132 PROCEEDINGS ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



NEW CENTRAL - AMERICAN MICROLEPIDOPTERA INTRO- 

 DUCED INTO THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. 



BY AUGUST BUSCK. 

 Family TORTRICID^. 



Crocidosema lantana, new species. 



Labial palpi dark fuscous, second joint long with well-developed brush, 

 terminal joint short, porr>cted. Antennas simple, rather thick, alike in 

 both sexes, dark fuscous above, yellowish on the underside, which has a 

 short, even ciliation.' Thorax dark fuscous. Forewings in the male 

 with a short but deep costal fold, reaching one-third of the wing-length, 

 and disclosing, when opened, a thick matting of short, yellow sense-hairs. 

 Ground-color of the wings whitish, strongly overlaid with dark fuscous 

 and brown, along the costa from near base to apex is a series of short, 

 indistinct, geminate, white dashes with blackish, even intervals. A velvety 

 white tornal spot contains a few single brown scales and is limited rather 

 sharply above by a brown area; on the middle of the dorsal edge is an 

 indistinct whitish spot, faintly connected with the tornal spot. Extreme 

 apex light brown with a black eye-spot. Cilia light fuscous mixed with 

 black and brown scales. Hindwings light fuscous. Abdomen fuscous 

 with ochreous underside and anal tuft. Legs light yellowish, mottled with 

 dark fuscous exteriorly; tarsal jointed with heavy blackish-brown annu- 

 lations. 



Alar expanse, 11 to 12 mm. 



Habitat: Tantalus, Oahu, Hawaiian Islands. O. H. Sweezy, 

 collector. 



Food plant: Lantana. 



Type: No. 13149,' U. S. National Museum. Cotype in the 

 British Museum. 



This species was lately purposely introduced from Mexico 

 to Hawaii, where it is now firmly established. In U. S. Na- 

 tional Museum are also specimens from Mexico. The species 

 is typical of the genus in its characteristic wing- form and vena- 

 tion and is much like the type of the genus, the European ple- 

 bciana Zeller, in ornamentation and general habitus. The pe- 

 culiar costal fold and tuft on the forewings of the male is the 

 main difference and the species is a striking example of the fu- 

 tility of attaching generic importance to secondary sexual char- 

 acters in this group of insects; it would manifestly be absurd 

 to separate the present species generically from plebeiaua 

 Zeller on account of the costal fold. 



The genus Phthenolophus Dyar* has the identical struc- 



*Proc. Ent. Soc., Wash., vol. v, p. :!0(i, HH>:>. Type, indentannx 

 Dyar, North Am. 



