APTERONA. By Dr. E. Strand. 363 



whitish, with the head and thoracic segments bearing black markings ; it hibernates and lives on grass and other 

 low herbage. The case is covered with debris of stalks and a dense external web. In Italy, Sicily, Corsica; 

 Bruand also mentions Southern France. Flies May — June. ■ — siculella Brd. (= melasoma Stgr.) (55 f) occurs siculella. 

 in Sicily together with the main form and is distinguished by the thorax and abdomen being black. 



Ph. crassicornis Stgr. (55 f), from Greece, is smaller than the preceding species (forewing 7 mm long); crassicomis. 

 antenna and body deep black, pectinations very strong; wings shorter and scaled black-grey. The case as in 

 Ph. apiformis. $ and larva not known. 



Ph. bruand! Led. (55 f). Closely related to Ph. apiformis, but slenderer, the wings strongly widened bruandi. 

 distally, the costal and hind margins of the forewing being almost the same in length and the hindwing hardly 

 longer than broad. Hair of body Moolly, but less shaggy than in ajnformis, the wool black-brown, more greyish 

 above. Forewing yellowish grey in the basal area, almost scaleless in the cell. Hindwing more evenly grey, 

 only darker at the margin. All the fringes black. The shell of the $-pupa black, light browTi at both ends. 

 Larva on dry grasses, 13 — 14 mm long and 2.5—3 mm broad. The case composed of stalks placed closely 

 together transversely and the whole surrounded with grey silk. Moth emerging the end of April and beginning 

 of May. — Syria, Beyrut (Mus. Berlin). 



Ph. graslinella Bdv. (= atra i^rr., altribombycella Brd.) (55 f). Basal area yellowish in both Avings, grasUnella. 

 otherwise the whole insect blackish. The veins but little darker than the ground. Hair of abdomen long, shaggy, 

 parted, black. Forewing 9 —10 mm long. $ red-brown with yellowish head and thoracic plates; does not leave 

 the pupa-shell. Larva above blackish, the head and thoracic plates marked with yellow; biennial, on Calluna. 

 The case about 22 mm. long and 2 mm broad, pear-shaped, outwardly covered by a dense grey web ; slenderer in more 

 southern localities. Pupa of 9 black-brown, light brown at the ends. On the wing April —May. — Central Europe 

 with the exception of England, in Switzerland, Denmark, Finland, Livonia, Southern Norway, and Sweden. 



Ph. praecellens Stgr. (55 f) is a little smaller than the previous species (fore^^ang 9 mm long), the ■praecellens. 

 forewing relatively somewhat broader and in and around the cell with a sharply defined whitish yellow 

 patch. $ and larva hardly distinguishable from those of Ph. graslinella, but the case is more cylindrical and the 

 external web much less dense, being less dense in the (J-case than in the $-case. Feeds only on Ericu arbores- 

 cens. — Castilia (in Mus. Berlin a pair labelled ^ Graec. $ Castil. Stdgr."). 



Ph. calberlae Heyl. is similar to the preceding species, but smaller, the wings being shorter and more calberlae. 

 rounded as well as paler. Expanse 17 mm. $ 11 mm long and 4 mm broad, yellow, the head and the 3 an- 

 terior segments polished, the two last with greyish yellow wool. Larva 20 mm long, black, head and thorax 

 marked with yellow. The case 25 mm long, cylindrical. The (J -pupa chestnut-brown, the 9-pupa black, red at 

 both ends. Food-plant probably Erica. Flies in April. — Pyrenees, Southern Tyrol. 



16. Genus: Apteroiia Mill. 



Small delicate moths with broad rounded wings clothed with hair-scales; forewing with 10, hindwing 

 with 7 veins. Aiitenna pectinate or serrate, and ciliate. Tibiae without spurs, or the hind tibia with short 

 end-spurs. The thin-skinned 9 has the head and abdomen curved ventrad and does not leave the case. The 

 latter resembling a shell, making 214 spiral coils and being covered with sand and soil. The larva, which is 

 curved in adaptation to the case, is greenish or yellowish, with black-brown head and light-marked black- 

 brown thoracical plates. 



A. helicinella H.-Schdff. (= planorbis Sieb.) (55 f) occurs only in Sicily. The antenna pectmate, the helicinella. 

 wings smooky grey with darker distal margin, and the body very slender. Forewing 5—7 mm long. $ dirty 

 yellow, with whitish anal wool. The larva has a greyish green ground-colour and lives on Lotus, etc. The 

 case resembles that of A. helix, but is larger, broader and flatter. 



A. gracilis Speyer (55 g) is larger and paler, more brownish, than the preceding insect. Forewing 8 mm gracilis. 

 long. — Andalusia and Arragonia; in June. 



A. pusilla Speyer is much smaller than helicinella and has narrower, deep sooty black wings with longer pusiUa. 

 fringes. Antenna pectinate as in helicinella, the branches gradually decreasing in length towards the tip. Length 

 of forewing 6 mm. The delicate body is almost glabrous and entirely black. The (J-case is 6—7 mm longer than 

 in the other species of Apterona, more strongly curved, and only covered with loose earth. The 9-case is similar, 

 but larger, more ovate, with the spirals less distinct. The cases are found on the sunny side of cliffs, usually 

 partly concealed in crevices and holes. The larvae are biennial and live on Helianthemum, Satureia, Teucrium 

 and Thymus. Pupa brownish. The moth appears the end of June or beginning of August. — In the Pyrenees, 

 also recorded from Alger. 



A. crenulella Brd. (= helicinella Ramb., helix Claus) (55 g). The ^ has dust-grey delicate wmgs with crenuUlla. 



