It is to be regretted that the names by which this and the following species have been known for many years may have to be changed. It has been claimed that the reddish-banded form of _unidentaria_, Haworth, is identical with _ferrugata_ as figured by Clerck, _Icones_, Plate XI. Fig. 14, and is also referable to _corculata_, Hufnagel, both earlier names. If the red form referred to is adopted as the _ferrugata_ of Clerck, then that name will supersede _unidentaria_, Haworth, and the species now known as _ferrugata_, Clerck, will become _spadicearia_. Authorities, however, are not agreed upon this point, so the question still remains open.

RED TWIN-SPOT CARPET (_Coremia_ (_Ochyria_) _ferrugata_).

Five examples of this variable species are shown on Plate 72, Figs. 8-12. The ground colour of the fore wings is usually greyish, more or less ochreous tinted, but sometimes inclining to whitish; the basal patch and the central band are reddish brown, the latter usually entire in southern specimens, but {183} frequently broken up (ab. _spadicearia_, Borkhausen), especially in northern examples. A bright, ochreous form, with the central band much streaked, occurring in Scotland, has been referred to ab. _salicaria_, Haworth. Occasionally the central band is dark purplish. The hind wings are whitish, more or less suffused with smoky grey, and lined with the same; the outer margin is bordered with smoky grey.

The caterpillar is ochreous brown, mottled with greyish, and marked with pale diamonds and black spots on the back of the middle rings; there are wavy lines along the sides. It feeds in June and July, and also in September and October, on various low plants: knotgrass, dandelion, bedstraw, garden marigold, and ground ivy (_Nepeta_) being especially useful in captivity. The moth is usually double-brooded, at least in the southern half of England, the first flight occurring in May and June, and the second in July and August.

The species is generally distributed, and often common, over the greater part of England and Wales, but somewhat local north of the Midlands and through Scotland to Aberdeen; widely spread in Ireland.

FLAME CARPET (_Coremia_ (_Ochyria_) _designata_).

The ground colour of this rather common woodland species (Plate 75, Figs. 4-6) is pale grey, varying to whitish, or sometimes faintly brownish tinged. The purple band on the fore wings is always broadly edged in front with black, but the black outer edging is irregular, and sometimes only distinct towards the front margin of the wings; it varies in width, and in tint, being, in some specimens, faint purplish grey.

The caterpillar is ochreous, inclining to greyish on the back, which is marked with whitish lines on the front rings, and with ochreous diamonds and black dots on the other rings; there is also a row of black spots low down along the sides; head, {184} brownish, freckled with black. It feeds, in June and July, probably, in a wild state, on some kind of "cress," growing in the moister parts of woods; in confinement, it will eat cabbage, horseradish, and wallflower, among other kinds of Cruciferae. There is a second brood in August and September. (Plate 74, Fig. 3, after Hofmann.)

The moth is out in May and June, and again in August. It is fond of resting on tree-trunks in woods, especially where the ground is moist, but it may also be beaten out of hedges and bushes. It is most plentiful in the southern half of England, but is spread over the greater part of the British Isles, including the Orkneys.

Abroad, its range extends to Eastern Siberia, Amurland, Japan, and North America.

THE BEECH-GREEN CARPET (_Amoebe olivata_).

The species, depicted on Plate 75, Figs. 9, 10, when quite fresh has the fore wings greenish, and the central band more or less tinged with brown, in some specimens with blackish; the inner edge of the band is not so clearly defined as the outer, the latter being followed by a narrow whitish wavy band; a series of black dots edged with white represent the submarginal line. Hind wrings, smoky grey, with a pale band beyond the middle, and a pale line nearer the outer margin.

The roughened caterpillar (Plate 73, Fig. 1) is ochreous brown, mottled with darker brown, and lined with grey; the raised dots are black, each with a short bristle. It feeds at night on bedstraw (_Galium_), in the spring to May, after hibernation.

The moth is out, as a rule, in July and August, but sometimes much earlier. I reared specimens during the last week in May, 1907, from caterpillars sent from Torquay by Mr. Walker. It {185} lurks among the vegetation growing on banks, and the hedgerows of lanes, etc.

In the south of England the species chiefly affects the coasts of Dorset, Devon, and Cornwall; but it occurs locally in and around beech woods of Kent, and is more frequent in those of Berks, Oxford, and Bucks. From Somerset it spreads through the western counties, including part of Wales, to Lancashire. It is, however, most common among the hills and rills from Yorkshire northwards. In Scotland it is local in Roxburgh, widely distributed, and sometimes abundant in Clydesdale and throughout the Highlands to Sutherland. It has also been noted from Arran. Local in Ireland, but apparently abundant in some parts.

GREEN CARPET (_Amoebe viridaria_).

This species (Plate 75, Figs. 7, 8), also, has green fore wings, with a rather deeper green central band and basal patch. The former is limited by white lines marked with black, conspicuously so on the front and inner margins; there are also black marks on the front edge of the basal patch, and at the tips of the wings. The green colour quickly fades to a yellowish or sandy tint.

The wrinkled caterpillar is olive brown, with bristle-bearing black dots; the back has a dark central line, and is adorned with reddish V-shaped marks except on the end rings. It feeds in the spring, after hibernation, on bedstraw (_Galium_), but it is said to eat sorrel, dead-nettle (_Lamium_), etc.

The moth is out in June, earlier in the south, and later in the north. It hides among herbage during the day, and may occasionally be seen resting on tree-trunks, etc., then feeding just before dark about hedges, and on commons and heaths. Specimens have been noted in some years in September.

Except that it has not been detected in the Shetlands, the species seems to be found in all parts of the British Isles. {186}

STRIPED TWIN-SPOT CARPET (_Malenydris salicata_).

Portraits of a male and a female of this species will be found on Plate 75, Figs. 11 [male] and 12 [female]. The fore wings are greyish white, crossed by several darker grey wavy lines; the central band is rather darker, and in some specimens there is also a darker basal patch. In an almost unicolorous form the fore wings are wholly suffused with darker; Kane, who states that such specimens occur with the paler form in Ireland, refers the aberration to _unicolorata_, Gregson.

The caterpillar is brownish, with three whitish lines along the back, and a pinkish line low down along the sides. It feeds, at night, on bedstraw (_Galium_), in September and October, but may be found on the plants in the daytime. (Plate 73, Fig. 2, after Hofmann.)

The moth is out in May and June, and in some localities again in August and September. It is fond of sitting on rocks, and also on tree-trunks.

Except that it has been found, not infrequently, on Dartmoor and Exmoor, in Devon, and has also been once noted from Dorset, the species in England is chiefly an inhabitant of the northern counties. It occurs in Wales, but almost exclusively in the north. In Scotland it appears to be widely distributed throughout; and in Ireland it occurs locally in all four provinces.

MOTTLED GREY (_Malenydris multistrigaria_).

The fore wings in the typical form of this species are grey, with a slight brownish tinge; basal patch, central band, and shade before the whitish submarginal line, sometimes darker. (Plate 77, Figs. 1 [male], 2 [female].) In some specimens the central band is very much darker (ab. _virgata_, Tutt); and in some parts of {187} south-west Yorkshire a blackish form (ab. _nubilata_, Tutt) is not uncommon. (Plate 77, Fig. 3.)

The caterpillar is ochreous grey, with three brownish lines along the back, and two other lines on each side, the upper one yellowish, wavy, and edged above with dusky. It feeds on bedstraw (_Galium_) in May and June. (Plate 73, Fig. 3.)

The moth is out in March and April, and keeps pretty much to the shelter afforded by its food plant or other herbage around in its favourite haunts, which are damp woodlands, heaths, and mosses. Occasionally, however, it may be seen on the lower parts of fences, tree-trunks, rocks, etc. About dusk it may be found sitting on grass and other vegetation, and at such times is not much disposed to fly away from the collector.

Pretty generally distributed throughout the British Isles, including the Orkneys.

TWIN-SPOT CARPET (_Malenydris didymata_).

The fore wings in the male are pale greyish, more or less tinged with ochreous brown, and crossed by a dark grey, inclining to blackish, central band; the base of the wings is often banded with dark grey, as also is the outer marginal area; on the latter, above the middle, are twin black spots, and there is a black spot or streak above nearer the tip of the wing. The female is smaller, paler, often whitish, and sometimes pale ochreous; the latter form is prevalent in the Shetlands; the central band is the only distinct cross marking in this sex. On the moorlands in the north of England a blackish form of the male occurs (ab. _nigra_, Prout), and this is very similar to ab. _nubilata_ of the previous species; ab. _ochroleucata_, Aurivillius, is uniformly greyish brown, with a white submarginal line, and I have a specimen near this from Durham.

The caterpillar is green, inclining to yellowish on the back, {188} and to pinkish on the sides; three lines along the side, the central one dark green, and the others whitish. It feeds on primrose, red campion (_Lychnis diurna_), bilberry, etc., as well as on the flowers of coarse grasses; in North Devon I found it in profusion at night, on the blossoms of a wood-rush (_Luzula_), growing in a sheltered wood near the sea. April and May, later perhaps in the north. (Plate 77, Figs. 4-6 [male], 7-9 [female].)

The moth is out in July and August, and is common in almost every part of the British Isles.

NOVEMBER MOTH (_Oporabia_ (_Epirrita_) _dilutata_).

The more usual forms of this common autumnal species are those represented by Figs. 1 and 2, Plate 78. Fig. 3 is a small example of the pale form, ab. _christyi_, Prout, which, in many respects, is very similar to _autumnata_, Guenee, a form of the next species. Fig. 4 is a female approaching ab. _obscurata_, Staud., and Fig. 5 shows the uniformly blackish ab. _melana_, Prout. In some pale-coloured specimens the only conspicuous marking is a broad central band which is almost black in colour (ab. _latifasciata_, Prout).

The eggs (Plate 76, Fig. 1a) were yellowish when laid, but soon changed to crimson red.

The caterpillar is green, inclining to whitish below, often marked, more or less distinctly, with purplish red, as a central line, or series of spots, along the back, and sometimes as bands on the ring division. It feeds on the foliage of trees, such as elm, oak, birch, etc., also on fallow, hawthorn, sloe, apple, plum, and other fruit trees. April to June. (Plate 76, Fig. 1.)

2 Pl. 74.
1. WATER CARPET: _caterpillar_.
2. DARK-BARRED TWIN-SPOT CARPET: _caterpillar_.
3. FLAME CARPET: _caterpillar_.

2 Pl. 75.
1-3. DARK-BARRED TWIN-SPOT CARPET.
4-6. FLAME CARPET.
7, 8. GREEN CARPET.
9, 10. BEECH-GREEN CARPET.
11, 12. STRIPED TWIN-SPOT CARPET.

{189} The moth is out in October and November in the South, but earlier in the North. It is an inhabitant of woodlands, and may be disturbed from bushes, trees, and sometimes may be seen on the trunks of the latter, and on fences. At night it flies lazily and will occasionally visit ivy then, and even sugar, but is more frequently attracted by light.

The species is pretty generally common throughout England and Wales, Scotland up to Moray, and Ireland.

THE AUTUMNAL MOTH (_Oporabia_ (_Epirrita_) _autumnata_).

Three examples of this species are shown on Plate 78. Figs. 6 [male] and 7 [female] represent the typical form except that the male should be rather more silvery white in the ground colour of the fore wings, and the cross bands more distinctly separated. Fig. 8, also a female, is very close to ab. _sandbergi_, Lampa, in the character of the central cross bands of the fore wings. Ab. _gueneata_, Prout (_autumnata_, Guenee, not Borkhausen), is a form with the typical coloration, but with fainter cross bands.

The caterpillar is somewhat similar to that of the last species, but there is a yellowish tint in the general green coloration, and it is rarely marked with reddish. It is found chiefly on birch, alder, fir, and larch, but will eat hawthorn, and probably the foliage of other shrubs and trees. May and June.

The moth is out in September and October, sometimes later. It may be dislodged from trees in the daytime, but it seems to be rarely noticed at rest on the trunks.

The species is so often confused with that previously mentioned that its distribution in our islands has not, so far, been clearly ascertained. However, it certainly occurs in the following northern counties of England--Lancashire (Liverpool district); Cheshire (Delamere Forest); Yorkshire (Cleveland district); North Durham (Birch woods); Cumberland (Carlisle). In Scotland it is found in Clydesdale, Perthshire, where it was first noted by Weaver in 1851, Kincardineshire, Aberdeen, and probably further north; in Ireland at Belfast and Enniskillen. Prout notes that he has seen a specimen from Swansea in South Wales. {190}

SMALL AUTUMNAL CARPET (_Oporabia_ (_Epirrita_) _filigrammaria_).

This is most probably a small moorland form of _O. autumnata_, but it rarely assumes the silvery white typical coloration of that species. A male specimen and two examples of the female are depicted on Plate 77, Figs. 10 [male], 11, and 12 [female].

The caterpillar, which feeds in the spring on bilberry and heather, is green, with yellow lines, a line of darker green between the two central yellow lines along the back; head, green, inclining to brown above.

The moth appears in August and early September, and may be found on the moors, resting on rocks, stones, and even on the ground, as well as on the stems of its food plants.

As a British species it was first recorded by Weaver, who obtained it in the Isle of Arran in 1841; but Edleston, writing in 1842, states that he had taken specimens off stone walls near Staley Bridge, in the Manchester district, "every year for the last three years." It appears to be peculiar to the British Isles and is found in suitable localities from North Staffs., through Cheshire, Lancs., Yorks., and northwards over England and Scotland to the Hebrides and the Orkneys. In Ireland it is known to occur in Antrim, Derry, Mayo, Galway, and Limerick.

THE WELSH WAVE (_Venusia cambrica_).

This moth, of which two portraits are given on Plate 78, Figs. 9 [male], 10 [female], is known also by the English name of "Cambric Wave." It was not ascertained to be an inhabitant of Britain until 1839, when it was figured and described by Curtis from specimens obtained in Cardiganshire in Wales. {191}

In its typical form the fore wings are white, inclining to greyish, with a number of brownish or dark-grey cross lines; two pairs on the central area are marked with black. Sometimes the wings are greatly suffused with smoky grey, and this tint in examples from the Sheffield and Rotherham districts of Yorkshire assumes a much darker hue, so that all the markings are obscured, but the veins are blacker.

The caterpillar is green, marked with some irregular reddish blotches; a yellowish line along the back. It feeds in August, earlier or later in some seasons, on mountain ash (_Pyrus aucuparia_), and the moth, which rests by day on tree-trunks, is out in July and early August. The haunts of the species are chiefly in hilly localities of the northern counties of England, but it has also been reported from Gloucestershire (Cotswolds), Somersetshire (Weston-super-Mare), and Devon (Dulverton). In Wales it occurs in Merionethshire, as well as in Cardiganshire; and in Scotland it spreads from Roxburghshire, where it is locally common among mountain ash, through Clydesdale to Inverness. It is widely distributed in Ireland. The range abroad extends to Japan and North America.

GREY MOUNTAIN CARPET (_Entephria caesiata_)

The typical greyish form, with blackish wavy cross lines and dark central band, is shown on Plate 80, Fig. 1 [male] and 2 [female]. Figure 3 represents a specimen from Shetland in which the band is sooty black (ab. _annosata_, Zetterstedt = _nigristriaria_, Gregson). The interesting blackish suffused form from the Isle of Arran (Fig. 4) leads up to a still blacker variety, occurring in the same isle, and also in the Shetlands, in which the whole of the fore wings is nearly as dark as the central band of Fig. 3, and the hind wings are also much darkened; such specimens are referable to ab. _glaciata_, Germar. Ab. _prospicuata_, Prout = _gelata_, Staud., is a form with the fore wings whitish, and the {192} base and the central band thereof blackish; some Shetland specimens closely approach this pretty variety.

The caterpillar is green, with a brownish line along the middle of the back, and a series of pinkish or purplish-red oblique streaks which nearly meet at the central line and so form V-shaped marks; a whitish or yellowish stripe low down along the sides, sometimes edged above with reddish. In some examples the general colour is reddish brown. It feeds in April and May, after hibernation, on bilberry, ling, and heath in a wild state, but may be reared on knot-grass or sallow.

The moth is out from June until early August, and may be found resting, often in numbers, on rocks and stone walls in mountain and moorland districts, from Herefordshire, northwards through England, North Wales, and over the whole of Scotland, including the isles, and Ireland. Kane states that in the latter country melanic forms, such as those from Yorks, etc., are nowhere met with.

YELLOW-RINGED CARPET (_Entephria flavicinctata_).

The general colour of the fore wings of British specimens of this species (var. _obscurata_, Staud.) is slaty grey; the basal, central, and outer marginal cross bands are thickly sprinkled with yellowish-brown, and it is this feature that at once separates this species (Plate 80, Figs. 5, 6) from that last referred to.

The bristly caterpillar is green, chocolate, or red brown, but always of a dull shade; on the back is a series of black V-shaped marks, and a central dark, slender line; the front part of each V-mark filled up with pink or lilac, forming a triangle, the apex of which is yellow; a yellowish stripe low down along the side (adapted from Fenn). It feeds in the spring till April, after hibernation, on saxifrage (_Saxifraga aizoides_, _S. hypnoides_, etc), and also on stonecrop (_Sedum_), and is most partial to the flowers of these plants.

2 Pl. 76.
1, 1a. NOVEMBER MOTH: _eggs and caterpillar_.
2, 2a. BEAUTIFUL CARPET: _caterpillars and chrysalis_.

2 Pl. 77.
1-4. MOTTLED GREY.
5-8. TWIN-SPOT CARPET.
9-12. SMALL AUTUMNAL CARPET.

{193}

The moth flies throughout the summer, possibly in two generations, as, when reared in confinement, moths appear in May, and from eggs obtained from these, caterpillars feed in June and July, and attain the perfect state in August. Like the last species, its chief resting-places are the rocks, in its favourite haunts, in gorges among the hills and moorlands. It has been recorded from few parts of northern England, but one specimen is said to have been taken in Dovedale, Derbyshire. In Lancashire it has been noted as scarce about Clougha; and in Yorkshire one example was taken on Malham Moor in August, 1876, and one at Hutton Buscel Moor, near Scarborough, July 16, 1891. It is more plentiful in Scotland; in Clydesdale it is local, but not uncommon, the localities mentioned being Lochgoilhead, and watercourses above Ardentinny; more frequent in Perthshire, thence to Sutherland, and it occurs also in the Hebrides and the Orkneys. In Ireland, it is found in Co. Antrim; and Mr. Thomas Greer informs me that it is common at Murlough Bay, Fair Head.

SILVER-GROUND CARPET (_Xanthorhoe montanata_).

Figs. 7 and 8 on Plate 80 represent the most usual form of this species, which is variable in the amount of clouding on the fore wings and in the intensity of the cross marking. In some specimens, chiefly from southern localities, the fore wings are almost clear white, and the central band is broadly blackish (Fig. 9). Shetland specimens, on the other hand, are much clouded or suffused with ochreous brown, and the central band is greyish brown (ab. _shetlandica_, Weir (Fig. 10)). Then there is variation in the central band, which is often entire, but more frequently broken up by bandlets; or it may be considerably narrowed, especially from the middle to the inner margin, and not altogether rarely it is completely severed below the middle, and the lower part almost or quite absent. A specimen with all {194} the wings smoky leaden-grey, and the central bar of the fore wings pale grey-brown, was taken near Longfleet in Wiltshire, in the summer of 1881.

The caterpillar is wrinkled, with a ridge along the sides; in colour it is pale brown, inclining to purplish with blackish dots; three lines along the back, the central one dark greyish, the others paler and broader; below the latter the sides are greyish tinted with a lower edging of pale yellowish brown. It feeds at night on bedstraw, and various low-growing herbage, including grass. August to April.

The moth is out in June and July, sometimes earlier in the south. It is generally distributed, and, as a rule, common, in woodlands, lanes, etc., throughout the British Isles.

GARDEN CARPET (_Xanthorhoe fluctuata_).

Of this common frequenter of our gardens four examples are depicted on Plate 80. Figs. 11 and 13 are the more frequent forms, but specimens with the central band complete, as in Fig. 12, are not uncommon. Chiefly, but by no means exclusively, in Southern localities, some examples have the ground colour almost pure white; often the wings are more or less suffused with dark grey (ab. _neapolisata_, Milliere), and this is especially the case in Scotland, where, in Aberdeenshire and in Shetland, a blackish form, ab. _thules_, Prout, occurs. Fig. 14 represents a specimen of this form from Aberdeen. Somewhat rarely, the central band is only indicated by a small spot on the front area of the wing (ab. _costovata_, Haworth), and more often the band is much narrowed or otherwise modified in the direction of that aberration. Fig. 4, Plate 61, shows an extreme example of this form. Specimens vary in size from rather under one inch to one inch and a half in expanse.

2 Pl. 78.
1-5. NOVEMBER MOTH.
6-8. AUTUMNAL MOTH.
9, 10. WELSH WAVE.

2 Pl. 79.
1, 1a. ARGENT AND SABLE: _eggs, natural size and enlarged, and
caterpillar_.
2, 2a, 2b. WOOD CARPET: _caterpillar and chrysalis_.
3. GALIUM CARPET: _caterpillar_.
4. COMMON CARPET: _chrysalis_.

{195}

GARDEN CARPET AT REST.

(Photo by H. Main.)]

The caterpillar varies in colour from dark grey through yellowish green to obscure green, but the underside is always paler; on the back there is a series of pale blotches, and some black spots on the middle rings; the head is rather paler than the general colour, and marked with black. It feeds, at night, on cabbage, horseradish, wallflower, white arabis, and many other kinds of Cruciferae; and it is said to eat the foliage of gooseberry and currant. June--October.

There are certainly two broods, and possibly more, as the moths occur in greater or lesser numbers throughout the year, from late April to October, but it seems to be most plentiful in May and June, and in August and September.

Generally distributed over the British Isles. It is also an inhabitant of North America.

THE GALIUM CARPET (_Xanthorhoe galiata_).

The more usual forms of this species are represented on Plate 81, Figs. 1, 2. Fig. 3 is the portrait of a form occurring in Yorkshire, Sussex, and probably elsewhere, in which the central band is blackish and solid-looking; this seems to be referable to _unilobata_, Haworth. Besides varying in tint of ground colour, and in the amount of freckling or mottling, there is modification in the width of the central band.

The caterpillar is brown, dotted with black, and striped with blackish brown on the back, and with pale brown on the sides; the head is light brown, sprinkled with black, and marked with {196} a dark V. It feeds on bedstraw in late June and July, and there is a second brood in August and September. The figure of the caterpillar on Plate 79, Fig. 3, is from a coloured drawing by Mr. A. Sich.

The moth is out in June, sometimes later in the north and earlier in the south, where it occurs as a second generation in August. It is chiefly found in chalk and limestone districts, and may be easily put up from the herbage among which it secretes itself during the day. In the seaboard counties of England, from Kent to Cornwall, it is especially common on the coast, but is also to be met with in suitable inland localities in these counties, and also in Surrey, Middlesex, Herts, Bucks., and Oxford. It is always rare on the eastern side, but on the west, including Wales, it is more or less frequent from Somerset and Wilts. to Westmorland. Not uncommon in Yorkshire, principally in the West Riding, and an odd specimen has been recorded from Durham. Somewhat rare in Scotland, but it has been noted in Berwick, Wigtown, Arran, Clydesdale, and Perthshire. In Ireland it is local, although often plentiful on the coast.

Abroad, the range extends to Eastern Siberia.

WOOD CARPET (_Xanthorhoe (Epirrhoe) rivata_).

The broad, clear white borders of both edges of the dark central band of the fore wings, coupled with the clearer white of the hind wings, and the generally larger size of the moth, should distinguish this species from its very close ally, _X. sociata_; but it must be added that some forms of the latter species approach the present one exceedingly close. (Plate 81, Figs. 4, 5.)

2 Pl. 80.
1-4. GREY MOUNTAIN CARPET.
5, 6. YELLOW-RINGED CARPET.
7-10. SILVER-GROUND CARPET.
11-14. GARDEN CARPET.

2 Pl. 81.
1-3. GALIUM CARPET.
4, 5. WOOD CARPET.
6-9. COMMON CARPET.
10-12. SMALL ARGENT AND SABLE.

{197} The caterpillar is brown or olive-brown, dotted and freckled with white; three lines on the back, the central one black, the others whitish, not seen on rings 5-8, which have dark V-shaped marks enclosing white ones; sometimes there is a V-mark instead of lines on ring 4; head, large, pale brown sprinkled with blackish, and marked with a blackish V, the apex of which appears to meet the central line of the body. It feeds, at night, in July and August, on bedstraw (_Galium mollugo_, and _G. verum_), but will thrive very well on cleavers or goose-grass (_G. aparine_). The chrysalis, which is enclosed in a cocoon of silk coated with earth, is reddish brown, thorax and wing-cases paler, shining. A coloured drawing of the caterpillar, kindly lent, with others, for this volume, by Mr. A. Sich, has been used for the figures on Plate 79, Figs. 2, 2a; but the description of the caterpillar, and also of the chrysalis (Fig. 2b), are from material that Mr. Pope, of Exeter, was good enough to furnish. In captivity a second brood may be reared in August.

The moth is out in July and early August, and although local, is not uncommon in bushy places on downs, etc., also in lanes, in chalk districts, in most of the southern and eastern counties. In the north of England it is far more local and uncommon, but is known to occur in Cheshire, Yorkshire, and Cumberland, and has been recorded from Durham. It is found in Wales, and in Scotland has been noted as very local in Roxburghshire and rare in Clydesdale and Arran. Kane states that in Ireland it is "very rare and local."

COMMON CARPET (_Xanthorhoe_ (_Epirrhoe_) _sociata_).

The white ground colour of this species is nearly always obscured, to a greater or lesser extent, by greyish markings and suffusions on the basal area; the outer margin is broadly bordered with dark grey, and the white band between this and the dark-grey central band is intersected throughout its length by a grey line. As shown on Plate 81, Figs. 6, 7, the central band varies in width; it is often contracted below the middle, sometimes completely severed at this point, and in ab. _degenerata_, {198} Haworth, both portions are much reduced in width. Figs. 8 and 9 represent two specimens from the Isle of Lewis; these brownish-grey examples are var. _obscurata_, South. There are intermediate modifications leading up to a form in which the whole of the central third of the fore wings is whitish, with the usual cross lines dingy grey, and some tiny clouds of the same colour around the black discal spot.

The caterpillar is very like that of the last species referred to, but it is rather smaller in size and rougher in appearance. There is variation in the general colour, from pale fawn through greenish-brown, to dull or bright green, and sometimes the markings are tinged with reddish (Hellins).

It feeds on bedstraw, in June and July, and a second brood occurs in September. The figure of the brownish, inclining to reddish, chrysalis (Plate 79, Fig. 4), is from a photo by Mr. H. Main, and is twice the natural size.

The moth is out in May and June, and, in the South especially, again in August and September. It is generally distributed over the British Islands, but so far has not been noted from the Shetlands.

The range abroad extends to Eastern Siberia and Amurland.

According to Prout, the earliest name for this species is _alternata_ (Muller).

SMALL ARGENT AND SABLE (_Xanthorhoe_ (_Epirrhoe_) _tristata_).