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XIV. Synonymic notes on the moths of the earlier genera of 

 Noctuites. By ARTHUR G. BUTLER, F.L.S., F.Z.S. 



[Bead June 5th, 1889.] 



DURING a recent re-arrangement of the genera Agrotis, 

 Mamestra, and allies, I have discovered a considerable 

 number of synonyms, which I now propose to record. 

 In my re-arrangement I have in the main followed the 

 classification employed in A. E. Grote's ' Check List of 

 North American Moths ' of 1882, as being on the whole 

 more natural than that of Lederer (adopted by Staudinger 

 and Wocke) ; at the same time I have, to a certain 

 extent, broken up the very heterogeneous group Agrotis, 

 and, on the other hand, have amalgamated the homo- 

 geneous material separated under the names Mamestra, 

 Apamea, Hadena, &c. In some instances, as in the 

 case of Triphcena, I have adopted the generic name 

 rather as representing a well-marked and easily recog- 

 nised group than because it actually possesses any 

 strictly generic value ; but, as a rule, I have endeavoured 

 to use only such names as appear to represent groups 

 differing structurally from their nearest allies, though 

 occasionally the structural distinctions are slight, and 

 such as might be considered by some lepidopterists 

 insufficient. It should, I think, always be borne in 

 mind that the object of genera is to simplify as much 

 as possible the study of nature, and therefore, that in 

 the arrangement of such unwieldly genera as Agrotis, 

 any single structural character ought to be considered 

 sufficient, if it enables the student to break them up into 

 groups of more manageable dimensions. 



t 



AGROTIS, Ochs. 



I have restricted this genus to species the males of 

 which have either pectinated or serrated antennae, the 

 serrations terminating in short cilia-like pencils. The 

 type of the genus is A. segetis. 



TRANS. ENT. SOC. LOND. 1889. PART III. (OCT.) 



