68 VARIETIES OF NOCTILa 



Anterior wings of a deep umber-brown, with two pale (slightly ochreous) 

 transverse basal lines, and a paler orbicular ; reniform white (sometimes 

 reticulated), and standing on a white geminated line (part of median 

 nervure); a pale oblique transverse streak from apex to inner margin, 

 and a pale wavy line parallel to hind margin. In the ' Entomologist,' 

 vol. xxiii., p. 13, I described this var. as intermedia, but it is referable to 

 Haworth's lunina. His description is : " Noctua. Alse anticae pallide 

 castanese margine postico fusco. Stigmata ordinaria in superiore parte 

 maculae fasciae formis, quae macula margines non attingit. Anterius 

 stigma, rotundum margine pallescente solum conspicuum, subinde 

 obliteratum ; exterius lunatum, album vel medio griseum. Margo 

 posticus fascia tenui ustulato-fusca. Alse posticse fuscescentes " (' Le- 

 pidoptera Britannica,' p. 209). (2) fiavo-lunina. The same as albo- 

 lunina, but reniform ochreous. I have var. lunina from Wicken and 

 Sligo ; Mr. Collins also takes this variety in the neighbourhood of 

 Warrington. The Irish specimens are particularly bright, but not red, 

 like Hiibner's fibrosa. 



y. var. fibrosa, Hb. Hiibner's figure 385, fibrosa, may be described 

 as : " Anterior wings bright red, with dark greyish outer margin, 

 and darker red round the stigmata ; reniform very pale. Hind wings 

 as in leucostigma" This form may occur in Britain, but I have never 

 seen specimens nor heard of any captures at all resembling it. The 

 nearest approach I have are some clearly marked, ruddy-looking speci- 

 mens from Wicken, which I label as " var. fibrosa (?)." Mr. Dobrde 

 writes : " The fibrosa from Canada, are of a more generally sombre 

 colouring, but otherwise similarly marked to the European ones " (in 

 litt). 



Axylia, Hb., putris, L. 



The type of this species is described by Linnaeus as : " Noctua 

 spirilinguis cristata, alis deflexis obsoletis subpunctatis, margine 

 exteriore fusco adjecta macula subocellari." " Color ligni putride, ut 

 in exsoleta s. verbasci, sed brevis " (' Systema Naturae,' p. 850, No. 152). 

 Haworth describes the species as : " Alae pallidse sive flavicantes 

 costi late fusca," &c. (' Lepidoptera Britannica,' p. 172, No. 34); whilst 

 Guenee describes it as : " Superior wings of a very clear, pale yellow, 

 with the costa broadly brown," &c. (' Noctuelles,' vol. v., p. 134). 

 Hiibner figures the species under the name of lignosa, and his figure 

 (245, by error 215) is not quite typical, the anterior wings being 

 "yellowish ochreous with black markings." Newman, in his ' British 

 Moths,' p. 282, describes the species as " pale wainscot-brown, with 

 dark umber-brown markings." These seem to be the chief points 

 of variation, viz., the ground colour varying from whitish or pale 

 yellowish to dark ochreous or wainscot-brown, and the markings from 

 brown to black. I have both forms in my cabinet. Those with 

 typical pale yellow wings and black markings would appear to be the 

 sicca of Guenee. Mr. Kuss has sent me a specimen from Sligo with a 

 distinct dark shade, reaching from the base of the reniform to the 

 inner margin. 



a. var. lignosa, Hb. Ground colour yellowish-ochreous instead of 

 pale yellow or whitish ; the ordinary markings black instead of brown, 

 much irrorated with fuscous dots. A full description of Hiibner's 



