116 VARIETIES OP 



wings slaty-grey, with numerous dark brown shades, especially 

 along the inner margin ; a dark dot just above the anal angle ; 

 dark between stigmata ; three short black streaks at the base of the 

 costa. $ . With the same markings " (' Sammlung europ. Schmet.,' 

 figs. 582-583). Newman writes: "The moth appears on the wing 

 in June ; Mr. Doubleday has three British examples of this insect, 

 which were raised from caterpillars found feeding on the golden-rod 

 in Darenth wood. This species was described by the late Mr. 

 Stephens in his ' Illustrations of British Entomology,' vol. iii., p. 87, 

 under the name of Cucullia thapsiphaga, in 1829, and figured in the 

 1 Transactions of the Entomological Society of London,' vol. ii., pi. iii., 

 fig. 7, under the name of Cucullia solidaginis, in 1837. It is without 

 doubt the Cucullia gnaphalii of Continental authors " (' British Moths,' 

 p. 434:). Guenee writes : " Superior wings, as in abrotani, of an 

 ashy-grey, more or less tinged with yellowish, except at the extremity, 

 with the disc browner, in which the two ordinary stigmata stand out 

 conspicuously, being near one another, almost equal in size, irregular, 

 grey with the centres brown " etc. (' Noctuelles,' vol. vi., p. 134:). 



Cucullia, Schrk., absinthii, Linn. 



The strangest point in the variation of this species is connected 

 with the stigmata. The reniform is made of four o's arranged in 

 contact like a double figure 8, the orbicular is also 8-shaped. One 

 specimen I have, has the orbicular made of 6 distinct dots, another 

 with 3, but generally there are only 2, corresponding with the upper 

 and lower parts of an 8. There is some little difference in size, and 

 the shade between the reniform and orbicular makes some difference 

 in the depth of the colour in the central area according to the amount 

 of its development. The sexes are similar. The type is thus described 

 by Linnseus : " Noctua spirilinguis cristata, alis cinerascentibus 

 nigricante fasciatis punctatisque ; inferioribus albidis." " Media. 

 Alee superiores canescentes, striataa : fascire dua3, nigricantes, undata3, 

 inaequales ; inter has puncta 4 minima in tetragonum disposita ; 

 margo posticus nigro punctatus. Alas inferiores albidee, subtus puncto 

 nigro " (' Fauna Suecicas,' p. 314). 



Cucullia, Schrk., chamomillce, Schiff., Fab. 



This species varies considerably in tint, and hence has several 

 named varieties. Schiffermiiller and Denis in the ' Systematisches 

 Verzeichniss ' &c., give no specific description of the imago but 

 correctly connect the species by means of the larva with its food 

 plant. They say : " It may perhaps be supposed that this is the 

 larva which Kosel figured without the moth, and called ' the camomile ' 

 larva in the heading. This error must be cleared up. Kosel's larva 

 is our second species, which we always find on Artemisia or the allied 

 plants. Even Kosel remembers that it is said to be found on ' Stab- 

 wurz.' Our third species, which feeds on flowers of camomile is very 

 different from the former, and much more strikingly marked" etc. 

 (' Sys. Verz.' etc., p. 73). I have therefore had to take Fabricius' as 

 the typical description. He writes : " Noctua cristata alis anticis 

 lanceoletis striatis canis : punctis duobus centralibus minutissimis 

 nigris, subtus immaculatis." " Nimis affinis N. nmbraticce. vix dis- 



