ARGYEAM(EBA. 229 



Described from a single perfect example in the Indian Museum 

 from Lahore, 8. v. 1908. 



177. Argyramceba niveisquamis, Bntn. 



Argyramccba niveisquamis, Brunetti, Rec. Ind. Mus. ii, p. 472 

 (1909). 



$ . Head : frons widening gradually from one-fifth the width 

 of the head on the moderately wide vertex (where the ocelli are 

 very close together on a very reduced tubercle) to fully one-third 

 the width at the level ot the antennae ; frons and face densely 

 covered with long drooping snow-white scales, with a few longer 

 thin black hairs intermixed, also (more numerously) white bristles, 

 which are longer than the scales ; oral orifice oblong, white ; pro- 

 boscis (in one specimen, the other is headless) wholly withdrawn ; 

 antennae black, second joint very short, third blackish grey, onion- 

 shaped, tip drawn out into a blunt definite style; (there is no 

 trace of the usual pencil of hairs, but the antenna?, of which only 

 one remains, may be incomplete) ; back of head and underside 

 dark grey, thickly covered with snow-white scales. Thorax 

 black, almost wholly covered witli snow-white bristly hairs, which 

 are longest in front (below), in front of the wings and below 

 them ; the hairs become scaly in places, and on the posterior 

 border of the scutellum is a moderately thick band of white scales. 

 Abdomen black, the segments covered thickly with short creamy- 

 white and snow-white scales; a fan-shaped bunch of sno*v-white, 

 comparatively softer, long hairs on the anterior corners; a few 

 long scattered black bristles on the dorsum, and, rather more 

 numerously, along the sides of the abdomen. Venter with scaly 

 and bristly hairs mixed ; tip of abdomen with a few rather long 

 brownish-yellow bristly hairs, with some longer fine black hairs 

 below. Leys: femora dark brown, with closely-set small snow-white 

 scales ; posterior femora with isolated strong black bristles ; tibiae 

 pale brown, with silvery snow-white scales and more numerous 

 short black spiny bristles ; tarsi brown, with scattered small white 

 scales, tips of each joint blackish, claws black. Wings clear, at 

 the base of the costa a bunch of snow-white scales with some 

 black bristles intermixed; a very small brown suffusion at the 

 base of the third vein and on the discal cross-vein; mediastiual 

 and marginal veins brown, also the narrow intervening space. 

 A strong appendix at the base of the second vein and at the base 

 of the fork of the third vein; discal cell rather long; second 

 posterior cell two-and-a-half times as wide on wing-border as at 

 base. Halteres pale brown, club much lighter; tegulae whitish, 

 nearly transparent, with a fringe of very short white hairs. 



Length, 78 mm. 



Described from two specimens in the Indian Museum from 

 Baluchistan (one headless). 



I thought this might be nivea of Koss or perhaps Griffini s var. 

 lioiji, but no mention is made by them of the scales with which it 



