| ||
| Pl. 37. | ||
| ||
|
The fluted greenish-white eggs are laid upon the edges of bramble-leaves.
The caterpillar is pale reddish brown shaded with darker and freckled with whitish (in the young stage the second and third rings are whitish above); a slender dark brown line along the middle of the back, and a broader one along the sides, the latter not distinct on the first three rings; the two rings nearest the head each have a divided ridge, the second being the larger; there are also similar ridges on the fifth to ninth rings, and the back of ring eleven is slightly raised; a series of pale triangular marks on the back. It feeds on bramble in July, and may be found from that month until September.
In confinement it will thrive on raspberry or the cultivated kinds of blackberry. From some thirty eggs I had in June this year (1907) the caterpillars hatched on the 27th; several of these fed up rapidly and one or two had spun up for pupation, among the leaves, in July (about 24th), whilst others remained quite small, and a few were in the last skin but one. Early in August the larger caterpillars just referred to pupated, and the smaller ones began to feed up, and by the end of the month they had attained to full growth, although they did not spin cocoons until the second week in September.
From July chrysalids moths will often emerge in August or September of the same year, but none have appeared from those under observation. The chrysalis is pale brown mottled with dark purplish or reddish brown, wing cases reddish. The species frequents woods or wooded localities, and is generally distributed throughout England and Wales, but commoner in some parts than others. Rather local in Scotland but not uncommon in Perthshire. Sometimes very abundant in Ireland, occurring in similar localities to the preceding species. It is found over the greater part of Northern and Central Europe, and as far east as Amurland and Japan.
The Figure of Eighty (Palimpsestis octogessima).
This moth (Plate [36], Figs. 5, 6) may be distinguished by two whitish marks on the fore wings which have some resemblance to the numerals 80, hence the common name. These are really the white outlines of the reniform and orbicular stigmata, each of which has the central part filled in with black; sometimes the lower portion of the 8 is obscure, but in a general way the character is not difficult to make out.
The caterpillar is yellowish tinged with greyish on the back; a greyish plate on the back of the ring nearest the black marked orange head; three black spots on each side of the first ring, two such spots on ring two, and one on each side of rings three to eleven; the back of the last ring has a greyish plate. It feeds in July and August, earlier or later in accordance with season, on poplar. During the day it hides between united leaves, or in a curled up withered leaf, upon the tree. The shining black chrysalis with somewhat reddish ring divisions is enclosed in a rather loosely constructed cocoon spun up between leaves, or among moss etc., at the base of poplar trees. The moth emerges in May or June. It is partial to sugar, and is said to prefer its sweets served up on poplar trunks. Probably it is most often and regularly obtained in the Eastern Counties, but it is locally not uncommon in Worcestershire and Herefordshire; also found in Gloucestershire, Somerset, Hertfordshire, Middlesex, Surrey, and, I believe, Sussex. The range abroad is similar to that of T. batis.