98 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 
TEPHROSIA CREPUSCULARIA AND T. BIUNDULARIA. 
By J. W. Tort. 
I THINK many of our entomologists will disagree with the 
remarks of your correspondent the Rev. G. A. Smallwood 
(Entom. 89) that Tephrosia crepuscularia and T. biundularia 
cannot be definitely distinguished. Perhaps they cannot, very 
well, in a written description; but there is a good deal in the 
general appearance of the insects which serves to distinguish 
these moths as the distinct species I believe them undoubtedly 
to be. I believe, too, if the times of appearance were carefully 
studied that mistakes would be few and far between. In our 
southern woods Tephrosia crepuscularia occurs in March and 
the early part of April; these are generally of a large size. A 
second brood occurs in nature in the middle of July; these are 
much smaller, not larger than ordinary T’. luridata (extersaria), 
whilst the first brood are about the size of an average 
T. consonaria. ‘The markings of these may be fairly called a 
warm brownish grey; and in the different forms I have from 
various localities, where I have no doubt of the date, this remark 
as to colour holds good. 
Tephrosia biundularia occurs on the wing in the latter part 
of May and in June. In an ordinary season the last fortnight 
of May can be generally depended on to get fine specimens. The 
typical 7’. biundularia are much whiter in ground colour than 
T'. crepuscularia,—especially is this the case with the females, — 
and, although slightly marbled with pale brown, this colour 
seems independent of, and does not form a part of, the ground 
colour, as in the allied species. The black lines in 7’. biundularia 
seem more decidedly black and sharply marked (probably owing 
to the cleaner ground colour) than in 7’. crepuscularia. 
The different intermediate forms leading up to the beautiful 
varieties obtainable in these species will perhaps show more 
clearly what I mean, when I say that generally these forms of 
T’. crepuscularia lead up to insects totally suffused with dark 
brown, and in 7’. biundularia they lead up to specimens which, in 
their extreme forms, are totally suffused with blackish grey. I 
have a beautiful series of this latter insect, the varieties coming 
chiefly from Barnsley and Derby. Those from Barnsley are 
