40 [July. 



Al. esp. 7i lines. Head pale yellow ; antennfE and eyes black ; thorax black, 

 marbled ■with yellow ; abdomen gi'ey ; fore-wings long, rather pointed at the apex, 

 and of pretty uniform width, ground colour pale yellow almost obliterated by grey 

 and bluish scales ; basal blotch angulated, shining blue-black ; central fascia black, 

 strongly angulated outwards and faintly interrupted, beyond this fascia an elongated 

 black triangular spot on the dorsal margin of the wing extends beyond the middle, 

 and at its apex joins an oblique black blotch which reaches the hind margin : at the 

 apex of the wing is a round black spot edged with blue lines. The spaces between 

 these markings are filled in with a marbling of glossy blue, grey, and orange, except 

 before the apex, where the usual black and silvery streaks are visible in the pale ground 

 colour, and at the anal angle, where is a conspicuous somewhat square yellowish-ivhite 

 spot, including that part of the cilia. The remainder of the cilia blue-black with two 

 yellow spots or dashes in the middle. Hind-wings dark grey, darkest at the margin, 

 cilia pale grey. 



The larva, with its habit of feeding and hibernating in the stems of Impatiens 

 noli-me-tangere, is described by Von Heyden (Stett. Ent. Zeit., 1865, p. 378), and it 

 appears that Miihlig has recorded the rearing of the allied Penthina fuligana from the 

 same plant, but it does not seem impossible that Herr Miihlig may have made some 

 mistake as to the species reared by him, both hecB,\i.se fuligana is well known to feed 

 in the roots of various species of Stachys, and because from this circumstance it ap- 

 pears to have been confounded with nigricostana. Haw., which has similar habits. 



When I wrote some notes on these species {vide vol. ix, p. 129) I did not 

 feel satisfied about some German specimens sent by Professor Zeller under the name 

 of Remyana. He afterwards sent me a type oi fuligana, Hiib., by which I was able 

 to satisfy myself that it (and two of the supposed Remyana') were really identical with 

 specimens taken in Surrey, although the dark markings were much less intense in 

 colour. These Surrey specimens were carbonana, Dbld., = ustulana. Haw., and their 

 coincidence confirmed Wocke's correction of the name ^o fuligana, Hiib. This species 

 is the smallest of our PenthincB, but is sufiiciently like postremana to make it desi- 

 rable that the points of distinction should be pointed out. The male is but 6 lines 

 in expanse, but large females sometimes reach 8 lines. In the males the fore-wings 

 are rounded, but in the females, altliough the apex is rounded, it and the anal angle 

 are slightly dilated, so that the hinder part of the wing is broad and peculiar in shape. 

 The markings are very obscure, consisting of a black strongly angulated basal blotch, 

 a narrow irregular central fascia, from which is a curved projection outwards below 

 the middle, a triangle at the anal angle and several streaks across the apex, all black. 

 Ground colour apjDarently whitish, almost totally sufPused with bluish-grey, or steely, 

 scales. Cilia entirely dark grey. This description applies well to both Continental 

 and South English specimens, but some specimens reared by Lord Walsingham from 

 roots of Stachys palustris, from Wicken Fen, present singular variations. These varia- 

 tions are in the greater or less partial absence of the suffusion of bluish-grey scales, 

 some specimens showing the white ground colour pretty plainly, while one shows the 

 close alliance of the species with the normal Penthina by having the apical third of 

 the wing almost entirely white. But in all these the markings, when visible, agree 

 closely with typical y«(//$raHa, and in all the cilia are entirely dark grey. 



The two species may therefore be easily separated : — postremana having the apex 

 of the fore-wings pointed and the dark cilia with one blotch and two spots pale 



