210 Transactions. — Zoology. 



8. For. signata, Walk. 



(Elhamma signata, Walk., " Bomb.," 15G3 ; Porina novcB-zealandice, ib., 



1573.) 



c? ? . 49-58mm. Head and thorax rather deep ochreous 

 or fuscous. Antennae yellowish-ochreous, in S' bidentate. 

 Abdomen yellowish-ochreous, slightly reddish-tinged, poste- 

 riorly sometimes fuscous-tinged. Forewings yellowish- 

 ochreous, somewhat reddish, or ochreous-fuscous ; costal edge 

 suffusedly dark-fuscous ; a short cloudy wliitish streak from 

 base beneath costa, margined beneath with dark fuscous ; a 

 cloudy dark fuscous streak proceeding from this to disc at f, 

 marked on its upper edge with two short longitudinal white 

 streaks, first about |-, second in middle, anterior extremity 

 of second produced as a slightly-curved short white dark- 

 margined streak obliquely upwards ; sometimes these three 

 connected into a continuous angularly-sinuate streak ; several 

 very small whitish subtriangular marks, margined wdth dark 

 fuscous, irregularly placed towards costa about f , sometimes 

 increased and enlarged to form a transverse series of short 

 irregular longitudinal white streaks, and others towards 

 anterior half of inner margin ; a pale suffusion in disc beyond 

 middle ; a cloudy fuscous transverse shade about f ; a more or 

 less obscure transverse series of wdiitish dots, connected by a 

 fuscous line, between this and hindmargin ; a hindmarginal 

 series of dark-fuscous dots : cilia fuscous, sometimes barred 

 with W'hitish-ochreous. Hindwings yellow-ochreous, some- 

 times reddish-tinged ; a fuscous .hindmarginal line ; cilia 

 whitish-ochreous. 



Napier, Palmerston, and Wellington ; common. Varies 

 extremely in marking, but the discal streak appears never to 

 become straight, preserving the irregular shape of the spots of 

 which it is composed. 



2. Hepialus, F. 



Antennae ^-^, in ^ simple. Palpi short or moderate, por- 

 rected, with rough projecting hairs, terminal joint naked, sub- 

 clavate. Posterior tibiae densely rough-haired, sometimes 

 with long projecting tuft above in ^ . Forewings with vein 

 7 from angle of cell, 8 from upper margin much before angle, 

 9 and 10 stalked from near 8. Hindwings as in forewdngs. 



The genus is nearly cosmopolitan. The Australasian 

 species are all more or less green, and these have commonly 

 been regarded as a separate genus, under the name of 

 Charagia, but I am unable to discover any structural distinc- 

 tion. The sexes differ in marking and colour, sometimes to an 

 extraordinary degree. The larvae of the Australasian species 

 live in galleries in solid wood, but their natural food appears 

 rather to be the bark, which they devour sometimes for a con- 



