Mr. Stephens lias named this genus, after a beautiful Nympli, 

 Char idea. There can be no doubt of its affinity to Cucullia 

 (pi. 45.)? not only from the habit of the moth, but also from 

 the similitude of its larvae to those of C. ScrojiJmlarice and 

 Verbasci : the tufted basal joint of the antennae, as well as the 

 form and relative proportions of the joints of the palpi, also 

 accord extremely well with those of Cucullia. There are, how- 

 ever, decided differences to be found ; the maxillae, wings and 

 abdomen are much shorter in Char idea, the palpi are com- 

 pletely concealed by scales, the underside of the antennae is 

 very hairy, and the anterior tibiae are shorter than the basal 

 joint of the tarsi; but the most valuable character I have 

 been able to detect, is the two naked horny spines attached to 

 the extremity of the anterior tibiae, a conformation which I 

 have never seen in any other species. Upon referring to plate 

 45 it will be seen that Cucullia has only a flat internal spine, 

 like most of the Noctuad(S. 



This charming moth is no less esteemed for its rarity than 

 for its lovely colours; the specimens in Mr. Stephens's 

 cabinet, as well as those in the British Museum, are from 

 Windsor ; and it has once been taken by the late Mr. Jones 

 in his garden at Chelsea. Its favourite food is the larkspur : 

 it therefore ought to be met with in Cambridgeshire and dis- 

 tricts where that plant abounds in a natural state. It is, 

 however, probable that it is one of those insects, which, if not 

 periodical, appears in very small numbers ; which opinion is 

 strengthened by the fiict that it is very rare upon the Conti- 

 nent, where it fetches very high prices ; and we are informed 

 by Mr. Haworth, that the great patroness of Natural History, 

 the late Duchess of Portland, possessed only a wing of the 

 moth fomid in a spider' s-web at Bulstrode. In Wilks's days 

 (1773) it was bred, he says, by the Honourable Mrs. Walters, 

 and by Nathaniel Oldham, Esq. 



The caterpillar is copied from an admirable figure in 

 Hlibner's scarce and valuable work. The moth appears in 

 June and July. 



Delphinium Consolida (Wild Larkspur) is figured in the 

 plate ; for specimens of which 1 am indebted to Professor 

 Henslow. 



