THE SMALL FAN-FOOT (_Zanclognatha grisealis_).
This species (Plate 35, Fig. 3) is somewhat similar to the last in colour,
but it is smaller, and the submarginal line is rather curved, and runs to
the tip of the fore wing. The caterpillar is obscurely greyish, with a
pinkish tinge; three darker lines along the back, the central one broadest,
but not distinct on the first three rings; head, brown, freckled with
darker brown, plate of first ring of the body, blackish brown. It feeds on
oak, and may be beaten from the foliage in August and September. Buckler
states that this species passes the winter in the chrysalis state, and this
has been confirmed by Plum. (Plate 34, Fig. 1; after Hofmann.)
The moths emerge in June and July, and may frequently be dislodged from
trees, hedges, and undergrowth in the daytime. Pretty generally distributed
over the southern half of England, plentiful in many parts, and widely
spread over the northern half of the country. It is not scarce in some
parts of Wales, but seems to be uncommon in Scotland, and has been recorded
from the south only. In Ireland it has a wide range, but does not appear to
be noted as common in any locality.
THE OLIVE CRESCENT (_Zanclognatha_ (_Sophronia_) _emortualis_).
The species depicted on Plate 36, Fig. 8, from a continental specimen, is
exceedingly rare in England, in fact, apart from the specimens mentioned by
early authors, only three authentic British examples appear to be known.
These are--one captured at Brighton, Sussex, in June, 1858; one in June,
1859, in Epping Forest, Essex; and one taken at sugar by the Rev. B. H.
Binks, of Stonor, Henley-on-Thames, in July of the year last mentioned.
Stephens (1834), who gives a very unsatisfactory description {89} of the
species, refers to two specimens, of which one was in his collection, from
Devonshire. Wood's figure (768) of _emortualis_, in the Westwood edition of
the _Index Entomologicus_, does not represent this species, but is far more
like _Herminia derivalis_, Hubner.
Abroad, the range extends to Amurland.
THE LESSER BELLE (_Madopa salicalis_).
A portrait of this uncommon British moth will be found on Plate 35, Fig. 4.
The greyish fore wings are crossed by three paler edged reddish-brown
lines, the outer one running to the tip of the wing, and the inner one is
sometimes faint or absent.
The caterpillar is said to feed in July and August on sallow and aspen, and
is described by Hofmann as having only fourteen feet; green, inclining to
greyish, in colour, with black spiracles, and the ring divisions yellowish.
(Plate 39, Fig. 3; after Hofmann.)
The moth is out in May and June, and in its few known localities in England
it is found in moist woods, hiding among grass and varied undergrowth.
Stephens (1834) wrote, "A very rare and local insect: I have specimens
taken many years since in the neighbourhood of Bexley, in which vicinity I
believe my friend Mr. Newman has captured it within these few years; it has
also been found at Charlton." Since that time other localities in Kent have
been mentioned, among which were Darenth Wood and West Wickham; the species
was also noted from Birch wood, Surrey. A specimen was found in a gas lamp
at Dulwich in 1858 by the late Mr. C. G. Barrett, and one was taken in
Shooter's Hill wood, Kent, in June, 1859.
Between 1862 and 1868 specimens were obtained at Haslemere, Surrey, and
near Sevenoaks, Kent. According to Barrett {90} it occurred at Petersfield,
on the borders of Sussex and Hampshire, in 1877.
It has also been recorded from Dunham, Cheshire.
Abroad, its distribution extends to Amurland, Corea, and Japan.
THE DOTTED FAN-FOOT (_Herminia cribrumalis_ (_cribralis_)).
The fore wings of this species (Plate 35, Fig. 5) are whitish tinged with
brown, inclining to purplish on the outer margins; beyond the blackish
central dot there are two series of blackish dots crossing the wings, but
these are not always distinct.
The caterpillar, which feeds on various marsh grasses, _Carex_, _Luzula_,
etc., hatches from the egg in late summer, hibernates when about
half-grown, and feeds up in the spring. It is pale greyish brown with fine
yellowish freckles; there are three lines along the back; the central one
dark, finely edged on each side with pale greyish, the outer ones pale; the
usual dots are dusky and the spiracles are black.
The moth may be found in June and July in fens and marshes, where it hides
among the herbage in the daytime, but is easily seen and netted when it
takes wing at dusk, or sits on the sedges, etc., before or after flight.
It is most frequent in the fens of Cambridge and Norfolk, (Stalham), but
occurs also in Suffolk; Essex (Shoeburyness); Kent (Deal); Surrey (recorded
from marshes near Redhill, Dorking and Guildford); Sussex; Hants (bogs near
Lyndhurst), and, according to Barrett, Somerset.
THE CLAY FAN-FOOT (_Herminia derivalis_).
This local species has the wings pretty much of the same shape as those of
_S. emortualis_, and has been mistaken for that species; but the colour is
ochreous-brown, and the cross lines {91} are dark brown. Its favourite
haunts appear to be woods in Kent and Sussex, and in the last-named county
it is perhaps most frequently met with in Abbots wood, Guestling, and
Lewes. It has also been recorded from Essex (Colchester). (Plate 35, Fig.
6.)
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.
The caterpillar is green, with darker green lines, one along the middle of
the back, and two along each side; the usual raised dots are green or
brownish, and each emits a fine hair; the head is green and rather glossy.
It feeds on bilberry (_Vaccinium myrtillus_) in August and September.
(Plate 37, Fig. 1; after Hofmann.) The moth, which is out in June and July,
hides by day among heather, bilberry, etc., especially where these plants
overhang the edges of banks or trenches. It may be found locally in most of
the southern counties of England from Kent to Cornwall; also in Berks,
Stafford, and Leicester. It has been recorded from Suffolk, Worcester,
Cheshire (one at electric light, Chester, July, 1900), and North Wales. In
Ireland it is widely distributed, and is not uncommon in Co. Kerry.
[Illustration]
2 Pl. 34.
1. SMALL FANFOOT: _caterpillar_.
2. FANFOOT: _caterpillar_.
3. CLAY FAN-FOOT: _caterpillar_.
[Illustration]
2 Pl. 35.
1, 2. FAN-FOOT.
3. SMALL FAN-FOOT.
4. LESSER BELLE.
5. DOTTED FAN-FOOT.
6. CLAY FAN-FOOT.
7. COMMON FAN-FOOT.
8, 9. BEAUTIFUL SNOUT.
10. THE SNOUT.
11, 12. BUTTONED SNOUT.
{93}
THE SNOUT (_Hypena proboscidalis_).
This species (Plate 35, Fig. 10) is more generally distributed and common
than any other of the group. Wherever nettles grow in quantity there we may
expect to find this moth in its season, that is, in June and July. In
favourable years there is sometimes a second flight, on a small scale, in
the autumn; this was the case in 1905.
The caterpillar is green, with raised dots, from each of which a brownish
hair arises; the line along the middle of the back is dark, and those along
the sides are yellowish; the head is ochreous brown. It feeds on nettles in
May and June. (Plate 37, Fig. 3; after Hofmann.)
In Amurland, and some other parts of eastern Asia, the species is
represented by the brown-sprinkled yellowish form, var. _deleta_,
Staudinger.
THE BLOXWORTH SNOUT (_Hypena obsitalis_).
The fore wings of this species are brown, crossed by a number of darker
lines and a thicker angulated line beyond the middle; the latter is
outwardly edged with pale brown, chiefly towards the costa; some white dots
on the veins represent the submarginal line, and below the tips of the
wings there are some black streaks.
One example of this form of the species, which is a variable one, was taken
by the Rev. O. Pickard, Cambridge, in {94} September, 1884. He found it
sitting on a door-jamb in his garden at Bloxworth, Dorset.
The specimen shown on Plate 36, Fig. 9, hails from Mogador.
Abroad, the range of the species includes southern Europe, Asia Minor,
Egypt, North-West Africa, Madeira, and the Canaries.
THE BUTTONED SNOUT (_Hypena rostralis_).
Two forms of this species are shown on Plate 35. The typical one is
represented by Fig. 12, and Fig. 11 shows ab. _palpalis_, Tutt (?), Fabr.
and Stephens. The front margin of the fore wings is often streaked with a
pale colour, and in ab. _radiatalis_, Hubner (134), which is otherwise
similar to the last-named form, this is pale or ochreous brown. A uniform
pale greyish form has been named ab. _unicolor_, Tutt, and one almost
entirely ochreous or greyish-ochreous, ab. _ochrea_, Tutt.
The caterpillar is green, with blackish dots; a darker line along the
middle of the back, and white lines along the sides; head, yellowish green
dotted with black. It feeds on hop (_Humulus lupulus_) in June and early
July, and in the daytime may be found on the undersides of the leaves.
(Plate 37, Fig. 2; after Hofmann.) The moth is out in August and September,
and after hibernation reappears in the spring, and may be met with until
June. It may be obtained at sugar, or at ivy bloom. Given the food plant,
the species will probably be found in most of the counties of England from
Worcester southwards, but its occurrence northwards appears to have been
very rarely noted.
The range abroad extends to East Siberia.
THE WHITE-LINE SNOUT (_Hypenodes taenialis_ (_albistrigalis_)).
This species, and also the two immediately following, are so small in size,
and so obscure in appearance, that they are {95} probably more often
neglected than secured when met with. The moth under consideration, and of
which the sexes are figured on Plate 36 (Figs. 3 [male] and 4 [female]) has
brownish fore wings which are crossed by two rather irregular blackish
lines, sometimes hardly traceable on the front margin; the outer line is
edged externally with whitish, and the space between the lines is often
somewhat darker; the black central mark is more or less X-shaped.
The caterpillar does not seem to have been noted in this country, and it is
not well known on the continent. It is said to feed on the flowers, chiefly
the withering ones, of heather and thyme, in August and September.
The moth is out in July and early August, sometimes in September. Its
haunts are the edges of woods, hillsides, and sloping banks, where there is
plenty of bushes and herbage to hide in. From such retreats it may be
disturbed, but is more easily obtained at sugar, or honey dew, and
sometimes at ivy bloom. It is widely distributed over the southern half of
England; occurs in South Wales, and has been recorded from Cheshire and
Yorks.
Abroad, the species is found in Holland, Belgium, Germany, Austria,
Armenia, and the Canaries; also recorded from south Sweden and Corea.
THE PINION-STREAKED SNOUT (_Hypenodes costaestrigalis_).
Although somewhat similar in the general colour of the forewings, this
species (Plate 36) may be distinguished from the preceding by the whitish
dash from the tips of the wings and the black streak running inwards from
it; this black streak is to be seen clearly in Fig. 6 [male], but owing to
the darker ground colour is less distinct in Fig. 7 [female].
The caterpillar is shining purplish-brown, inclining to yellowish-brown
below, with three pale brownish lines along {96} the back, the central one
rather broad, and that on each side is edged below with dusky. What the
food may be in a natural state has not been ascertained, but the
caterpillars have been reared from the egg on a diet of thyme flowers,
supplemented by the bodies of a few brothers or sisters. July and August.
The moth has been noted in June (end), July, August, September, and
October; but whether there are two generations or only one in the year is
not definitely known; the assumption is that there are two.
This species is partial to moist localities, and its favourite haunts are
fens, mosses, or marshy heaths, and the outskirts of damp woods. It ranges
over the greater part of England, and is found in Wales (Pembrokeshire). In
Scotland it has been noted from Roxburghshire, and is locally common in
Clydesdale. It is known to occur in Cork, Kerry, and Sligo, and probably is
to be found in other parts of Ireland.
THE MARSH OBLIQUE-BARRED (_Tholomiges turfosalis_).
The species shown on Plate 36, Fig. 5, is much smaller than either of the
last two. The narrow fore wings are whitish-ochreous, more or less thickly
sprinkled with brown; the first of the three dark cross lines is often
indistinct, the second is bent under the black central dot, and the third
runs obliquely to the tip of the wing; the last two are each outwardly
edged with whitish.
Nothing seems to be known of the early stages.
[Illustration]
2 Pl. 36.
1. BEAUTIFUL HOOK-TIP.
2. WAVED BLACK.
3, 4. WHITE-LINE SNOUT.
5. MARSH OBLIQUE BARRED.
6, 7. PINION-STREAKED SNOUT.
8. OLIVE CRESCENT.
9. BLOXWORTH SNOUT.
[Illustration]
2 Pl. 37.
1. BEAUTIFUL SNOUT: _caterpillar_.
2. BUTTONED SNOUT: _caterpillar_.
3. THE SNOUT: _caterpillar_.
{97} This species was first made known as an inhabitant of the British
Isles by Doubleday, who described it as _Hypenodes humidalis_, in 1850,
from specimens taken in Ireland by Weaver in 1848. In 1850 it was found
plentifully on one of the Cheshire moors; and Harrison, in _The Zoologist_
for 1851, writes: "From the middle of July up to the 8th of August, it
might be seen any fine evening, between the hours of six and eight, flying
on most of our swamps [Keswick] in plenty." He goes on to state that the
moths were so common that he boxed forty in less than an hour, and could
have secured as many dozens. At the present day the species is to be found
on boggy heaths and moors in Surrey, Hampshire, Dorset, and from Somerset
through Gloucestershire into Berkshire, and thence northwards through
Warwick and Staffordshire to Cheshire, Lancashire, and Cumberland. Barrett
mentions Perthshire as a Scottish locality, and Kane states that it is
common at Killarney in Ireland. When this species and its allies receive
more of the collector's attention they may probably be found in many
localities from which there are no records at present.
The range abroad extends to Amurland.