PIELUS HYALINATUS AND P. IMPERIALIS. 



By a. Sidney Olliff, F.E.S. 



At the last meeting of this Society {vide p. 604) Mr. T. P. Lucas- 

 stated that the Hepialid described and figured by Mr. Prince and 

 myself in these Proceedings'^ under the name Pielus imperialis is 

 identical with the Pielus hyaliiiatus, a species which was figured 

 by Herrich-Schaffer in 1853, but not described until 1855 when 

 "Walker included a diagnosis of it in the British Museum Cata- 

 logue.! Apparently this opinion is based on a comparison of a 

 specimen from Gippsland, identified for Mr. Lucas as P. hyalinatus 

 by my friend Mr. Meyrick, and the plates mentioned above. 

 When Mr. Prince and I drew up the description of P. imj^erialis 

 we referred to Walker's description, and with that description our 

 moth does not agree, but we had no opportunity of consulting the 

 figure of Herrich-SchaSer as the book in which it was published 

 is not at present contained in any Sydney library. Recently, how- 

 ever, 1 have seen a tracing of this figure and I find that it certainly 

 is not identical with that published in our Proceedings. In the 

 first place it appears from the tracing that Herrich-Schaffer's figure 

 represents a moth only about two-thirds of the size of the one 

 figured by us, and that the silver markings on the forewings diflfer 

 from those of P. imjyerialis both in size, number, and position ; 

 moreover, the labyrinthic markings on the forewings are not 

 indicated, and the bright red margin beyond the purple base of 

 the hindwings is much more clearly defined. I think, therefore, 

 that the form P, imperialis may be regarded as specifically dis- 

 tinct from, although closely allied to, P. hyalinatus ; but it is 

 only right to add that this is not the opinion of Mr. Meyrick. 



* Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W. (2), II., p. 1015, pi. 39 (1887). 

 t Cat. Lep. Het. B.M., p. 1576. 



