74 INSECUTOR INSCITIit MENSTRUUS 



TRICHOCLEA RUISA NEW SPECIES: A STRUCTUR- 

 ALLY ABERRANT NOCTUID 



{Lepidoptera, Noctuidee) 

 By WM. T. M. FORBES 



The species described in this note, though an isolated specimen, is suf- 

 ficiently peculiar in structure to make it unlikely that it has been previously 

 described. It may be placed in the genus Trichoclea, since it does not 

 contradict Hampson's diagnosis of the genus ^ in any essential way ; but 

 it is not closely related to the other species placed in it. All the nominal 

 American species have been seen, but the species may possibly have been 

 described as one of the few unrecognized Mamestrae or Taeniocampae, 

 in case the front and fore tibiae were not examined. 



Head prominent, the front with fine even vestiture, firmly attached ; 

 finely roughened cind prominent, with a strong groove between it and the 

 clypeus. Male antennae slightly prismatic with short cilia, not at all ser- 

 rate. Tongue normal, palpi moderate, closely upturned to the middle of 

 the front, with short third joint and with normal rough vestiture. Pilifer 

 normal and maxillary palpi obsolescent (like Hadena, etc.). Thorax with 

 fine feathery vestiture of hair with broad flattened tips, forming slight 

 anterior and posterior tufts. Abdomen with a strong basal tuft and a 

 little loose hair on the following segments ; moderate in size. Fore tarsus 

 with much enlarged outer spinules, the terminal one on the first segment 

 forming a claw, and the tarsus shortened somewhat. The legs otherwise 

 normal, with moderately hairy tibiae. Wings normal, fore wings triangu- 

 lar, with even outer margin and rounded extreme apex, the anal angle 

 not strongly retracted. Hind wings normal, trifid, with M2 (vein 5) a 

 little low and somewhat stronger than in Hadena, but like other Mames- 

 trids. 



Head, thorax, and fore wing dull red-brown, not very dark. Tip of 

 palpus infuscated ; thorax and especially edge of collar frosted minutely 

 with white. Fore wing smoothly colored, except for a fuscous shading 

 of the reniform. Ordinary lines obscurely doubled, fuscous ; t. a. moder- 

 ately dentate, outward on fold, and inward on cell and anal, preceded 

 by an obscure second line. T. p. somewhat lunulate, and followed by 

 slight fuscous streaks on the veins, strongly convex on upper half, nearly 

 straight but a little concave on lower half, and oblique, in general course 



' Catalogue of the Lepidoplera Phalaenae in the British Museum, v. 236, 1905. 



