NOCTUID.l':. ACHATIA. 19 



Sp. 1. porphyrea. Alis anticis purpureis, strigis punctisqjte albis quihusdam 

 nigro marginatis, posticis cinerascentibus. (Exp. alar. 10 — 14 lin.) 



No. porphyrea. Wien. T.— No. Ericae. Don. x. pi. 360. f. 1.— Sc. porphyrea. 

 Steph. Catal. pt. ii. p. 87. No. 6252. 



Head and thorax of a bright rufous-purple, varied with white : anterior wings 

 also bright rufous-purple, a httle clouded with black, the costa with a few 

 white spots; at the base are two irregular white, somewhat anastomosing, 

 strigae, from the outer of which arises an elongate or teliforra stigma, having 

 a black margin, between which and the costa is the usual anterior stigma, 

 which is white, round, small, and mostly immaculate : beyond this is the 

 posterior stigma, which is white, with the centre ashy ; from a white spot on 

 the costa, placed midway between the stigmata, a white striga arises, which 

 is considerably arcuated^ and dentate externally, and hounded interiorly with 

 fuscous ; beyond this is another striga of white streaks, and on the hinder 

 margin is an interrupted black hue : ciha rufescent : posterior wings cinereous, 

 with an interrupted marginal black streak. 

 Caterpillar feeds upon heath of various kinds. 



Not common : found towards the end of July on the heaths near 

 Birch-wood, and in the New Forest. " Martou Lodge, Yorkshire." 

 — L. Rudd, Esq. 



Genus CXVL — Achatia, Hubner. 



Palpi very short, nearly concealed by long hairs, the terminal joint not visible ; 

 the two basal joints robust, the first as long again and stouter than the second, 

 sHghtly ctirved, second attenuated, the apex truncate, third minute, cyhndric, 

 truncate : maxillae elongate. AntennoB rather long, slender, and simple in the 

 females, subserrated, and rather robust in the males, pubescent beneath: head 

 minute, scarcely visible from above : eyes small, naked : thorax large, downy, 

 wings deflexed during repose ; anterior entire, obtuse : abdomen short, rather 

 stout, pubescent pn the sides, and at the apex. Caterpillar naked, smooth : 

 pupa subterranean. 



The nearly concealed, minute, and singular palpi of Achatia, 

 •with the small head, large pubescent thorax, stout, subserrated an- 

 tennse, and short downy abdomen, sufficiently distinguish it from 

 any other genus of Noctuidae. Like the rest of the early vernal 

 genera, as Orthosia, Eriogaster, Biston, Amphidasis, &c., the thorax, 

 both above and belovk^, is clothed with a dense woolly pubescence. 



Sp. 1. piniperda. Alis anticis ferrugineo Jlavoque variis,stigmatibus ordinariis 



confluentibus. (Exp. alar. 1 unc. 4—6 lin.) 

 No. pipiperda. Kob.—Ks,. piniperda. Steph. Catal. part \\. p. 87. No. 6253. 



— Ac. spreta. Curtis, n\. pi 117. 



Head and thorax ochraceous, tinted with rosy, the latter more or less spotted 

 with white : anterior wings very variable, ferruginous, varied with yellowish 

 or ochraceous, sometimes ochi;?iceous clouded with rosy-red ; at the base is 



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