February, 1S'.)6. i 25 



ON A NEW SPECIES OF THE GENUS ARGYRESTHIA, Hb., FROM 



ENGLAND. 



Br EUSTACE B. BA.NKES, M.A., P.E.S. 



Argtresthia Atmoeiella, sp. nov. 



AntenncB fuscous, annulated with wliitish. Palpi, above and internally pale 

 greyish-ochreous, beneath and externally much clouded with fuscous. Face pale 

 ochreous. Head, and thickened base of antenna, orange-ochreous, the latter paler 

 internally. Thorax and tegulcB concolorous with fore-wings. Fore-wings somewhat 

 narrow, with rather straight costa and pointed apes, more especially in the females, 

 which average larger than the males ; bronzy smoke-grey, very satiny ; in favourable 

 lights the costa up to about three-quarters and one or two adjacent veins are seen to 

 be obscurely streaked with bronzy-fuscous ; occasionally these streaks appear to form 

 an obscure darker costal vitta, or else are hardly traceable ; cilia pale smoke-grey. 

 Fxp. al., 11 — 13 mm. Hind-wings satiny slate-grey ; cilia very pale grey. 

 Abdomen smoke-grey above, paler beneath ; anal tuft ochi-eous. Legs : anterior 

 pair fuscous, somewhat paler at the joints ; posterior pair and spurs pale greyish- 

 ochreous, tarsi with terminal joints fuscous. 

 Tgpe : <? ? , Mus. Bnks. 



Hab. : England — Norfolk, Kent, Surrey ; Germany — Schonberg, in Pi-ussian 

 Silesia. 



Imago : Ve. — Vie. 



Considerably larger than pracoceHa, arceuthina, illiiminatella, glabratella, and 

 amiantella, and conspicuously darker than all these, as well as certella, it is most 

 closely allied to, and of about the same size as, IcBvigatella, from which, however, it 

 may be distinguished by its much dai-ker colour, by the ochreous anal tuft, and the 

 fact that the hind-wings are noticeably darker in tone than the fore-wings. One 

 striking variety taken by Mr. Atmore has the fore-wings of a lovely burnished 

 greyish-golden colour. 



The first known British individuals o£ this species, which I have 

 named in compliment to that zealous entomologist, Mr. E. A. Atmore, 

 who has most kindly presented me with some beautiful specimens, 

 were beaten by him out of larch trees near King's Lynn in June, 

 1893 ; these were submitted to Lord Walsingham, who, in Ent. Mo. 

 Mag., ser. 2, vol. v, pp. 50 — 51, indicated that the species would pro- 

 bably prove distinct from illuminatella. The insect was again taken 

 amongst larch in the same neighbourhood in June, 1891 and ]895, by 

 Mr. Atmore, who finds it decidedly local but not uncommon ; he tells 

 me that he has repeatedly searched for the larvae in shoots of larch in 

 the spring, but in vain, and I expect they will eventually be found 

 feeding under the bark of the twigs. Among some insects received 

 for identification from Mr. B. A. Bower about a year ago, were four 

 examples of Atmoriella, taken by him (three of them on palings) in two 

 localities in N. W. Kent during the first three weeks of June, 1891, 



