276 THE entomologist's record. 



these doubtful species as regards this vein, but seems to be 

 nearer Notodonta (say dictcea) in which a very similar arrange- 

 ment occurs. 



In Xylina the arrangement is very similar to Acronycta. In 

 Tceniocampa and most NocTU^ the vein is very faintly indicated 

 if it can be said to exist, yet the space is less reduced than in 

 Acronycta. In orion the markings show this narrow space to 

 be double, but the vein is more faintly indicated than in 

 Acronycta and would at first view be regarded as absent. In 

 ludifica the space and vein are nearly as fully developed as in 

 monacha, but in coryli it appears to be absent. 



Additional Notes. — I have since writing the account of the 

 several species, made a few further observations on some of 

 them, of which the most important may now be stated. 



Cuspidia tridens. — I have stated that the ova have always 

 much fewer ribs than has psi. This was true for several con- 

 tinuous broods of one race, and for not a few unrelated broods 

 from isolated captured moths, but last year I captured a moth 

 in August, which seemed to be a very late emergence, and was 

 a very dark specimen ; her eggs and those of her descendants 

 this year, had 49 to 52 ribs, practically the same as psi. The 

 moths are large and dark, identical I am told with the form 

 found in the East of England, and certainly very rare here. 

 Those I had previously dealt with were smaller, paler, and 

 presented always (when bred) a proportion with rosy tinting 

 that seems to be regarded as rare and interesting by many 

 lepidopterists. I think we have here, then, evidence of two 

 distinct races of tridens, with some possibility that the dates of 

 emergence in this district are somewhat different. I have not 

 seen the specimens, but Messrs. Farren and Jones (Cambridge) 

 report having raised two broods of tridens with very different 

 facies, and each following the form of the parent moth. I 

 have some grounds for believing that even trifling differences 

 in these species are strongly hereditary. Thus in psi there is 

 also no doubt a tendency to have slightly different forms 

 hereditarily continued, of which the most marked I have yet 

 met with was my var. bidens. I think these species would 

 well repay the trouble of breeding different races, and some 

 interesting results would probably be obtained. Just as psi, 

 tridens and cuspis (living examples of which I have not yet 

 obtained) seem to have only just established themselves as 

 distinct species, so each of them seems again endeavouring to 

 split up into distinct races. 



