1892.] 283 



this group, so that the name of agrammella may be appropriately 

 applied to it. 



COLEOPHOIIA AGRAMMELLA. 



Exp. al., 4 — 4^ lines. Fore-wings narrow and very pointed, uniformly ochreous- 

 grey, with the costa narrowly white as far as the fringe. Antenna? white, completely 

 annulated with dark grey ; occasionally in the ? the annulations are slightly 

 interrupted underneath by the white ground colour. It has the narrow pointed 

 ■■^'wig^ oi cmsipititiella a,nd glaucicolella, but may be known from them by its much 

 smaller size, more completely annulated antennse, and the absence of all indications 

 of streaks in the fore-wings. 



Larva white, slightly tinged with yellow. Head brown, a trifle clouded with 

 grey on the crown, with the eyes black and the mouth parts brown. Thoracic plates 

 grey; that on ii with a white dividing line ; all four parts of the dorsal plate on iii 

 present ; on iv the two posterior parts or subplates are absent, but the anterior pair 

 are unusually large and distinct. The ordinary spiracular plates are of nearly equal 

 size, that on iv being only a trifle smaller than those on iii and ii. Anal plate black. 



Its favourite food seems to be Juncus conglomeratus, but it occurs 

 not unfrequently on effusiis and lamprocarpus, and very rarely on 

 glaucus. Probably it affects other rushes, but these are as yet the 

 only ones on which J have found it. It becomes full-fed at the same 

 time as ccespititiella, viz., about the end of October or a little later ; 

 it then hides away for the w^inter among the herbage, pupates in the 

 spring, and the moth emerges in June. The case makes its first ap- 

 pearance, budding out from an opening in a capsule, when the larva 

 is well advanced in its penultimate skin. It belongs to the class of 

 simple cases, in which the seed envelopes of the rush are not used in 

 the construction. It has quite a distinct character, and differs in 

 several respects from any of the others. Its chief distinguishing 

 feature is its colour, which is grey, sometimes almost black ; it is also 

 more thickly covered with particles of vegetable matter, and both ends 

 of the case are equally roughened with them. These particles are 

 disposed in broad longitudinal bands, leaving several (their number is 

 variable) narrow smooth lines in the intervals, which are very notice- 

 able in the fresh case, and highly characteristic, nothing approaching 

 them being ever met wath in the cases of the allied species. In 

 general form, however, it resembles the case of ccGspititiella or glauci- 

 colella. except that it is much smaller. 



This little ColeopJiora is a thoroughly woodland insect, widely 

 distributed, but by no means common in this neighbourhood. As 

 more than one case on a rush-head seldom occurs, collecting them is 

 rather tedious work, whilst, yet further, they are apt, from their small 

 size and dark colour, to be overlooked among the pale and more con- 



