# The Moths of the British Isles Second Series/Chapter 4

QUADRIFINÆ.
The Golden Plusia (Plusia moneta).
Fig. 2. Golden Plusia at rest. (Photo by H. Main.)
The British history of the grey tinged pale golden species, shown on Plate 22, Fig. 4, dates back only to 1890. In that year, on July 2, Mr. Christy, of Watergate, Emsworth, found a specimen in his illuminated moth trap; this was noted in the Entomologist for August, 1890. From subsequent records it appears that a specimen had been taken on the same date at a gas lamp near Reading, by Mr. W. Holland; whilst one was captured, at a light, near Tunbridge Wells on July 1. The earliest British specimen, however, was one netted whilst hovering over flowers of Delphinium at Dover, on June 25 of the same year, but this was not announced until October. Since its arrival here the species seems to have spread over England at a great rate, and it has recently been reported from Cheshire. In some southern gardens the caterpillars abound to such an extent that they are regarded as a plague. On the continent it is said to feed on sunflower, artichoke, burdock, and cucumber.
2 Pl. 24. :
| 1. | Scarce Burnished Brass. | 2. | Gold Spangle. |
| 3, 4. | Gold Spot. | 5, 6. | Beautiful Golden Y. |
7, 8. Plain Golden Y. :
2 Pl. 25. :
| 1. | Herald: caterpillar. | 2. | Small Purple-barred: caterpillar. |
3. Rosy-marbled: caterpillar. :
The caterpillar is green, dotted with white; a dark line along the back and a white one along the sides. In the early stage it is black or sooty brown, and hides itself among the spun together flower buds, or in a turned down tender leaf. It feeds in May and June, occasionally found in late April, after hibernation, and a second generation sometimes occurs in July and August. Monkshood (Aconitum) and larkspur (Delphinium) are the usual food plants, and it is curious to note that whilst some observers state that larkspur alone is eaten, others say that monkshood is the only food. The moth flies in June and July, and sometimes there is an emergence in August and September. It visits the blossoms of various garden plants, and is also attracted by light.
The caterpillar, represented on Plate 27, Fig. 1, was found with others on larkspur in Mr. Herbert Smith's garden at Wallington, Surrey. The cocoon and chrysalis is from a photo by Mr. H. Main. Another photo by Mr. Main shows the young caterpillar constructing its retreat.
According to Duponchel this species occurred in Normandy, Central and Northern Europe, as far back as 1829. A much paler form inclining to silvery, var. esmeralda, Oberthür, is found in Ussuri, North China, and other parts of East Asia.
The Burnished Brass (Plusia chrysitis).
Two forms of this metallic-looking species are represented (Plate 22); 5 is typical and 6 shows the ab. juncta, Tutt. Between these are various intermediate stages leading to the complete division of the central band. The broken central band is a character of var. nadeja, Oberthür, from Amurland and ​ Japan, but that form has also a more or less complete series of ochreous-brown dots on the outer area. The metallic colour is sometimes greenish in all forms.
The caterpillar is pale green, with a darker green line along the middle of the back, bordered on each side by an irregular white line; an oblique white streak on the sides of each ring from 4-11; a stripe low down along the sides is white; head, yellowish tinged. It feeds on stinging nettle, probably on other plants, and after hibernation attains full growth about May. In favourable seasons caterpillars also occur in July and August. The moth is out in June, July, and August, less frequently in September, and may be found flying along the sides of hedges and ditches, especially where flowering weeds are plentiful, throughout the British Isles; so far, however, it has not been recorded from the Hebrides, Orkneys, or Shetlands.
The Scarce Burnished Brass (Plusia chryson).
The more or less square golden (sometimes green-tinged) patch on the velvety purplish brown fore wings, distinguish this species (Plate 24, Fig. 1) from any other British Plusia.
The caterpillar is green, with a darker line along the middle of the back, and a fine white line on each side of it; there is a dark green stripe low down along the sides, edged below with white, and oblique white lines run from it to the central line on rings 3-11. It feeds on hemp-agrimony (Eupatorium cannabinum), hibernates when small, and completes its growth in May or early June.
The moth is out in July and August, and is said to be occasionally seen, on sunny days, flying about, or resting on, the flowers of the hemp-agrimony and other plants. Night, however, is its more usual time of activity, and it may also be found at the blossoms of the larval food plant, and at those of honeysuckle, etc. ​
The species has been found, chiefly in the past in most of the southern counties of England from Kent (Deal district) to Cornwall, also in Gloucestershire, and in South Wales. Chippenham fen in Cambridgeshire is the most noted locality for it in the present day, and it has been found in Norfolk and Suffolk. There is even a record of a specimen having been beaten out of honeysuckle near Preston, Lancs., but this happened nearly forty years ago.
The range abroad extends to Amurland and Japan.
The Gold Spangle (Plusia bractea).
The purplish brown fore wings of this moth have a bright solid-looking golden mark on the upper edge of a velvety, deep brown patch. This metallic "spangle" varies a little in size and in shape, but not to any noteworthy extent (Plate 24, Fig. 2).
The caterpillar is bright green, dotted with white, above, and dull darker green below; there is a fine dark green line along the middle of the back, some indistinct and irregular white lines followed by a whitish stripe lower down, along the sides. It seems to feed upon a variety of low-growing plants, among which are groundsel, dandelion, white dead-nettle (Lamium album), and stinging nettle, also on honeysuckle, from August to May. In a state of nature, it hibernates when small, and becomes full grown in May or early June, but when reared from the egg it can be induced, by keeping it in a warm place, to continue feeding, grow up quickly, pupate, and assume the winged state in the late autumn. Under such artificial conditions it is said to eat lettuce and plantain.
Normally, the moth is out in June and July, and has been met with in August. Like all members of this group it is partial to flowers, and has been frequently taken at those of the honeysuckle, although all sorts of blossoms, down to the lowly Viola cornuta, have attraction for it. ​
The species is more especially a denizen of Ireland and Scotland, but it occurs in most of the northern counties of England, and has been recorded from Worcestershire and Herefordshire; also from Carmarthenshire in South Wales.
Abroad, its range extends to Central Asia; and in Amurland and Japan it is represented by P. excelsa, Kretschmar.
The Gold Spot (Plusia festucæ).
In this species (Plate 24, Figs. 3 and 4) the fore wings are golden brown, clouded with purplish brown; sometimes the purplish brown is confined almost entirely to the broad area. Besides the large central metallic marks, there are more or less conspicuous patches of metallic colour at the base of the costa, on the middle of the inner margin, and towards the tips of the wings. Usually the central spots are clearly apart, but I have one example from Bishop Auckland, Durham, in which they are only separated one from the other by a slender brown line.
The caterpillar is green, with a white-edged dark-green line along the middle of the back, and some slender yellowish lines on each side of it; a whitish or yellow tinged stripe low down along the sides; head, tinged with brown.
It feeds on sedge, coarse grasses, bur-reed (Sparganium ramosum), and yellow-flag (Iris pseudacorus); also said by Collins to eat water plantain (Alisma plantago): April to June, and in some localities and seasons, again in July and August. The black chrysalis is enclosed in a rather long greyish cocoon, spun up on the undersides of the leaves of sedge or reed; usually placed towards the tip of the leaf, which droops over and so hides it.
The moth is out in June and July, and in some years there seems to be an emergence in August and September; this has been more particularly noted in Cheshire, where Arkle has had moths emerge in June, July, August, and September. A second flight has been noted in Ireland by Kane and others; and late examples have also been recorded from Scotland.
2 Pl. 26. :
| 1, 2. | Silver Y. | 3. | Ni Moth. |
| 4, 5. | Scarce Silver Y. | 6, 7. | Mother Shipton. |
8, 9. Burnet Companion. :
2 Pl. 27. :
| 1, 1a, 1b. | Golden Plusia: caterpillars and chrysalis. |
| 2. | Dark Spectacle: caterpillar. |
​ Although it has been recorded from some of the southern counties, it is most frequent in the eastern and northern parts of England, and in South Wales. Occurs throughout Scotland up to Moray; and in Ireland it is found in most localities, though not often common, except by the sea in Co. Kerry, and in Connamara, Co. Galway.
Abroad, it extends to East Siberia, Amurland, and Japan.
The Plain Golden Y (Plusia iota).
In typical specimens the metallic mark is V-shaped, with a dot below and a little to one side (Plate 24, Fig. 8). In ab. percontationis, Treit. (Fig. 7), these spots are united and form a Y-like mark. Sometimes the spot is absent and the V-mark much reduced, and more rarely the V also disappears (ab. inscripta, Esp.).
The larva is yellowish green, white dotted, with a white-edged darker line along the middle of the back; a band composed of whitish irregular lines runs along the sides, and a thin yellow line along the area of the spiracles. It hatches from the egg in the late summer, hibernates when quite small, and feeds up in the spring. The food plants comprise the dead nettles (Lamium), woundwort (Stachys), mint, stinging nettle, honeysuckle, hawthorn, etc. There is a record of sixteen larvæ which hibernated among dead leaves of Lamium album, resumed feeding on February 18, spun up April 23-25, and produced moths May 27-June 4. Usually the moth is on the wing in June and July.
The species seems to be pretty widely distributed throughout the British Isles to the Orkneys; it was not known to occur in the Hebrides until 1901, when McArthur obtained it in the Isle of Lewis. ​
The Beautiful Golden Y (Plusia pulchrina).
This species (Plate 24, Figs. 5 and 6) so closely resembles the last that it has been considered a variety thereof; there is no question, however, that it is quite distinct. The fore wings in both species are somewhat similar in general tints, but the following points of difference distinguish pulchrina—the darker colour is less evenly displayed, and gives the wings a more mottled or marbled appearance; the cross lines, especially those on the basal area, are almost invariably golden edged; the second cross line is more acutely bent inwards above the inner margin, the reniform has a more or less complete golden outline, and it is placed in a dark cloud; the golden V-mark and dot below are generally thicker. As a rule, the fringes of all the wings are more distinctly chequered, but this feature cannot be relied on alone in separating one species from the other. In ab. percontatrix, Aurivillius (= juncta, Tutt), the golden V and dot are united and so form a Y-mark (Fig. 5).
The caterpillar is green with a broad central white stripe and several finer white lines along the back; a yellowish-tinted white stripe low down along the sides; head shining, marked with black on each side of the mouth. This caterpillar has the bristles rather more in evidence than they are in the larva of P. iota. It feeds on various low-growing plants, such as the dead nettles, groundsel, etc., also on honeysuckle and bilberry.
The moth occurs in June and July, and is found more or less frequently all over the British Isles to Orkney, but in England is more plentiful from the Midlands northwards than in the southern counties.
The range abroad extends to Amurland.
The Ni Moth (Plusia ni).
The present species (Plate 26, Fig. 3) bears a strong resemblance to a small pale specimen of P. gamma; but, as ​ will be noted, the silvery central Y-mark is differently formed. Here it is made up of a curve somewhat like the letter U, and an oval or round spot, the latter very close to and sometimes, as in the example figured, united with the former.
The caterpillar, which feeds on cabbage and other Cruciferæ, also on lettuce, tomato, etc., is green, inclining to yellowish green and dotted with white; three white lines along the back, and a white stripe along the sides. It is said to be more slender in form than the caterpillar of P. gamma. (Plate 28, Fig. 1.)
The earliest British specimen was taken at flowers of red valerian in a garden at Exeter, August, 1868. The next year a specimen occurred, also in a garden, at Penzance. Then followed captures in Dorset, one 1885, and one (Isle of Portland) 1888. Two caterpillars were found in the Isle of Portland in 1894, and these produced moths in September of that year. At least eight moths were secured at Penzance in 1894, and specimens were subsequently reared from caterpillars found on cabbages in the gardens around Lynwood. In May, 1896, one example of the moth was taken by Mr. Percy Richards at Norbiton, Surrey. The last recorded capture appears to be that by Mr. Finzi of a female specimen at Tenby, South Wales, on June 9, 1906. She deposited a few eggs in the collecting-box, and the caterpillars that hatched from them were reared on broccoli and lettuce, and produced moths, July 24-30.
Plusia ni ranges through south-east and southern Europe, to Asia Minor, North Africa, and the Canaries. In the Isle of Capri it is said to be almost as common as P. gamma. Brassicæ, Riley (1870), is a well-known Plusia in America, where it is classed among noxious insects. It is somewhat larger and browner in colour than European ni, but in every other respect it seems to agree so exactly that it can hardly be considered specifically distinct. ​
The Silver Y (Plusia gamma).
This species, represented by portraits of two specimens on Plate 26, Figs. 1 and 2, varies somewhat in the ground colour of the fore wings, which ranges from a whitish grey through various tints of grey and brown to velvety black. The melanic form last referred to is very rare, but I caught one example of it at Eastbourne in the late summer of 1888, and I saw, but did not secure, another near Esher in the autumn of 1906; one taken at Dartmoor in September, 1894, is in Mr. F. J. Hanbury's collection.
Occasionally a purplish red tinge, often present below the silvery Y, spreads over a larger area of the fore wings. The Y-mark is well defined as a rule, but now and then specimens are found in which only the tail of the Y is distinct.
The caterpillar varies in general colour from pale green to a dark olive green approaching black. In the white dotted paler green forms there are several transverse whitish lines, some of them wavy, between the yellowish spiracular line and the dark green line along the middle of the back; head, marked with black on each cheek. It will eat almost every kind of low-growing vegetation, either wild or cultivated, and in some years may be found throughout the summer. Small larvæ were recorded as seen at the end of October, 1901. The blackish chrysalis is enclosed in a whitish cocoon, often placed under leaves of thistle, burdock, etc.
The moth is seen in the spring and early summer (most probably immigrants), and again in the autumn, when it is generally more abundant.
This well-known migrating species has been observed in greater or lesser numbers over the whole of the British Isles. Its distribution abroad embraces the Palæarctic Region, North Africa, and North America. ​
The Scarce Silver Y (Plusia interrogationis).
Portraits of two examples of this species will be found on Plate 26, Figs. 4 and 5. The metallic central marks on the fore wings vary a good deal in size and in form, and are sometimes almost absent; these wings have the general greyish colour more clouded or suffused with blackish in some specimens than in others. Kane states that Irish specimens, when freshly emerged, have a tinge of violet purple, and Tutt notes some British specimens as beautifully tinted with rose colour (ab. rosea).
The caterpillar, which feeds on heather (Calluna) and bilberry (Vaccinium), is green inclining to blackish on the sides and underparts, with six white lines along the back; two of which are irregular; the raised dots are white and the bristles therefrom dark; head, green dashed with purple, shining. (Fenn.) After hibernation it may be found without much difficulty in May and June on its food plants, either in the daytime, or by the aid of a lamp at night. Large numbers fall victims to parasitical flies. (Plate 28, Fig. 2.) The white cocoons enclosing the black chrysalids are spun up on or under the twigs of bilberry and heather. The moth is out in July and August, and may be found on moorlands, in the north of England from Shropshire (with Radnor) and Staffordshire on the west, and Lincolnshire on the east, through Scotland to Sutherland, and in all suitable localities in Ireland.
The Dark Spectacle (Abrostola triplasia).
The fore wings of this moth are blackish grey inclining to purplish and rather shining; the basal area is pale reddish brown, edged by a curved dark chocolate brown cross line; a reddish grey band on the outer area clouded with ground colour ​ and edged above the inner margin by a dark chocolate brown curved line; raised scales on the central area and on the cross lines. Two oval reddish brown marks on the front of the collar have some resemblance to a pair of spectacles, hence the English name. (Plate 22, Fig. 2.)
The caterpillar is green, sprinkled with white dots; on rings 4, 5, and 11 are whitish-edged darker marks, and there is a dark line, also whitish-edged, along the middle of the back between rings 5 and 11; a white line on the back from ring 4 to the brownish head, and white-edged dark oblique lines on the sides of rings 6 to 11; the line low down along the sides is whitish with an ochreous tinge. A purplish brown form also occurs (Plate 27, Fig. 2), in which the pale markings are ochreous tinged. It is found from July to September on nettle and hops, the latter more especially. The earlier caterpillars, in some years, attain the moth state in August or early September, but the bulk of them remain in the chrysalis state during the winter, the moth emerging in June or July of the following year.
The species is not uncommon in most southern English counties, but becomes less frequent or more local northwards from the Midlands to Cumberland, Northumberland, and South Scotland. It occurs in Wales, and is widely spread in Ireland.
The range abroad extends to Amurland.
The Spectacle (Abrostola tripartita).
This species, known also as urticæ, Hübner, has the basal and outer marginal areas of the fore wings whitish grey, finely mottled with darker grey; the central area is greyish brown, mottled with darker brown. The spectacle mark in front of the thorax is whitish grey, ringed with black, and the raised scales on the cross lines and central area of the fore wings are more distinct in this species (Plate 22, Fig. 3). The ​ caterpillar is pale green, with white-edged dark-green -shaped marks along the back, most in evidence on rings 4-11; two slender whitish lines on each side, only distinct on rings 1-4; a white stripe low down along the sides, edged above with dark green and with whitish streaks from it to the white edging of the marks on the back. Head, green, rather shining, with dusky marks on each cheek (adapted from Fenn). It feeds in July, at night, on the common stinging nettle, from the foliage of which it may be beaten out, or, by searching, found on the undersides of the leaves. In some years there is a second brood in September.
The moth is out in June, sometimes late May, and, when there is a second emergence, in August. Occasionally it is seen on fences, etc., but at night it visits the blossoms of various plants, both wild and cultivated; the flowers of spur-valerian (Centranthus ruber), honeysuckle, and woundwort (Stachys) being especially attractive, as also they are to the Dark Spectacle, and most of the species of Plusia.
Although apparently commoner in some counties than in others, this species ranges over the British Isles to the Orkneys.
The distribution abroad extends to Amurland.
The Mother Shipton (Euclidia mi).
The ancient fathers of British Entomology were sometimes happy in their selection of names in the vernacular for those of our moths that were known to them at the time, and the present species is a fair example of this. Moses Harris first dubbed it the Shipton Moth, but afterwards changed the name to the "Mask Moth." Both names refer to the peculiar shape of the markings which adorn the fore wings and bear a more or less fanciful resemblance to a grotesque mask, and even more closely to the profile of an historical dame yclept ​ Shipton. This character, also supposed to be like the letter M, hence the specific name mi, stands out very distinctly in the paler specimens, but in some of the darker individuals it is somewhat obscured. On the hind wings the spots are whitish or yellowish, and those composing the central series are sometimes united, and form a band. (Plate 26, Figs. 6 ♂, 7 ♀.)
The egg is greenish, and the caterpillar is pale ochreous-brown, with darker brown lines along the back and sides: head, ochreous, with brown lines. It feeds on clover and grasses, in July, August, and September, and the chrysalis, which is covered with a whitish powder, is enclosed in a brownish cocoon spun up in a blade of grass. All the early stages are figured on Plate 30. The enlarged chrysalis, Fig. 1, is from a photo by Mr. H. Main. The moth flies in May and June, and is often common in meadows, on railway banks, and other sloping banks and such-like places where wild flowers abound. The species is widely distributed over England, Wales, and South Scotland; also Ireland.
The range abroad extends to Amurland.
The Burnet Companion (Euclidia glyphica).
The ground colour of the fore wings is purplish brown, sometimes becoming greyish on the outer area; the space between the dark brown or blackish cross bands is sometimes filled up with the darker colour. Some specimens are much greyer than others, and all the examples in a series from the Lake district that I have seen were distinctly grey, with very dark bands. The yellow on the hind wings sometimes inclines to orange, and sometimes it is so pale as to be almost whitish; there is also variation in the amount of black marking and shading on these wings. (Plate 26, Figs. 8 ♂, 9 ♀.)
The caterpillar is somewhat similar to that of the last species; it feeds on clovers and trefoils in July and August, but so far does not seem to have been noted to eat grasses.
2 Pl. 28. :
| 1. | The Ni Moth: caterpillar. | 2. | Scarce Silver Y: caterpillar. |
2 Pl. 29. :
| 1. | Lunar Double Stripe. | 2. | The Alchymist. | 3. | Clifden Nonpareil. |
​ The moth is on the wing at the end of May and in June, and inhabits similar kinds of places to those mentioned for the last species, often in company with it, and also with the Burnet moths. Widely distributed over the greater part of the British Isles; common in some southern localities. Its distribution abroad extends to Amurland, and in Japan it is represented by the larger and paler form consors, Butler.
Leucanitis (Ophiusa) stolida, Fab.—An example of this species, which is a native of Africa and South Europe, was captured by Mr. J. Jäger in the neighbourhood of Dartmouth, S. Devon. It was in fine condition, and came to sugar on September 23, 1903.
The Lunar Double Stripe (Pseudophia lunaris).
The portrait of this species on Plate 29, Fig. 1, is taken from a Spanish example. Exceedingly few British specimens have been recorded. The earliest seems to be the following: "Among my cabinet specimens there is one example of Ophiodes lunaris, captured at the Lowestoft Light in 1832. I conclude this is a great rarity, having seen many cabinets without it.—E. Chawner." Entom. vi. p. 147 (1872-73). Presumably this is the same specimen as that mentioned by Stainton (1857), Newman (1869), and later authors, as taken in Hants by Captain Chawner. In 1860 one example was obtained at sugar at West Wickham; and in 1864 Bouchard caught two specimens at Killarney. On June 17, 1873, one came to sugar in Abbots Wood, Sussex; one at Brighton in June, 1874, and another in Sussex, May, 1875. One specimen came to light in Norfolk, May, 1878; and one to sugar at Folkestone, May, 1892. In June, 1901, a specimen was secured in Delamere Forest, Cheshire, also at sugar. Dr. B. White's record of a capture at Perth makes a total of eleven specimens. ​
The caterpillar is ochreous brown, sprinkled and lined with reddish brown; a stripe low down along the sides is reddish orange. It feeds, in July and August, on the leaves of oak and poplar, but it has not been found in our Isles.
The Alchymist (Catephia alchymista).
This moth seems to have been known as a British species to Haworth, but he, and subsequently Stephens (1830), referred it to Noctua leucomelas, Linn. At all events, Stephen's description of the specimen in Haworth's cabinet bearing this name applies exactly to C. alchymista. In the Ent. Ann. for 1860 there is a figure of a specimen that was taken at sugar in the Isle of Wight, September, 1868. Seven years later, one was captured in an oak wood near Horsham, Sussex (June 4), and another found on the trunk of an oak tree near Colchester (June 9). In 1882, a specimen was taken at sugar in a wood near Dover (June), and on June 24, 1888, one came to sugar at St. Leonards, Sussex. In the last-named year, two other specimens, said to have been taken in the Isle of Wight, July, 1867, were recorded.
Fig. 2, Plate 29, represents a specimen from Dalmatia.
The Clifden Nonpareil (Catocala fraxini).
This handsome species (Plate 29, Fig. 3) seems to have been known to quite the earliest writers on, and delineators of, British moths, and a specimen in the Dale collection, now in the Hope Museum, Oxford, was obtained in Dorset in 1740. Stephens (1830) mentions captures in the years 1821, 1827, and 1828. Since that time the occurrence of the species in the British Isles, chiefly in single specimens, may be tabulated as follows: England—London, 1842, 1870, 1872. Kent, 1889, ​ 1893, 1895, 1900. Sussex, 1838, 1869, 1889, 1895. Isle of Wight, 1866, 1900. North Devon, 1895. Somerset, 1850. Shropshire, 1872. Suffolk, 1868, 1872, 1901, 1905. Norfolk, 1846, 1872, 1894, 1900. Lincoln, 1872. Yorkshire, five specimens in all, the most recent in 1896. Lancashire, six specimens, latest 1868. Cheshire, four specimens, latest 1868. Scotland—1876 (Berwick); 1896 (Aberdeen and Orkney); 1898 (Roxburghshire). Ireland—1845, 1896.
It may be noted that during a period of seven years—1866 to 1872 inclusive—1867 and 1871 were the only years in which a specimen was not recorded from some part of England.
The caterpillar is pale ochreous, tinged with greenish and freckled with brown; head, pinkish, inclining to purplish above. It feeds on poplar in May, June, and July. From eggs (obtained from abroad) the caterpillars hatched April 27 till May 9, pupated between June 17 and 27, and the moths emerged July 20 to August 4.
The range abroad extends through Central Europe to Scandinavia, and eastward to Amurland.
Catocala electa.
Only two specimens of this moth are known to have occurred in Britain. One of these was taken at Shoreham, near Brighton, Sussex, September 24, 1875, and the other at Corfe Castle, Dorsetshire, September 12, 1892. The specimen shown on Plate 31, Fig. 1, is from Saxony.
In a general way this species is not unlike (C. nupta), but the fore wings are smoother looking, of a softer grey coloration, and the black cross lines are more irregular; the black markings on the crimson hind wings are similar, but the inner edge of the marginal border is more even.
This Central European species ranges to Amurland and Corea, and is represented in Japan by a larger form, zalmunna, Butler. ​
The Red Underwing (Catocala nupta).
Fig. 3. Red Underwing at rest. Photo by H. Main.
Both sexes of this species are shown on Plate 31, Figs. 2 and 3. The fore wings are darker in some specimens than in others, and very rarely, in connection with a change in the hind wings from red to brownish, there has been a purplish tinge over all the wings. Specimens with the hind wings of a brown tint have only so far been noted in the environs of London. In 1892 one was taken at Mitcham (warm brown), another at Wandsworth, 1895, a third at Chingford, 1896 (dusky black-brown), and a fourth at Brondesbury in 1897. At a meeting of the South London Entomological and Natural History Society, held on January 10, 1889, a coloured sketch of a specimen with blue hind wings, taken at Colchester, was exhibited (ab. cærulescens, Cockerell). Sometimes the hind wings are a dingy red, or they may incline to an orange tint; the central black band usually terminates just beyond the middle, but there is often a detached blackish cloud on the inner margin; and I have two specimens in which the band unites with this cloud.
* 2 Pl. 30.
* Mother Shipton: eggs, natural size and enlarged, caterpillar, and chrysalis, natural size and enlarged.
2 Pl. 31. :
| 1. | Catocala electa. | 2, 3. | Red Underwing. |
​ The eggs which are deposited on bark of poplar trees, as Fig. 2a on Plate 33, are deep purplish with a whitish bloom, and inclining to yellowish on the top. The caterpillar (Plate 33, Fig. 2) is whitish-grey clouded and mottled with darker brown; the head is rather paler grey, marked with black. It feeds at night on willow and poplar, and, although rather difficult to detect, may be found in the chinks of the bark from April to July. The pupa is brownish, thickly powdered with bluish-white, and is enclosed in a strong, coarse, cocoon, spun up between leaves.
The moth is out in August and September, sometimes later, and in confinement has emerged in July. It is more abundant in some years than in others, and is fond of sitting on walls, pales, etc.; occasionally quite large numbers have been observed at rest on telegraph poles by the roadside, only one on a pole, as a rule, but sometimes in twos and threes. Mr. W. J. Lucas, when at Oxford in August, 1900, counted six on one post, and five on each of two other posts.
The species is found in suitable localities, that is, where poplars and willows grow, throughout the south and east of England. The only clear record from Ireland is that of a worn specimen at sugar, September 16, 1906, at Passage West, co. Cork; but Kane mentions two others.
Represented in North India by var. unicuba, Walker, and in Amurland by var. obscurata, Oberthür. ​
The Dark Crimson Underwing (Catocala sponsa).
The fore wings of this species vary in general colour from ashy grey to an almost olive brown; the dark clouding is much in evidence in some specimens, but absent in others; the white or yellow marks in the vicinity of the white outlined reniform are noticeable features. Hind wings, crimson, more or less tinged with purple; the upper half of the central black band is acutely angled on its outer edge, and bluntly so on its inner edge, thence curved to the inner margin. (Plate 32, Fig. 1.)
The caterpillar is greyish-brown with a greenish tinge, and dusted with black; paler on the fourth ring and between rings 7 and 8, and 10 and 11; the hump on ring 8 has an ochreous tip; raised spots, red, bearing black bristles; head, pale brown, (Fenn.) It feeds on oak in May and June.
The chrysalis is reddish, dusted with purplish grey, enclosed in a rather open silken cocoon between leaves. (Plate 33, Fig. 1 larva, 1a pupa.) The moth is out in July and August. Its chief home is the New Forest, Hants, where it abounds, in some years, and in others is so scarce that few specimens can be found. It has been taken occasionally in one or other of the southern English counties adjoining Hants, and has been noted in Oxfordshire and Suffolk; but such occurrences seem to be exceptional.
The Light Crimson Underwing (Catocala promissa).
Generally smaller, and the fore wings are usually greyer, than the last species; the first black cross line is inwardly shaded with blackish; on the hind wings the central black band is straighter, and the upper half, although sometimes slightly expanded, is not angled; in some examples the band does not quite reach the inner margin, and such specimens have been referred to ab. mneste, Hübner. (Plate 32, Fig. 2.) ​
The caterpillar is of a greenish-tinged greyish coloration, freckled with darker grey, and with yellowish brown patches on rings 4, 8, and 9. It feeds, at night, on oak, boring into the buds at first, but afterwards attacking the foliage: May and June. The moth occurs in oak woods in July and August, but it does not seem to be met with anywhere in England so frequently as in the New Forest, Hampshire. Even in that favourite locality it is seen but rarely in some seasons. It is, or has been, found in several other southern and eastern counties, but, as a rule, only in a casual way.
The Blackneck (Toxocampa pastinum).
In some examples of this species (Plate 32, Fig. 3) the ground colour of the fore wings, usually pale grey sprinkled with brown, is inclined to whitish, and but little powdered with brown, except the outer fourth, upon which there is generally some brown shading. The reniform stigma varies in shape; in some specimens it is lunular, and in others triangular, with the apex directed inwards; the orbicular, represented by a black dot, is occasionally absent; the cross lines are usually traceable, but the central shade is not often distinct.
The caterpillar is rather long, and tapers slightly from the middle towards each end. In colour it is greyish, inclining to ochreous on the back, and dusted with black; there are three reddish lines along the back, the outer ones edged below with white; the spiracles are black, and the line along their area is white. It feeds at night on the tufted vetch (Vicia cracca), and after hibernation attains full growth about May, when it pupates in a cocoon among leaves on the plant, or on the ground. The moth comes out in June and July, and in its haunts, which are the borders of woods or the clearings therein, it flutters about at early dusk, when it can be easily netted. Unlike the species next referred to, it does not seem to have any great partiality ​ for flowers, but it has been taken at sugar, and the females are found at night upon the food plant. It is known to occur in Berkshire and most of the southern counties from Kent to Devon, and eastward from Essex to Norfolk, Cambs., and Hunts.; has also been recorded from Yorks., Hereford, and South Wales.
The range abroad extends to Amurland.
The Scarce Blackneck (Toxocampa craccæ).
This species (Plate 32, Fig. 4) is similar to the last, but the wings are rather less ample, the tint is slightly more brownish, and the veins are paler, especially on the outer area. Distinguishing features are the heavier and deeper black collar, and four blackish dots on the front edge of the fore wings. Var. plumbea, Bankes, the usual form in Cornwall, is darker than the type, having the fore wings bluish-grey mixed with chocolate, instead of pale ash-grey mixed with light walnut brown; hind wings brownish grey, instead of pale greyish brown. The caterpillar, which in shape is similar to that of the last species, is ochreous brown, with darker brown lines along the back and sides. It feeds at night on the wood vetch (Vicia sylvatica), but is said to eat other kinds of vetch in confinement. It may be found resting on stems of the food plant by day, or, when feeding at night, by the aid of a lantern, but it quickly falls off when disturbed. The moth flies at dusk in July and August, and has a strong liking for the flowers of the wood-sage, but visits golden-red and other flowers also, and will sometimes turn up at the sugar patch. It is not uncommon in some parts of the rocky coast of North Devon, as near Lynmouth, where it was first met with by the late Rev. E. Horton in 1861. It has since been found commonly on the Cornish coast. From what I know of its habits, I should say that the species would be found all along the North Devon and Cornish coasts, wherever the food plant occurs; but it does not seem to inhabit in any other part of Britain. Abroad, its range extends to East Siberia and Amurland.
2 Pl. 32. :
| 1. | Dark Crimson Underwing. | 2. | Light Crimson Underwing. |
| 3. | The Black Neck. | 4. | Scarce Black Neck. |
2 Pl. 33. :
| 1, 1a. | Dark Crimson Underwing: caterpillar and chrysalis. |
| 2, 2a. | Red Underwing: eggs, natural size and enlarged, and caterpillar. |