PREFACE. 



THE three families dealt with in the present volume, the 

 Arctiida, Agaristidte, and Noctuida, are very closely allied 

 and in some cases difficult to discriminate. The Arctiida may 

 be distinguished from the Noctuida by vein 8 of the hind wing 

 anastomosing with vein 7 to the middle of the cell, though a 

 few of the lower forms of the Noctuida have a similar structure, 

 especially in the Sarrothripina, which are closely allied to the 

 Nolince, the lowest subfamily of the ArctiidtSj and almost 

 grade into them. 



The Noctuida are a large family of Moths dominant at the 

 present day, and consist of several subfamilies and a very large 

 number of genera and species with such slight diversities of 

 structure and pattern as to make a satisfactory classification 

 of them far more difficult than of any other family. The 

 lowest forms are those of which the larvae have four pairs of 

 abdominal prolegs, and the perfect insects have vein 5 of the 

 hind wing fully developed and from the centre of the disco- 

 cellulars this ancestral form being only found in some 

 Deltoidirue and Sarrothripinte. 



From this type has developed, firstly the subfamilies with 

 vein 5 of the hind wing fully formed : (1) Deltoidince, (2) Fo- 

 cillina, (3) Quadrifina, (4) Gonopterina, (5) Stictopterin&j 

 (6) EuteliirHB, (7) Sarrothripina, (8) Palmdiince; secondly, 

 the subfamilies which have vein 5 of the hind wing obso- 

 lescent: (1) Acontiinte, (2) Trifina. 



The other family, the Agaristida, is a modification of the 

 Noctuidte, with the antennae more or less dilated towards the 

 extremity, and consists of a few genera with gaily coloured 

 species of diurnal or crepuscular habits. 



