The Eggars form another allied family, also with tufted caterpillars, but with the central eye of the wings absent, or reduced to a small black spot. A set of remarkable photographs, representing the eggs, caterpillars, cocoons and sections of cocoons, and the moths of a large and handsome species—the Cypress-moth of Smyrna—appears on pages 720 and [721]. We have received the following account of their habits from Mr. Mavroyeni, to whom we are indebted for the photographs: "In the month of July they start weaving their cocoons, in which they remain for seventeen days. A couple of weeks after the moths have emerged from their cocoons and laid their eggs, the eggs hatch, and the young caterpillars run up the tree, and feed from the end of August, during autumn, winter, and spring." We believe that the cocoons of this species are prepared for use as silk in Greece.
Among other kinds, we may notice the bright-coloured Tiger-moths, with their black and cream-coloured fore wings and red-and-black hind wings, which frequent gardens, and are reared from reddish-brown caterpillars with long hair. These are stout-bodied moths; and there are other moths, with brown fore wings and whitish hind wings, which fly to candles, or buzz over flowers in the evening. These are called Owl-moths; but there are larger and handsomer members of the same family, called Yellow Underwings, measuring nearly 2 inches across the wings, and likely to be flushed in strawberry-beds or hay-fields. They have brown fore wings, and bright yellow hind wings, with a black border. The Red-underwing Moth is about 3 inches in expanse, and has greyish-brown fore wings, and red hind wings, with a black central band; it is often seen flying about willow-trees in the afternoon, or resting on tree-trunks, when the bright-coloured hind wings are quite concealed.
Photo by C. N. Mavroyeni] [Smyrna.
COCOONS OF CYPRESS-MOTH.
These yield silk.
The Looper-moths are those produced from caterpillars which have only ten legs instead of sixteen, as already explained. Most have slender bodies of moderate length, and broad and rather brightly coloured wings, green, russet-brown, yellow, etc. Some, measuring about an inch in expanse, are called Carpet-moths, from the zigzag patterns on the fore wings, which are generally black and white, or brown and white, and sometimes green. The Yellow-shell, a yellow moth, with some zigzag brown and whitish lines across the wings, which expand about an inch, is common in hedges and bushes. The white, black-and-yellow-spotted Gooseberry-moth, or Magpie-moth, so common in gardens, is also one of the Loopers.
Photo by C. N. Mavroyeni] [Smyrna.
CYPRESS-MOTHS AT REST.