There is a Brimstone Moth, just as there is a “brimstone butterfly,” and you may find it very commonly indeed in almost any part of the country, and at almost any time from April until October, or even November. During the daytime it generally hides away among the leaves of ivy, or of some thick bush, like the “swallow-tailed moth.” But you may sometimes see it resting on a fence, or on the trunk of a tree; and after dark it often comes flying into a lighted room through an open window. The caterpillar feeds on hawthorn, and blackthorn, and apple, and sometimes on bramble. It is pale brown in colour, with a bluish spot on each side of its neck, and with three little humps on its back, just like the tiny leaf-buds on a bit of twig. So although it is so common you will not find it unless you look very carefully indeed, and even the sharp eyes of the insect-eating birds often pass it by. As soon as it reaches its full size it spins a thick silken cocoon and turns into a brown chrysalis, out of which the moth appears two or three weeks later. [Illustration: PLATE XXXV 1. Brimstone 2. Canary-Shouldered Thorn 3. Pepper and Salt] PLATE XXXV THE CANARY-SHOULDERED THORN (2) There are several different kinds of “Thorn” moths, but you can always tell the Canary-Shouldered Thorn from the others by just looking at the middle part of its body, which is thickly covered with very long hairs of a bright canary yellow. It appears on the wing in August, and is very fond of flying into a lighted room after dark. Sometimes, too, it will sit on the glass of a street-lamp and remain there all night long without moving, gazing at the flame within. If it can get inside the lamp, it will often burn its wings so badly that it cannot fly away. And just now and then you may find it sitting on a fence, or on the trunk of a tree. The caterpillar of this moth is one of the “loopers,” and is dark brown in colour, with lighter markings, and with two little humps on its back. Look for it on the leaves of birch, lime, elder, oak, and fruit trees during the month of June. About the first week in July it spins a little silken cocoon, and turns into a light brown chrysalis, with a few whitish markings. PLATE XXXV THE PEPPER AND SALT MOTH (3) No doubt you will think that this is rather an odd name to give to a moth, but it is a very suitable one, for the wings of this insect really do look very much as if they had been first covered with salt, and then sprinkled thickly with black pepper. But it varies a good deal in its markings, for sometimes the wings look as if they were nearly all salt, and sometimes they look as if they were nearly all pepper. And if the moth is caught in the north of England or in Scotland, strange to say, it is nearly always much darker than when it is caught in the south.