192 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST 



rather darker. It has the irregular dentate terminal line of that 



species and rectangula, and the short blackish streak between that 



and the s.t. line opposite the reniform, of which there sometimes 



seems to be a trace in the other two species. The sign seems to be 



a modification of that in alias, which fact for long caused me to 



associate the two. As Grote describes it, it is "incompletely 8- 



shaped, open superiorly." The outer portion of the 8, however, 



seems sometimes to be a sclid dot. The inner portion opens wide 



like that in alias, but is more thread-like. Other differences 



perhaps distinctive, appear to be that the t.a. and t.p. lines are 



more direct and less distinct. The t.p. line is, as Grote puts it^ 



"waved or trembled, and appearing thus a distinguishing feature 



from Guenee's species" (mortuorum, rectangula). In rectangula and 



alias this line is scarcely crenate, but rather obviously waved. In 



octoscripta it is minutely but distinctly crenate, and but very 

 slightly waved. I have carefully studied Grote's description, and 

 the series standing under the name in the British Museum, and 

 must for the present consider this Western form as dark and heavily 

 marked octoscripta. 



The British Museum series consists of six specimens — all ^■cry 

 much alike, and looking somewhat bleached. There are two poor 

 males, Nova Scotia (Redman), one of them badly rubbed, A pair, 

 Grote collection, the male "Can." (This specimen was still unset 

 when I saw it.) Two males, Hudson's Bay. The Grote collection 

 females have two blue-bordered labels in Grote's handwriting — both 

 " PI u s ia 8-scripta Sanb.,^' the upper label with "M.S." after the 

 name. Whether this is really the type or not I cannot say. 

 They are smaller than mine, as well as paler, and have the sign 

 very thread-like, and similar in the whole series. 



The description was published only by Grote, and the name 

 should therefore be credited to him, though he used Sanbourne's 

 Mss. name. The type specimens, number net stated, came from 

 "Anticosti Island (Couper) ; Racine (O. Meske) ; Mass. (Prof. 

 Packard)." 



(To be continued.) 



