6 THE LEPIDOPTEBA OF CEYLON. 



Family LEUCANIIDiE. 



Imago small or of medium size, body smooth. Larva long, feeding in stems of 

 reeds, &c., or merely concealed, but then they are marked with numerous fine lines. 

 Pupa either in a subterranean cocoon, or in the stem ia which the larva has fed. 

 {Sta'iiito)i.) 



Genus ALETIA. 



Aletin, Hiibn. Verz. bek. Schmett. p. 239 (1818-25). 



HypMlare, Hiibn. id. p. 239. 



Mijthinma (part), Stephens. 



Lfucania (part), Lederer, Noct. Eiir. p. 127 (1857). 



Forewing elongated, narrow, costa almost straight, apex acuminate, exterior 

 margin slightly oblitjue, posterior angle somewhat rounded; cell long, narrow, 

 extending two-thirds the wino- ; first subcostal emitted at one-half before end of the 

 cell, second at one-fifth, trifid, fifth from end of the cell, touching the third beyond 

 the cell ; discocellular slender, concave in middle, upper radial in a line with subcostal, 

 lower from angle close to lower end ; middle median from angle close to end of the 

 cell, lower median at nearly one-third before the end ; submedian recurved from the 

 base : hindwing short, broad, exterior margin convex ; cell extending half the wing ; 

 costal vein undulated ; subcostal touching the costal near its base, two subcostal 

 branches from end of the cell ; discocellular extremely slender, concave, radials 

 from upper end and below the middle ; two upjjer medians from end of the cell, 

 lower at one-third before the end ; submedian and internal vein slightly curved. 

 Body stout, abdomen extending beyond hindwing ; palpi short, thick, porrect, laxly 

 squamose, second joint extending beyond the head, third joint short, thick, conical ; 

 antennse minutely ciliated ; legs long, middle and hind tibise spurred. {A. vitelUna.) 



ALETIA EEVERSA (Plate 144, Fig. o). 



Male : forewing pale purpurescent ochreous-brown, darkest from the base below 

 the costal border ; crossed by an indistinct black basal sinuous line, a duplex ante- 

 medial outwardly oblique straight line and a postmedial inwardly oblique curved 

 duplex denticulated black line with white points; a slight pale-bordered streak 

 extending obliquely from the apex ; an indistinct round orbicular spot, and a 

 prominent reniform mark with a blackish central streak and whitish lower streak ; 

 the two upper median branches also slightly whitish : hindwing cinereous-brown at 

 the base, the outer border pale purplish ochreous-brown. Body above pale purplish 

 ochreous-brown. Female duller coloured; with the markings on forewinof less 

 distinct. 



Expanse If to If inch. 



