BOA RMIDJE— VENILIA . 355 



leg-covers abundantly and minutely sculptured in fine, cross, 

 incised lines ; antenna-covers strongly barred at the joints ; 

 wing-covers rather roughly sculptured all over in transverse 

 lines, dorsal and abdominal segments with distinct pits, except 

 each hinder edge, where is a smooth band ; colour purple- 

 brown, more chestnut on the back ; cremaster a strong knob 

 arising from a thickened anal segment ; it is armed with a 

 strong curved spike, around which are several hooked 

 bristles. 



In this condition through the winter. 



This moth flies only in the daytime, and principally in 

 bright sunshine, and in hot weather the male is extremely 

 active, hurrying along wood paths, over undergrowth, through 

 all the open parts of woods, and along their margins, in a 

 most restless manner. The female flies at the same time but 

 more gently. I have never seen either sex on the wing in 

 the evening, nor at night. In warm cloudy weather it will 

 move about by day, flying quietly, or will sit on a leaf with 

 wings half-erect, alert and ready to flit away on the least 

 disturbance, yet it is then quite easy to catch. Almost 

 confined to woods and their neighbourhood, including any 

 meadows, roads, and lanes close by, and is there a very con- 

 spicuous and pretty object. Very common in such situations 

 throughout the greater part of the South of England, though 

 said to be scarce in Dorset and Wilts ; much less common in 

 the Eastern Counties north of Essex, and in the Midlands — 

 indeed, there seems to be but one record of its occurrence in 

 Cambridgeshire. Not scarce in the Western Counties, but 

 apparently absent from fen and marsh districts. In York- 

 shire it is local and not common, in Lancashire confined to 

 the district around Grange and Silverdale, and now scarce ; 

 found also in Westmoreland, and at Keswick in Cumberland. 

 Abundant at Dolgelly and Bala, North Wales, but I have no 

 record for South Wales. In Scotland it has a wide range, in 

 wooded areas, in the Solway and Clyde districts, in Perthshire, 



