The Moths of the British Isles, Second Series: Comprising the Families Noctuidæ to HepialidæSouth, Richard
History
The Moths of the British Isles, Second Series: Comprising the Families Noctuidæ to Hepialidæ
South, Richard
Lepidoptera -- Great Britain; Moths -- Great Britain
The caterpillar feeds on dead oak leaves, chiefly those that have fallen to
the ground. After hibernation it becomes full grown about June, and is then
brown with a downy appearance; there are three faintly darker lines along
the back, and the usual dots are dusky. (Plate 34, Fig. 3; after Hofmann.)
The moth is out in June and July, and in the daytime may be put up from its
lurking place among herbage in wood clearings, or netted as it flies in the
gloaming. It is also attracted by sugar and light.
The species has been erroneously recorded from Chester and Barmouth (North
Wales); and Mr. Carr informs me that he is not quite sure that a specimen
he recorded from Dawlish, South Devon, was correctly identified. In the
catalogue of Malvern Lepidoptera _H. derivalis_ is stated to be rather
common in that district, but the occurrence of the species in the Midlands
requires confirmation.
Abroad, the range extends to Amurland.
THE COMMON FAN-FOOT (_Pechipogon barbalis_).
The fore wings of the species shown on Plate 35, Fig. 7, are greyish brown,
crossed by three darker lines, the outer one almost parallel with the hind
margin, and edged with whitish.
The caterpillar feeds on the dead leaves of oak and birch, and has almost
attained full growth when it retires for the winter. In the spring it has
been known to eat birch catkins. The general colour is reddish ochreous,
with diamond-shaped markings, forming a series along the back and two
series along each side. {92}
The moth, which is out from late May until early July, frequents the more
open parts of woods, and in the daytime may be induced to show itself by
tapping the lower branches of trees or brushing the bushes and undergrowth
as we pass along.
The species is widely distributed over England, from Staffordshire
southwards, but it is apparently most frequently met with in some of the
woods of Kent, Surrey, and Sussex.
The distribution abroad extends to Amurland.
THE BEAUTIFUL SNOUT (_Bomolocha fontis_).
The portraits of this species on Plate 35 show each sex in its most usual
form: Fig. 8 representing the male, and Fig. 9 the female. The outer and
inner areas of the fore wings are generally ashy grey, more or less
brownish tinged, in the male; and the same parts are whitish in the female.
Although some examples of the male have the outer and inner areas whitish,
as in the female, they can be distinguished by their darker hind wings and
the blackish central crescent thereon. A form of the female in which the
large central patch of the fore wings is reddish brown has been named
_rufescens_, Tutt; there may be males also of this form, but I have not
seen any. In both sexes, the brown patch extends nearer to the inner margin
in some specimens than in others, and not infrequently there is a spur from
the lower edge of the patch to this margin.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account