'06 THE Entomologist's kecorc. 



captures, and Br. Buelianan White tells me that it was once said to 

 have been taken in Sutherland, but the evidence was not sufficiently 

 satisfactory. I never remember having seen or heard of Irish or 

 Scotch specimens. Dr. Staudinger gives as its range : — " Central 

 Europe ; " and for var. palhcujo : — " S. France and X. Italy (?)." 



MeUinia ctrceUaris. — It is very doul)tful whether this species, which 

 has of recent years been placed in Xanthia hy British entomologists, and 

 in Orthosia by German entomologists, is not so classified rather on 

 sujjerficial resemblances than because there is an}^ real affinity, and, 

 superficially, the imago Avould incline one rather to place it with Orthosia 

 than Xanthia. It has been placed in the latter genus most likely because 

 of the similarity of the larvfe of this species with (jilrago, and this in itself 

 would be a good reason if the character of the egg and jiupa supported 

 it ; Init alone, we have to bear in mind that many full-grown larva? of 

 NocTU.i; with similar habits are very much alike, althoiigh the egg, 

 pupa and inuigo show them to be widely different. So it may be here, 

 and until some proper studj' has been made of the egg and i)upa, I 

 prefer retaining Stephens' genus for the species. CirceHarii^ is, of 

 course, altogether larger, of a different colour, and with different 

 markings from any other of the usually su})posed Xanthia species. It 

 varies in ground colour from a pale ochreous brown, through a bright 

 reddisli-brown, to a deep fuscous. These three forms have all been 

 named by old authors, tlie pale form being Hufnagel's type ; the red 

 form, Hiibners ferrnginea ; whilst the suffused form is Hiiljuer's 

 macileiita. 



The eggs are laid in the autumn, usually on wych-elm, and it is 

 generally widely distributed and aliundant. The larva hatches in the 

 spring, and is frequently beaten Avith that of ijilcaijo from wych-elm. 

 When nearly full-fed, except that the larva of circeUaris is larger, they 

 are much alike, and the lu'utherhood in habit has p(issil)ly led to a 

 similarity of appearance whicli has given the notion of Ijrotherhood in 

 structure. At any rate, Mr. Buckler writes of this species under the 

 name of ferrnginea : — " Though a trifle larger, yet in form and struc- 

 ture this larva closely resembles that of gilrago, with the following 

 exceptions : — 1. The ground colour is of a lu'owner tint, sometimes of 

 an ocln-eous brown. 2. The series of dark central marks on the l)ack, 

 with their dark wedges, assume together more com})act forms of an urn 

 shape, Ijeing attenuated behind, so that a constant cliaracter a^ipears 

 in the hinder pair of tubercular dots being outside the dark urn shapes. 

 On referring to figures of tliis species drawn in 1861 and 1865, the 

 same characters are apparent, though two of them found under com- 

 mon ash varied luuch in colour, one Ijeing a grey variety and the other 

 a lu'ighter and more distinctly marked exam})le than any of those on 

 wych-elm " {Ent. Mo. Mag., iv., p. 180). The larva is also recorded 

 from flowers of asli, at Box Hill, by Mr. Machin ; on green seeds of 

 wych-elm, at Llanelly, by Miss Perkins. It is very generally dis- 

 tributed m England and Wales, and is stated by Birchall to be " com- 

 mon everywhere " in Ireland. In Scotland, it appears also to be 

 generally distributed, although I have Scotch specimens only from 

 Aberdeenshire. Staudinger gives as its range : — " Central Europe ; 

 Sweden and S. Finland ; Piedmont and S. Russia." 



