Meyrick.— Monoijraph of Xew Zealand Noctuiua. 35 



mixed with blackisli-grey ; a reddish-ochreous line representin<? 

 median shade ; subterminal absent ; a hind-margiual row of 

 very minute black dots : cilia reddish-ochreons, with a fine 

 grey hne. Hindwiugs ochreous-whitish, reddish-tinged ; a 

 moderately broad blackish-grey hind-marginal band, reddish- 

 tinged : cilia white, base ochreous-tinged, with a fine reddish 

 line. 



Larva feeding in various flowers and seeds. 



Chi-istchurch, Rakaia, WeUington, and Waimarama ; De- 

 cember to March ; abundant, but in some localities less so 

 than formerly. Occurs also in Australia, Samoa, India, Ceylon, 

 Madagascar, Africa, Europe, North and South America, thus 

 practically cosmopolitan. 



12. CosMODES, Gn. 



Eyes naked. Antennae in male filiform, shortly ciliated. 

 Thorax with strong transverse anterior and posterior crests. 

 Abdomen strongly crested towards base. Hiudwings with veins 

 6 and 7 short-stalked. 



58. Cosm. eleganSy Don. 

 (Phalaena elegant, Don., Ins. N.H. ; Cosmodes elegans, Gn., Noct. vi., 290.) 



Male, female. — 29-30 mm. Head grey-whitish, with two 

 dark ferruginous bands. Palpi dark ferruginous, mixed with 

 reddish-whitish. Antennas dark fuscous. Thorax whitish- 

 reddish, crests posteriorly dark ferruginous, anterior cresc 

 mixed in front with black. Abdomen grey-whitish, crest dark 

 ferruginous. Legs grey, anterior and middle tibiae reddish. 

 Forewings moderately dilated, costa slightly arched, apex obtuse, 

 hindmargin oblique, with strong broad triangular projection 

 below middle ; dark ferruginous, mixed with blackish-fuscous ; 

 four pale green spots margined with white ; first large, irregu- 

 larly elongate, extending almost from base to middle, curved 

 downwards in middle ; second moderate, oval, above and touch- 

 ing posterior extremity of first ; third moderate, subtriangular, 

 beyond second ; fourth moderate, trapezoidal, above anal angle ; 

 centre of disc between these lighter, with veins whitish ; a 

 transverse light ferruginous streak towards hindmargin in 

 middle, anteriorly white-margined, representing subterminal 

 line : cilia fuscous-reddish mixed with black. Hindwings 

 whitish ; posterior half suffused with fuscous-reddish : cilia 

 whitish, with a fuscous-reddish line. 



Napier, Christchurch, and Governor's Bay, in March and 

 April ; several specimens. Occurs also commonly in Eastern 

 Australia. 



