104 Lloyd's natural historv. 



only two or three South European species, one of which is 

 found in many locahties in Central Europe. It is absent in 

 Northern and North-"\\^estern Europe, and its reputed occur- 

 rence in the British Islands is still considered to require con- 

 firmation. It is found by day in sunny bushy places, such as 

 openings in woods, but is not gregarious like ZygcBna phegea^ 

 and has a lower and weaker flight. The larvae feed on 

 lichens. 



THE HAND-MAID. DYSAUXES ANCILLA. 

 {Plate LXXX. Fig. 3.) 



Nociua ajicilla, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat. (ed. xii.) i. (2) p. 835, no. 93 



(1767) ; Esper, Schmett. iv. p. 51, taf. 85, figs. i. 2 (1786) ; 



id, Naturf. iii. p. 8, taf. i, fig. 9 (1774). 

 Boinhyx ancilla^ Hiibner, Eur. Schmett. iii. figs. 114, 245 



(1804?). 

 Lithosia a?idila, Ochsenheimer, Schmett. Eur. iii. p. 157 



(1810). 

 Naclia ajicilla^ Kirhy, Eur. Butterflies & Moths, p. 94, pi. 53, 



fig. 7 (1879); Barrett, Lepid. of Brit. Isl. p. 138 (1894). 



Ochreous brown, with three white spots, or sometimes four 

 or five, on the fore-wings. The hind-wings are ochreous-brown 

 in the male, with a yellow inner margin ; ochre-yellow with a 

 brown marginal band in the female. The head, collar, pectus, 

 and legs are yellow. 



The larva is black, with a broad yellow dorsal stripe, and 

 two lines of the same colour on the sides. It weaves a thin 

 web in which it forms a reddish-brown pupa. 



It feeds on lichens and moss {Ju?igerma7inia coniplanata). 



SUB-FAMILY IV. THYRETIN^. 



This Sub family much resembles the last, but differs in 

 having the antennae more or less strongly pectinated, especially 



