IN THE BRITISH ISLANDS. 61 



His description ( Lepidoptera Britannica,' p. 240) is as follows: 

 "Alis fusco-ferrugineis obsolete auratis fusco strigatis, stigmate reni- 

 formi albo-aureo." Haworth undoubtedly treated this as distinct, 

 because of the golden colour of the reniform. He says : " From its 

 reniform stigma being of the colour of pure gold, it has obtained 

 appropriately enough, the appellation of the ' golden ear.' " This 

 variety is intermediate between the type with white, and var. erythro- 

 stigma with red, reniform stigma. The specimen from which this 

 variety, 'Entom.' xxi., Plate i., fig. 11, was taken, was captured at 

 Deal. 



8. var. erythrostigma, Haw. Haworth's description of this variety 

 (also treated as a distinct species) is as follows : " Alis griseo rufe- 

 scentibus, strigis variis tenuissimis saturatioribus, stigmate rotundo 

 reniformique runs. Alse posticae subfuscae ciliis rufescentibus. 

 Stigma subinde fere obliteratum est " (' Lepidoptera Britannica,' p. 

 240). This variety is of the same colour as the type, but the reniform 

 stigma is red instead of white (' Entomologist,' xxi., Plate i., fig. 10). 

 It occurs everywhere with the type. I have specimens from Rannoch 

 and other Scotch localities, which differ in no way from others cap- 

 tured in London, Deal, and other southern localities. It is figured in 

 Newman's ' British Moths,' p. 280, and some remarks of Newman on 

 this variety are on the following page of the same work. Guenee says 

 of it : " Does not differ from ordinary specimens, except that the 

 reniform is reddish instead of white " (' Noctuelles,' vol. v., p. 126). 

 The specimen from which fig. 10 (' Entom.' xxi.) was taken was cap- 

 tured at Deal. 



e. var obscura, mihi. The ground colour of a very dark (inclining 

 to blackish) brown colour, with very little trace of the ferruginous 

 colour of the type ; the reniform stigma is white as in the type. Hind 

 wings darker than in the type, fringes paler. This melanic form 

 occurs but rarely. I have only taken it occasionally at Deal, and I 

 have a single specimen from Perth. This variety is figured ' Entom.' 

 xxi., Plate i., fig. 12, from a specimen captured at Deal. Subvar. obscura- 

 flavo, with a yellow reniform, and subvar. obscura-rufo with a red 

 or orange-red reniform, are, like the subvars. of pallida and rosea, very 

 rare. I have only seen one specimen of obscura-rufo which came from 

 Mr. Wylie of Perth. 



J. var. albicosta, mihi. A beautiful variety of this species with 

 the anterior wings and stigmata of the colour and appearance of the 

 type, but with a clear white longitudinal mark along the costa from 

 the base to the apex, was captured by Mr. Hope Alderson, at Famboro* 

 in 1888, and has since been added to my collection. 



Hydrcecia, Gn., lucens, Frr. 



Before I had examined a long series of specimens of this beautiful 

 form, I felt quite certain from the study of Freyer's and Herrich- 

 Schaffer's figures that lucens was only a large form of nictitans, and 

 stated so, 'Entom.' xxi., pp. 310-311. A considerable amount of 

 material has come to hand during the last two years, and my pre- 

 viously formed opinion has been very much shaken, and, although not 

 quite prepared to follow Freyer and Herrich-Schaffer in definitely 



