238 [March, 



A very plentiful species among hawthorn in some districts. Mr. 

 Machin has reared it from hawthorn and blackthorn. He eays that 

 the larva is pale green, feeds between leaves drawn together, and 

 assumes the pupa state among them. 



alrasana, Dup. — Each fore-wing 4| lines by 1\, rather broader 

 towards the hind margin, costa nearly straight, apex blunt, hind mar- 

 gin rather rounded, not very oblique. A larger species than imhilana, 

 of a rather smooth-looking dull dark grey, with a brownish tinge, 

 almost devoid of markings, except a mere shadow of the oblique 

 central fascia, and sometimes a few scattered black dots. These black 

 dots are rather strongly developed in a very cui'ious moth, taken many 

 years ago on the moors of Cumberland by Mr. W. Thompson, of 

 Stony Stratford, which moth must be, I think, a large ahrasana. 



This species seems to be rare or extremely local in this country. 

 A specimen was taken in a dry lane in Wiltshire by Mr. E. Meyrick 

 in August, 1876, and I have seen three specimens from the collection 

 of Mr. Gr. Harding, of Bristol, who took them more than twenty years 

 ago, and believes that the species was common when he took these. 



virgaureana, Tr. — Each fore-wing measuring 4 lines by If to If, 

 fairly broad, with well rounded costa and blunt apex. This most 

 abundant species is fairly well described by Wilkinson, it is usually 

 much irrorated with round dark grey dots, obscuring the ground 

 colour, and sometimes the markings are also much obscured. 



The larva seems to be quite as variable as the moth. Mr. Machin 

 has reared the species from " a dirty green larva feeding on Genista 

 anglica." Mr. Buckler communicated the following description, taken 

 from a larva found on Teucrium scorodonia ;— " Light greenish-grey 

 above, paler flesh-coloured — greyish below, with a darker dorsal line, 

 and rather less dark sub-dorsal line. Tubercular spots black, anterior- 

 legs black, a blackish plate on second segment, head light reddish- 

 brown." 



Mr. A. Balding, of "Wisbech, " collected a lot of larvae from water 

 betony, and sorted them into two lots, one with spots lighter than the 

 ground colour, the other with them darker. All produced virgaure- 

 ana y 



My own descriptions also vary: — "Sluggish, cylindrical, plump, 

 smoky-black, spots faintly shining, head light brown, plates jet-black, 

 hairs rather long. On Plantago lanceolata, drawing together each 

 leaf, lengthwise, in the middle"; and another: " plump, pale bluish 

 or greyish-green, dots black, small, but distinctly visible, especially 



