Philpott. — IS'otes and Descriptions of N .Z. Lepidoptera. 43 



Melanchra inchoata n. sp. 



^ ?. 33 mm. Head, palpi, and thorax greyish-oclireous sprinkled with 

 fuscous. Thorax in both sexes with rather prominent anterior crest. 

 Antennae in S ciliated, cilia tions 4. Abdomen in both sexes with the first 

 four or five segments prominently crested. Legs ochreous, tarsi annulated 

 with fuscous. Forewings, costa almost straight, apex subacute, termeu 

 crenate, oblique below middle ; ochreous clouded with fuscous, in $ darker ; 

 a small pale apical patch ; a series of four or five paired fuscous dots on 

 costa ; all lines except subterminal very obscure ; basal evenly curved, 

 serrate, fuscous ; first and second almost obsolete, apparently double, 

 fuscous ; a presubterminal thin serrate dark line faintly indicated ; sub- 

 terminal conspicuous, unindented, equidistoMt with termen, white ; terminal 

 crenations edged with black ; stigmata unusually closely grouped ; orbicular 

 rounded, whitish, dark-centred ; claviform small, dark fuscous ; reniform 

 dark fuscous, obscurely white-iinged : cilia ochreous, basally mixed with 

 fuscous. Hindwings dark fuscous : cilia ochreous with dark-fuscous sub- 

 basal line. Underwings ochreous thickly irrorated with fuscous, clear 

 ochreous along costa and round termen of forewings ; lunules and second 

 lines of both wings fuscous. 



Belongs to the coeleno-levis group, but is easily distinguished by the 

 form of the subte±minal line. 



Stephen Island. Collected by Mr. H. Hamilton on the 9th September, 

 1916. I am indebted to Dr. J. A. Thomson, Director of the Dominion 

 Museum, for the opportunity of describing this interesting species. Types, 

 (J and $, in coll. Dominion Museum. 



^, , . T ■ Sphingidae. 



Choerocampa celerio Linn. 



In the Transactions of the New Zealatul Institute, vol. 37, p. 369, Hudson 

 records the first captures of this species in New Zealand, four examples 

 having been taken in the summer of 1903-4. To this record I am able 

 to add that of a specimen taken at Te Tua, near the southern coast of the 

 South Island. The moth was taken by a resident of the district and 

 forwarded to the Southland Museum, in the collection of which institution 

 it remains. It is in fine condition, so fresh as to cast considerable doubt 

 on the possibility of its having been wind-driven across a wide expanse of 

 ocean. 



Pyraustidae. 

 bcoparia pascoella n. sp. 



S ?• 15-18 mm. Head and palpi ferruginous-brown, palpi ochreous 

 beneath. Antennal ciliations \. Thorax ferruginous-brown mixed with 

 white. Abdomen fuscous-grey. Legs ochreous-grey mixed with fuscous, 

 tarsi obscurely banded with fuscous. Forewings moderate, triangular, 

 costa almost straight, apex round-pointed, termen hardly rounded, oblique ; 

 ferruginous-brown mingled with some fuscous and much suffused with 

 white ; first line hardly curved, unindented, white, broadly margined 

 with ferruginous posteriorly ; orbicular and claviform dot^like, blackish, 

 partially obscured by ferruginous suffusion ; reniform X-shaped, blackish, 

 frequently obscure ; secofid line irregularly bent but not deeply indented 

 narrow, parallel to termen, white, narrowly margined with ferrugiiious 

 anteriorly ; subterminal line obscure, interrupted at middle, widely remote 

 from second line, white: cilia ochreous-grey. Hindwings grey-fuscous 

 paler anteriorly : cilia ochreous-grey with fuscous basal line. 



