ON THE VARIATION OF INSECTS. 125 



five or six which appear to be identical with a pale variety (of 

 osseata), also sent to me by Dr. Staudinger. There is, however, 

 no doubt that the majority of specimens in our cabinets under 

 the name of osseata are i*eally interjectaria." This I quite agree 

 with ; the majority are of that particular form. And here our 

 greatest lepidopterist left it. I have in my own collection conti- 

 nental typical osseata with red costa, and pale varieties of the 

 same species identical with ours. My specimen of the former is 

 almost identical with a strongly-marked specimen I captured last 

 year within a hundred yards of my own house. The Rev. H. 

 Burney has a note (Entom. iv. 19), but I do not attach much 

 importance to it, for the most strongly marked of our own speci- 

 mens on the one hand, and the palest on the other, would make 

 two tolerably distinct series ; but this gentleman was the first to 

 give us dilutaria as a synonym. I do not find, however, that he 

 ever referred to the original figures or descriptions of Hiibner, 

 but based his note on the opinion of Dr. Staudinger as exem- 

 plified in the arrangement of the cabinet of Herr Kaltenbach. 

 Neither Mr. Doubledav nor Dr. Knaggs appear to have referred 

 to Hiibner, but took for granted what Mons. Guenee or Dr. 

 Staudinger considered correct. Yet this book is readily attainable. 

 Dr. Staudinger, apparently soon after this, came to the conclusion 

 that our species was specifically identical with ossearia, Hb. (teste 

 his ' Catalog '). Hufnagel's work cannot be referred to by British 

 lepidopterists, but so far as I have tested Dr. Staudinger's use of 

 this author he has always been correct. In conclusion I would 

 add that if anyone who has really long series from many different 

 localities will compare their specimens with Hiibner's figures, 

 they will be satisfied that Hiibner's ossearia is a strongly-marked 

 form of our species, and that interjectaria, Bdv., has no raison 

 d'etre. 



Westcombe Park, Blackheath, S.E. 



ON THE VARIATION OF INSECTS. 



Br T. D. A. COCKERELL. 

 (Continued from p. 100.) 



Summary and Remarks on Colour Varieties. 

 The portions of this paper which have already appeared were 

 written early in 1888, and hence some interesting facts more 

 recently made known to me have yet no place in it. In any case, 

 a subject of this kind cannot be in any sense finally treated, — at 

 least not until our knowledge is incomparably greater than it is 

 at the present day ; and any writer who discusses variation must 

 be prepared to consider every new fact or suggestion without 



