MAMESTRA. 3! 



The head and thorax are deep black, with a few scattered 

 yellowish hairs. The abdomen is ashy-grey with a rust- 

 coloured crest on the first segment, and a blackish-brown one 

 on the following segments. The antennae are also blackish, and 

 finely serrated in the male. The legs are blackish-brown, ringed 

 with white, and tufted above, especially in the male. 



The Dot. 



The fore-wings are coloured like the thorax, and are some- 

 times deep black, and sometimes with a purplish gloss. The 

 transverse lines are usually distinct, yellowish, bordered with 

 black. There is a half-line near the base, and the first trans- 

 verse line forms three curves. This and the second transverse 

 line, which is composed of small lunules filled in with black 

 on the concave side, form the boundaries of the central area. 

 The orbicular stigma is edged with black, and has a black 

 nucleus. The claviform stigma is dark, short, and hollow. 

 The reniform stigma is conspicuously white, and contains a 

 brownish lunule. The sub-marginal line is yellow. The 

 fringes are black, with a border of yellow dots, and are them- 

 selves dotted with yellowish, and strongly dentated. The 

 hind-wings are yellowish grey on their basal half, with brown 

 nervures and a central spot, Externally they are dotted with 

 black. The fringes are yellowish white. 



In some varieties the stigmata are more or less obsolete. 



