110 VARIETIES OF NOCTTLSE 



stigmata ; a wavy transverse line just beyond reniform, followed by 

 four short longitudinal wedge-shaped spots. The dark longitudinal 

 mark under the stigmata in Newman's figure (' British Moths,' p. 298) 

 is absent. The hind wings dark grey on outer edge, with pale base 

 and distinct lunule." Staudinger says : " forma, al. ant. fere unicolor 

 magis nigris." I rather fail to follow how Staudinger can call Hiib- 

 ner's figure " almost unicolorous " ; it certainly is much more varie- 

 gated than many specimens we get, as the above description clearly 

 shows, but apparently much less so than the ordinary continental form 

 which he has named variegata. The most unicolorous forms that I 

 have seen are : (I) a fine steely grey form from the coast of Lan- 

 cashire, var. fribolus ; (2) a fine black form from North Kent, var. 

 nigro-distincta ; and (3) an ochreous grey form, var. unicolor. Some of 

 my specimens much resemble Hiibner's type (although I have never 

 seen a British specimen exactly like it), others are like Newman's 

 figure, besides the unicolorous forms. There is really very little doubt 

 that this species is in reality polymorphic, closely resembling its near 

 allies, the members of the genus Apamea, in this respect. It would 

 be impossible to classify the different forms except in a most general 

 way. Guenee does so by classifying them into those with ground 

 colour " grey-brown," and those with ground colour " grey black." 

 He writes : " This species offers, like albicolon, two varieties : one of 

 a grey-brown and one of a grey-black. The first is the type of Hiib- 

 ner. The markings are rarely so well marked as in the figure of that 

 author." Guenee then divides the form with a black ground colour 

 into two varieties, the fribolus of Boisduval, an almost .unicolorous 

 blackish form, and var. B, a black form with the markings more dis- 

 tinct. The lunulina of Haworth agrees pretty correctly with Hiibner's 

 type. His summarised description is : " Noctua alis fuscis strigis 

 lunularum pallidarum " (' Lepidoptera Britannica,' p. 192, No. 92). 

 We thus get the following forms: 

 1. Anterior wings much variegated with black and white markings 



= var. variegata, Stdgr. 

 2. Brownish-grey ground colour, with distinct markings = abjecta, 



Hb. 



3. Ochreous or brownish-grey, with no markings = var. unicolor. 

 4. Blackish-grey, with distinct markings = var. nigro-distincta. 

 5. Deep greyish-black, with indistinct markings = var. fribolus, 

 Bdv., = nigricans, Freyer. 



a. var. variegata, Stdgr. Staudinger's description of this variety 

 is as follows : " Al. ant. thoraceque albido nigroque variis." I do not 

 think many of our specimens have much white about them. The most 

 variegated British specimen 1 have seen belongs to Mr. Robson, and 

 was captured near Hartlepool. This is much irrorated with whitish 

 scales, and variegated with black ; I have one from Shoeburyness less 

 strongly marked. I would include all grey or brown, irrorated and 

 variegated specimens under this name. 



/3. var. unicvlor, mihi. Anterior wings of a brownish-grey colour, 

 with an ochreous tinge, and with no distinct markings. This is our 

 more general unicolorous form, and is much more frequent than the 

 blackish grey unicolorous variety. On the east coast of Britain it is the 

 form more often met with than any other. I have it from Strood, the 



