Magpie Moth. (Nyctmera annulata.)

This familiar moth occurs plentifully during the summer months in all parts of the colony. It often rises to a great height in the air, although its general fight is weak and feeble. The house-sparrow, strange to say, does not wage war against this moth or its caterpillar (probably from their having a bitter taste); so it appears to increase and multiply every year, while many of the other common moths are becoming extinct. Professor Hutton describes the larva and pupa of this moth in "Trans. N.Z. Inst.," Vol. IX., p. 335. There are I believe, two broods in the year, and the caterpillar feeds on groundsel, Irish ivy, and other particular plants. The moth appears in October and lasts till April.