104 VARIETIES OF NOOTUJE 



to the Shetland form of this species, as well as to the small Scotch f estiva- 

 like form, under the name of conflua. These Scotch specimens are un- 

 doubtedly fe*tiva, the Shetland species being the true conflua. There 

 is one special point of variation in the genus worthy of notice ; I refer 

 to the C-like mark passing round the orbicular in the three closely allied 

 species triangulum, ditrapezium and c-nigrum. It is formed of two quadrate 

 spots, one, between the orbicular and reniform, the other, beyond the 

 orbicular (nearer to the base). In c-nigrum, these two spots are always 

 joined by a line passing under the orbicular ; in ditrapezium, they are 

 more often joined than not in my own series, about three-quarters 

 are thus joined ; in triangulum, there are much fewer specimens having 

 them joined than distinct. The shape of the mark thus made varies 

 greatly, from two solid blocks with a line joining them, to a solid- 

 looking letter C, whilst frequently the normally quadrate spots become 

 somewhat triangular in shape, and thus tend more or less to obsolescence. 

 It is remarkable that the same superficial mark is developed in Tasnio- 

 campa gothica and goes through the same gradations. 



Noctua, Linn., castanea, Esp. 



Esper's diagnosis of the type of this species is : " Alis superiori- 

 bus supra rufis ; inferioribus supra, omnibus subtus iiigricantibus" 

 ( Die Schmet.' &c., p. 27). His fig. 1 1, PI. 187, of the same work may 

 be described as : " Unicolorous bright red, with white nervures on 

 outer margin." This is the cerasina of Guenee but not of Freyer. 

 Guende writes : " This does not differ absolutely from neglecta, except 

 by its deep brick-red colour, which absorbs the stigmata and a part of 

 the markings, otherwise I should consider it a simple variety. How- 

 ever, I leave the question to be finally settled by those who shall rear 

 and compare the larvae of the two species. I may add, to make the 

 matter clearer, that I have more than once found varieties of neglecta 

 very similar to Freyer's figure (of cerasina) " (' Noctuelles,' v., pp. 386 

 and 337). There are, in this species, three ordinarily common forms 

 the red form = the type, an intermediate form = var. cerasina and a dark 

 grey form = var. neglecta. Besides these, and far more beautiful than 

 either of them, there is a variety, a specimen of which has kindly been 

 given to me by Mr. Home of Aberdeen, and named as var. pallida. 

 In the * Entomologist,' vol. x., p. 32, we read : " Eelvetina was intro- 

 duced into the British list in error. The examples turn out to be the 

 red variety (castanea, Esp., which is really the type) of Noctua neglecta " 

 (' Entom.,' viii., 135). I am assured by Mr. W. G. Sheldon, that this is not 

 so, but that the pale specimen is a variety of Graphiphora augur (ante p. 1 03). 



a. var. neglecta, Hb. This is treated as the type by Guenee, and 

 Staudinger writes of it: " Grisea-quse var. frequentior " (' Catalog,' p. 

 81). This form seems to have a much wider range than the type, 

 which appears to be practically restricted to Britain and Germany. 

 Hiibner's type has " the fore wings of a dull grey colour ; with an 

 abbreviated, followed by a complete, wavy, black transverse line ; the 

 stigmata outlined in darker ; basal part of reniform filled in with 

 black ; an indistinct elbowed line beyond the reniform followed by a 

 row of dots, then by a broad red subterminal line intersected throughout 

 its length by a pale one ; fringes reddish. Hind wings dark grey, 

 paler base (no markings)" (* Sammlung europ. Schmet.,' fig. 160). 

 This grey form is the commonest of all the varieties of castanea. J* 

 occurs in all localities where the species is found in Britain. 



