SCARCE UMBER. 29I 



the south, and northwards to Aberdeenshire. There are but 

 two records Irom Ireland, and these are doubtful. 

 Abroad, the range extends to Amurland and Japan. 



Scarce Umber {Hybemia aurantiand). 



One specimen of each sex of this orange yellow species will 

 be found on Plate 120, where Fig. 7 represents the male, and 

 Fig. 9 the female ; the cross lines, in the male, are usually 

 distinct on all the wings, but those on the hind pair are 

 sometimes very faint, and occasionally absent. The ground 

 colour is paler in some specimens than in others, and there is 

 variation in the amount of purplish speckling, in the purplish 

 clouding following the second line, and in the submarginal 

 series of purplish marks of the fore wings. The marginal 

 dots are sometimes absent from the hind wings, most frequently 

 in specimens with faint cross lines on these wings. 



The eggs (Plate 125, Fig. 2), when I received them in 

 February, were purplish, or violet brown. 



The caterpillar is yellowish, inclining to ochreous, lined with 

 brown on the back, and striped with purplish on the sides ; 

 underside, dark purplish brown, inclining to blackish, and 

 striped with yellowish. It feeds in the spring, sometimes to 

 June, on oak, birch, blackthorn, etc., and may be found on the 

 leaves during the day. The moth is out in the latter part of 

 the year, from October, and is best obtained at night, when 

 sitting on the twigs of trees and bushes, but a specimen or two 

 may be found on tree-trunks, palings, etc., in the daytime. 



The species is widely distributed over England, and in some 

 parts it is common in woods ; also occurs in Wales. I n Scotland 

 it is very rare and local in Roxburghshire ; local and uncommon 

 in the Clyde area, and has been recorded from other parts of 

 the country up to Aberdeen. Rare in Ireland, but noted from 



