BRITISH AND EUROPEAN BUTTERFLIES AND MOTHS. 



159 



C. artemisiae, Hufn. Fore wings bluish 

 gre)', mucli varied with brown, with two distinct 

 light grey stigmata, edged with darker and 

 more or less centred with brownish. The two 

 transverse lines are fairly distinct, especially 

 the deeply dentated double anterior line, and 

 between them in the place of the claviform 

 stigma is a light longitudinal streak. The 

 submarginal line is also light, broad and indis- 

 tinct, with brownish longitudinal lines towards 

 the hind margin. The marginal line is dark 

 and is interrupted on the nervures by light 

 grey hooklets. The fringes are lighter in their 

 anterior half. The hind wings are brownish 

 grey, lighter towards the base, with white 

 fringes. The abdomen is brownish grey lighter 

 in front. It inhabits sandy places in Central 

 Europe, except Britain, in May and June. The 

 larva has deep incisions and two rows of ele- 

 vations on each side of the back, one of which 

 on each segment ends in two brownish red 

 points. It is green with white dorsal lines. 

 The head is pale green with white angular 

 markings. It feeds in July and August on the 

 flowers of Artemisia campestris, which it closely 

 resembles. 



C. absynthii, Linn. The Wormwood Moth. 

 Fore wings grey, much varied with brown, 

 with a distinct anterior transverse line, broadly 

 bordered with black on each side, and a posterior 

 line only indicated by a few hooklets on the 

 inner margin. There is a central shade. The 

 two stigmata are pale, and are not sharply 

 edged with black. They have a few black 

 dots in them ; and there is a lighter shine be- 

 low the stigmata. The marginal area is brown 

 and the submarginal line is represented by 

 some brownish elongated spots. The marginal 

 line consists of dark lunules. The fringes are 

 brownish, spotted with grey and banded through 

 the middle. The hind wings are dirty white, 

 narrowly brownish towards the hind margins 

 and especially near the costa. The thorax is 

 grey, with a triangular spot on the front of the 

 collar between the tegulae. The head is dark. 

 The abdomen is yellowish grey, with black 

 tufts of hair in front on the back. It is found 

 throughout Central Europe in May and June, 

 but is rare in England. The larva is deeply 

 incised, smooth, greenish yellow, green behind 

 and beneath, with an interrupted white dorsal 



line and a similar one on the sides above the 

 legs edged with reddish brown, and there are 

 a few reddish brown warts. It feeds on the 

 flowers of wormwood from July to September. 

 C. argentea, Hufn. Fore wings delicate 

 green, lighter in the male, with bright pearly 

 spots, stripes and fringes. There are three 

 spots in the place of the three stigmata, of 

 which that representing the reniform is divided 

 by darker; the orbicular is the smallest, and 

 that in the claviform largest and partially 

 bordered with darker. There is a fourth spot 

 at the base and a fifth near the apex. Of 

 the stripes a small one is placed at the inner 

 margin near the base, a second in the position 

 of the posterior transverse line, ending rather 

 beyond the middle of the wing, a third nar- 

 rower one is in front of the marginal line 

 through the breadth of the wing, and a fourth 

 from in front of the apex of the wings at the 

 outermost edge of the costa to the front of 

 the reniform stigma, where it fuses with the 

 apical spot. The hind wings are shining 

 white, brownish on the nervures and towards 

 the hind margin. The head and thorax are 

 white. The top of the head, the front of the 

 collar and the hinder margin, as well as the 

 tegulas in front of the inner margin are green. 

 The abdomen is greenish white, somewhat 

 darker in front. It is common in Central 

 Europe in May and June, but is not found 

 in Britain. The larva is deeply constricted at 

 the incisions, green, brownish on the back 

 varied with peach-colour, with an interrupted 

 yellowish white dorsal line and two similar 

 spots on the front of each segment, one spot 

 on the side, and one lower down; the two 

 coalescing behind to form an oblique streak. 

 Between these streaks are the white spiracles, 

 edged with black, and also some bristles on 

 dark warts. It feeds in the Autumn on the 

 flowers and fruit of Artemisia campestris. The 

 pupa is pale green and is contained in 5 firm 

 cocoon composed of sand. 



FAMILY 



PLUSIID^. 



Thorax short, arched and quadrilateral, with 

 fine pubescence, which is raised posteriorly to 

 form a dense tuft. The antennse are setiform. 



