When nearly full grown the caterpillar is blackish with an orange stripe along the back and a series of creamy white spots on the sides; the hairs, arising from shining light brown warts, are pale brown mixed with greyish ones; spiracles black ringed with white, under surface greyish. Head black and glossy. It hatches from the egg in the autumn and goes into hibernation while still very small; reappearing in the spring and feeding on until July, when it spins a flimsy silken web-like cocoon well down among moss and litter. The food plants are dandelion, white deadnettle (Lamium album), ground ivy (Nepeta glechoma), groundsel, plantain, nettle, borage (Borago officinalis), and lettuce.
The moth emerges in July and August in a state of nature, but often as early as June in confinement. It sits by day among the herbage, and in the bushes of hedgerows, but readily quits its retreat when disturbed. The normal time of flight is at night; and that light has an attraction for the moths is evident from the fact that they have been known to fly into cottages at the rate of three or four in an evening.
The species is distributed throughout Southern Europe, its
range extending to Holland, Belgium, and Livonia. It was known as an inhabitant of the Channel Islands long before it became established in England.
The Scarlet Tiger (Callimorpha dominula).
Except in minor details this tropical-looking moth (Plate [89]) seems little given to variation in England. In parts of Central and Southern Europe, and Asia Minor, striking forms occur, and some of these are very occasionally found with us. Among such rare aberrations in this country are var. rossica, Kol., with yellow hind wings; and var. bithynica, Staud., with the spots on the fore wings yellow, and the hind wings of the normal crimson colour. A South European form, var. persona, Hübn., has the hind wings and body black, with some yellow marks on the basal area; spots on the fore wings smaller than in the type. Specimens approaching this form have been reported from Kent, which county is also noted for "black dominula." In the latter variety the hind wings, body, and spots on fore wings are blackish; it is exceedingly rare. A specimen taken at St. Margaret's Bay, Kent, some years back has the spots on the fore wings blurred, due to a cloudy suffusion filling up the space between them; the spots on the hind wings are pale.
Caterpillar, black, hairy, with bands of more or less connected spots, yellow or yellowish in colour, down the middle of the back, and along the sides; the hairs, arising from shining black warts, are grey with some black ones intermixed. Head, glossy black. It hatches from the egg in July or August, feeds for awhile, then hibernates, and completes its growth in April or May. A number of plants have been mentioned as suitable food for these caterpillars, but the favourites are, perhaps, nettle, groundsel, hound's-tongue (Cynoglossum officinale), bramble, sloe, and sallow (Plate [88]).
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| Pl. 88. | ||
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