Volume Ii Part 37 (1/2)
Widely distributed in England, Wales and Ireland.
The range abroad extends to north-east Siberia; and the species has been recorded from j.a.pan. {236}
TRIPLE-SPOTTED PUG (_Eupithecia trisignaria_).
The most noticeable markings on the rather s.h.i.+ny, pale-brown fore wings of this species (Plate 97, Fig. 13) are the black discal spot and two blackish clouds above it on the front margin.
The stoutish caterpillar is green, with three darker green lines along the back, and a wavy yellowish line low down along the sides; head, black. It feeds, in the autumn, on flowers and seeds of angelica and cow-parsnip, but the former is its chief food.
June and July are the months for the moth, but it is rarely met with in the open. The only English counties in which the species has been noted are Surrey, Suss.e.x, Dorset and Devon in the south; from Herefords.h.i.+re in the west its range extends through Worcester, Warwick, Leicester, and Derby to Lancas.h.i.+re and York. In Scotland, Renton records it as common at Hawick, in Roxburghs.h.i.+re; and it was recorded from Argylls.h.i.+re in 1902. Hardly known in Ireland.
LARCH PUG (_Eupithecia lariciata_).
This species (Plate 97, Fig. 3) is very like that next referred to, but the fore wings are rather longer, the ground colour is whiter, and the dark-grey or blackish cross lines are rather more angled and slanting; the hind wings are paler, and especially so on the front margins.
The long caterpillar is bright green, with a darker green line along the back, merging into reddish on the last ring; sometimes reddish ochreous with the line along the back brownish. It feeds, in June and July, on larch, and will also eat spruce.
The moth is out in May and early June, and may be jarred from larch trees, or sometimes be found at rest on their stems. {237}
As a British species, it was first met with in Surrey, in 1862, then it was noted in Suss.e.x, and shortly afterwards in Yorks.h.i.+re. At the present time, it will probably be found in any locality where larch is plentiful.
GREY PUG (_Eupithecia castigata_).
Although, as the English name suggests, this insect is greyish, there is always a tinge of ochreous in the composition of its general colour (Plate 97, Fig. 6). Not infrequently the ground colour is decidedly brownish in tint. The markings vary in clearness, but are most distinct in the paler forms. A blackish form occurs in the north of England, and in the Clydesdale district of Scotland, and was formerly known as the ”Paisley Pug.”
The longish caterpillar (Plate 92, Fig. 1) is pale or dusky olive, varying to reddish brown, with a series of darker marks on the back. It feeds, from August to October, on the foliage of almost any plant.
The moth is out in May and June, and occasionally a few specimens emerge in the autumn. Generally distributed over the British Isles, but apparently not noted in the Orkneys and Shetlands.
Abroad, the range extends to Amurland.
PLAIN PUG (_Eupithecia subnotata_).
The fore wings of this species are pale ochreous brown, inclining to pale reddish on the outer marginal area; the most distinct markings are a pale cross band beyond the black discal dot, and a pale winding submarginal line. The hind wings are smoky grey, with whitish wavy cross lines, the most distinct being the outer (Plate 97, Fig. 9). The stoutish and somewhat {238} stumpy caterpillar is green, or pale yellowish brown, with three darker lines and marks on the back; a yellowish line low down on the sides.
It feeds on flowers and seeds of orache (_Atriplex_), and goosefoot (_Chenopodium_): August and September. Figured on Plate 94, Figs. 1, 1a, from coloured drawings by Mr. A. Sich. In July, the moth may be disturbed from its food plant or adjacent herbage, or it may be seen resting on palings or fences. It flies at night, and will come to light.
Not uncommon in many places in the southern half of England, and found in the rest of the country, chiefly on the coast, to Hartlepool in Durham, also in Wales. Once recorded from south Scotland, and only noted from the coast near Dublin, in Ireland.
SCARCE PUG (_Eupithecia extensaria_).
The conspicuously marked insect represented on Plate 97, Fig. 12, is, so far, only known to occur, in Britain, on the coasts of Norfolk and Yorks.h.i.+re. It was first discovered in the latter county more than thirty years ago; about twelve years later it was found on the Norfolk coast, and caterpillars were also obtained from the sea wormwood (_Artemisia maritima_) in the autumn.
The long caterpillar, which feeds on the flowers and foliage of its food plant, is green, with three lines along the back, the central one dusky and the others whitish; a white stripe low down along the sides is edged below with rosy brown. It will thrive on the cultivated southernwood or ”lad's love” (_Artemisia abrotanum_).
The moth is out in June and July, and may be found in its haunts among the sea wormwood, not only on the coast of Norfolk, but quite possibly, here and there, in suitable places on the east coast from Ess.e.x to the Humber.
Caterpillars may be obtained in August and September. [Ill.u.s.tration]
2 Pl. 100.
1. V. PUG.
2-6. GREEN PUG, _and vars_.