114-115 ''^■■'y' 



A NEW ABERRATION OF EPHYRA PENDULARIA, L. 

 BY F. C. WOODFORDE, B.A., F.E.S. 



Reprinted from " The Entomologist's Monthly Magazine" 2nd Series, Vol. xxi. 



In 1908 I obtained batches of ova from two bred females of 

 Ephyra pendularia, L., ab. subroseata, mihi. One of the females 

 was paired with a bred male, the other with a very worn wild male. 

 No partial emergence took place in August of that year though about 

 eight of the pupse were discovered dead in September with completely 

 developed imagines inside the pupa case. In May and June, 1909, 

 emergence took place, and over thirty perfect imagines were produced. 

 The majority were ab. s7ihroseata, but eleven were of a coloration I 

 have never seen before. They differ from ab. subroseata (of which 

 aberration a description may be found in the " Entomologist," vol. 

 XXXV, p. 275) as follows : — The central portion of the fore- wings 

 is pale ochreous instead of being red. The hind-vnngs are entirely 

 grey. In other respects the form closely resembles ab. subroseaia. 

 The ocelli are distinct on both sets of wings. The second line, con- 

 sisting of very distinct black dots, is continued through both wings, 

 and is followed by a distinct whitish band. The cilia are pale grey 

 preceded by a well-marked dark grey line. This form is very distinct 

 from ab. subroseata, and I would suggest as a name for it ab. suboch- 

 rea.ta. Unfortunately, as it has turned out, I fed up the larvae of the 

 two batches together and so am in ignorance of the male parentage 

 of the new form, as to whether it was a bred subroseata, or the worn 

 wild male. The latter was of the subroseata type, but the colour of 

 the central part was so faded as to be unrecognisable, and it may have 

 been pale ochreous. It was taken in ISTorth Staffordshire to which 

 district I believe the form subroseata is confined. Last June I paired 

 two of the ochreous form and now^ have pupae whose emergence is due 

 next month. 



The type specimen of the new form I have given to Prof. Poulton, 

 and it is now in the Collection in the Hope Department, Oxford 

 University Museum of British Lepidoptera. 



Market Drayton .- 



April, 1910. 



