232 - THE HERALD-MOTH. 



the Herald, from an idea that its appearance gave 

 indication of the approach of winter. The expan- 

 sion of the wings is from an inch and a half to an 

 inch and a quarter ; the thorax and anterior wings 

 reddish-grey, with an irregular red patch at the 

 base, a round white spot on the disk of each, and 

 two oblique transverse white bands, one a little 

 below the middle, the other a little behind it : from 

 the outer band to the apex the colour is grey with 

 minute dusky points, the space traversed by a very 

 faint waved whitish streak. The rufous patch is 

 sprinkled with minute yellow dots, and there is a 

 distinct row of small white marks along the central 

 nervure. The underwings are brownish, becoming 

 darker towards the hinder margin; the abdomen 

 inclining to red with a few faint dorsal marks ; the 

 thorax with a dusky line on the back and a trans- 

 verse streak of the same colour. Legs greyish ; the 

 tarsi white, spotted with rust-red. The caterpillar, 

 which is slender and naked, is green with a white 

 line on each side, and red stigmata. The principal 

 generic distinctions of Scoliopteryx are the lengthened 

 palpi clothed with long capitate scales, the radical 

 joint shortest, the other two rather long and stout 

 and nearly of equal length ; antennae short and 

 strong, bipectinated to the apex in the males, slightly 

 serrated in the females ; proboscis rather short, kead 

 and thorax each with a crest anteriorly ; anterior 

 wings deeply emarginate on the hinder edge and 

 somewhat dentate ; the hinder pair very slightly 

 dentate. 



