IN THE BRITISH ISLANDS. 9 



with Treitschke's annexa and gives it as a distinct species "very 

 common throughout North America," whilst he gives subterranea, Fab. 

 as a var. of annexa, " smaller than the smallest annexa, squarer winged, 

 more streaked and sometimes recalling certain varieties of our aquilina. 

 From the Isle of St. Thomas and Antilles in the West Indies." He 

 then adds : " Agrotis annexa has passed and still passes among certain 

 entomologists as an European species. M. Boisduval gives it as 

 coming from the Crimea ; M. Stephens, as having taken it on the coast 

 of Essex and near Cork. Treitschke has described it as European with 

 doubt. For myself I firmly believe it to be an American species " 

 (' Noctuelles,' vol. v., p. 268). Whether or not annexa, Tr. is a purely 

 American species, as seems most probably the case, it is certain that 

 Stephens' British examples were simply small specimens of ypsilon 

 and therefore not synonymous with Treitschke's annexa. I have some 

 of these small specimens from Deal. 



/3. var. idonea, Cr. Cramer's idonea is referred by Guene'e as an 

 American variety of ypsilon, and from Guenee's remarks, the specimens 

 appear to vary inter se. Guenee writes (var. A) : " The American 

 specimens which Cramer has named idonea, vary according to the dis- 

 tricts in which they are found, but none appear to offer specific 

 characters. They are generally larger and more decidedly coloured 

 than ours, especially the females, in some of which the basal and 

 median spaces are often entirely black. Those from Columbia have 

 the lower half of the wing of a very pale testaceous, which shows up 

 conspicuously against the brown of the costa and of the cellule " 

 (' Noctuelles,' vol. v., p. 269). 



y. Guenee gives still another variety (var. B) from the West 

 Indies. He writes : " The specimens from the West Indies, on the 

 contrary, are smaller than ours, a little paler, with the markings less 

 distinct ; the black streaks are narrower, and the terminal space is 

 almost concolorous " ( Noctuelles,' vol. v., p. 269). 



8. var. pallida, mihi. With the outer area of the anterior wings 

 of a pale whitish colour without the ochreous colour of typical speci- 

 mens, otherwise like the type. My specimen of this variety is a 

 female and came from Lewis in the Hebrides. 



Agrotis, Och., segetum, Schiff. 



The type of this abundant species is figured in Schiffermueller's 

 < Ankundungeines systemat. Werkes von den Schmet. der Weiner- 

 gegend ' (1775), Plate 1. b, fig. 3. The type is figured with " pec- 

 tinated antennae ; anterior wings unicolorous dark reddish-brown, 

 with a dark shade under the base of the median nervure for about 

 one-eighth of an inch in length, orbicular oblong, scarcely discernible, 

 faintly outlined in a slightly darker shade than the ground colour ; 

 claviform more distinct, outlined in darker ; reniform pale, ringed with 

 darker, then a pale ring outside this, which is again outlined in darker; 

 a faint, slightly pale, wavy line parallel to the hind margin, a double 

 line near the inner margin just below the reniform (lunular in shape, 

 the concave side turned outwards). Posterior wings white with a 

 bluish tinge and dark nervures." Plate I., fig. 3 is the larva of this 

 very distinct species. This is an excessively variable species both in 

 ground colour and markings and it is, therefore, not surprising that 



