|uly, 1892]. 



PSYCHE, 



291 



Ceruka albicoma Strecker. 



1SS4 — Strk., Proc. acad. nat. sci. Phil., 

 284. 



Habitat — Colorado. 



Cerura paradoxa Behr. 



1885 — Behr, Bull. Cal. acad. sci., i, 64. 

 Head, thorax and legs clothed with dense 

 white hairs, slightly tinged with cinereous 

 on the collar, and banded on the thorax cen- 

 trally with black and orange scales; abdomen 

 cinereous, banded with white on the poste- 

 rior edges of the segments. Fore wings 

 silvery white, the transverse bands usually 

 absent, but not diffused as in Cerura tneri- 

 dionalis. When present they are faint, 

 smoky gray, the inner one excavate on the 

 inner side, nearly straight on the outer and 

 slightly incised on the median and internal 

 veins. (The outer is absent on all the speci- 

 mens before me.) A black dot at base on 

 median vein; just beyond it, another on the 

 subcostal; further out, five more in a curved 

 line, the first extending from costa to costal 

 vein, second on the subcostal vein, third on 

 the median, fourth on internal and fifth on 

 the internal margin. The transverse band is 

 represented by scattered, small gray scales; 

 its margin defined in black on the costa and 

 median vein, and strongly marked with 

 orange scales on the costa, median and inter- 

 nal veins and internal margin. Beyond the 

 band, are five black dots, on the costa, sub- 

 costal, median and internal veins respectively, 

 and on the internal margin, the third just at 

 the origin of vein 2. Median space white 

 with a smoky gray transverse line, inwardly 

 produced on the submedian fold. In some 

 specimens this is very faint, but not more so 

 than the other markings. Just beyond it, 

 are two rows of venular dots, representing 

 the outer band and separated by a space of 

 from \ to 1 mm. The inner row is black, the 

 outer orange, and in one specimen they are 

 the only distinct markings. Terminal space 

 clear white, except a very few inconspicuous 

 small gray scales near costal margin. Ter- 

 minal intervenular dots distinct, black, but 

 variable in size from small to large. 



Hind wings non-lustrous white, with the 

 blackish terminal dots. 



Below white, an extra-mesial gray shade 

 line on fore wings and discal spots on both 

 pair. Terminal dots as above. 



Expanse, 37-42 mm. 



A decidedly variable species, especially in 

 the distinctness of maculation. 



Var. placida, ;/. var. 



This is the form in which the smoky gray 

 transverse bands are evident at first glance, 

 and the characteristic aspect of the species is 

 much modified thereby. The form is rare, 

 occurring only in two or three females out ot 

 the large number of specimens in Dr. Behr's 

 collection. It is a partial reversion to the 

 usual type of marking in the genus Cerura. 



Habitat — Nevada Co., California. 



Cerura meridioxalis, n. sp. 



Head, collar, and patagia white, thorax 

 centrally mixed with blackish and a few 

 orange scales ; abdomen apparently pale gray, 

 banded with whitish, but in poor condition 

 in my specimens. Fore wings silvery white, 

 the usual bands and marks nearly lost, being 

 diffused and scattered into numerous black 

 scales, which cover nearly the whole surface. 

 Basal space white, except for a few dots r 

 composed of three or four clustered scales, 

 one at base and, further out, three more, on 

 costal, median and internal veins respective- 

 ly, the one on the median vein much further 

 out than the others. The transverse band con- 

 sists of black scattered irrorations on the 

 white ground, with a few orange scales about 

 the median and internal veins. Its shape 

 can be made out, being deeply excavate both 

 without and within, but not broken. It is 

 about 5 mm. wide on internal margin, a 

 little narrower on costa and only a little over 

 1 mm. wide in its narrowest part below med- 

 ian vein. Median space white, with sparse- 

 ly, and irregularly distributed black irrora- 

 tions. The outer band is represented by 

 scattered black irrorations, which extend to 

 the outer margin, but become more dense 

 near the inner border of the band, which is 

 quite sharply defined in one specimen, being 



