TV.— The Moths of South Africa (Part I.)— By Sm G. F. 

 Hampson, Bart., B.A., F.Z.S., &c. 



South Africa is the oldest British possession of any considerable 

 size of which no list of the Moths, or Lepidoptera Phalosnce, has ever 

 been published, and as there are now a considerable number of 

 •collectors in various parts of the territories, and a large number of 

 species have accumulated in collections, I think it is time that some- 

 thing was done to increase the literature so as to bring our knowledge 

 of the subject to nearer the level of that of the Butterflies, as given 

 in Mr. Eoland Trimen's most excellent work, and the many other 

 papers written on them. Beyond a few scattered descriptions and 

 figures almost our only sources of information are the figures in 

 Felder's Eeise Novarse, the descriptions in Zeller's Microlepidoptera 

 Caffrarum, and Wallengren's and Aurivillius' papers, so that the 

 subject may fairly be said to be almost a virgin one. 



The geographical limits I propose to assign to South Africa for 

 the present purpose are on the north the Zambesi and the southern 

 houndary of Angola. On the west this will form a natural division, 

 being approximately the limits of the arid and humid zones, but on 

 the east the Zambesi forms no zoological boundary, and the fauna 

 is continuous with that of East Africa, extending on the west to the 

 great Lakes and the Great Eift Valley, and on the north again 

 continuous with the fauna of Arabia, Persia, and North-West India. 



The three families dealt with in this first paper are the Syntomtdce, 

 Arctiadce, and Agaristidce, forming the upper part of the great branch 

 of the Phalmnce, with vein 5 of the forewing approximated to the 

 lower angle of the cell, in the SyntoviidcB vein 8 of the hindwing 

 being absent, in the ArctiadcB coincident with the cell to near or to 

 beyond middle, and in the Agaristidce arising free then anastomosing 



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