POLIA. 135 



slightly bent outwards below costa, oblique to vein 6, then inwardly 

 oblique, minutely dentate and produced to short streaks on the 

 veins, some white points beyond it on costa ; subterminal line fino, 

 white, defined on inner side by a prominent dark rufous shade 

 except towards costa, angled outwards at vein 7 and dentate oa 

 veins 4, 3. Hind wing ochreous suffused with fuscous brown, the 

 basal and inner areas paler ; the cilia ochreous, sometimes tinged 

 with purplish pink ; the underside with the costal and terminal 

 areas suffused with red, a small discoidal lunule and carved post- 

 medial line. 



Uah. Germany, Zeller, Frey, and Leech Colls. ; IIussia, Livonia, 

 Zeller Coll. ; Rumelia ; E. Siberia, Amurland, 1 $ , Ussuri ; Corba,. 

 Exp. 36-40 miUim. 



Larva. Streckfuss, Ent. Nachr. vi. p. 279. 



Gi'ound-colour very variable, pale brassy or yellowish green to 

 blackish or dark olive-green, thickly irrorated with white points; 

 dorsal and subdorsal lines formed of larger white dots ; lateral line 

 yellow or white, with the black-edged white spiracles on it ; the 

 ground-colour darker above lateral line and on each side of sub- 

 dorsal line ; each somite with four dorsal black dots, forming straight 

 lines on thoracic somites, on medial somites triangular marks, and 

 on terminal somite a quadrate mark, each somite also with two 

 dots above and below lateral line ; head brownish or yellowish. 

 Food-i»lants : grass, litimex, PhoiUtijo. Differs from M. oleracea in 

 the lateral stripe being broader, sharply defined below, and usually 

 more yellow ; the cervical shield without the four black dots. 



1308. Polia oleracea. 



Nocfua oleracea, Linn. Svst. Nat. x. p. 517 (1858); Esp. Schraett. iv. 



pi. 165, tf. 4-8 ; Dup. Lep. Fr. vii. p. 20, pi. 101. f. 6 ; Steph. 111. Brit. 



Ent., Haust. ii. p. 193 ; 8taud. Cat. Lep. pal. p. 157. 

 Noctua spinaci(B, Bork. Eur. S(-liinett. iv. p. 454 (1792). 

 Mamestra variegata, Aust. Le Nat. iii. p. 142 (1885). 



Head and thorax rather dull red-brown slightly irrorated with 

 white ; tarsi ringed with white ; abdomen ochreous sufi'used with 

 brown. Fore wing rather dull red-brown ; the veins and costal 

 area irrorated with white ; a small white tuft at base ; faint traces 

 of a waved white subbasal line from costa to submedian fold ; an 

 indistinct antemedial line excurved in interspaces and angled in- 

 wards on median nervure and vein 1 ; claviform slightly defined by 

 rufous ; orbicular small, irregularly rounded, with whitish annulus ; 

 reniform indistinctly defined by brown, open above, with an orange 

 spot in its upper part ; traces of an oblique medial line from lower 

 angle of cell to inner margin ; postmedial line indistinct, dentate, 

 often i)roduced to a series of white points on the veins, bent out- 

 wards below co.sta, excurved to vein 4, then incurved, some \vhite 

 points beyond it on costa subterminal line white, indistinct towards 

 costa, angled outwards at vein 7 and dentate to termen at veins 4, 3 ; 

 cilia with a fine pale line at base. Hind wing yellowish white. 



