96 HAUSTELLATA. — LEPIDOPTERA. 



Few specimens of this species have been captured near London; 

 two or three, however, have been taken on the downs near Croydon. 

 and I believe some have occurred in Epping- forest : — the insect 

 has been found abundantly on the South Downs, and on the hills 

 near Dover : it has also appeared in Norfolk, and in Bedfordshire. 



Genus CXLIV. — Abrostola, Oclisenheimer. 



Palpi rather long^ ascending, slender; the terminal joint greatly exposed, 

 elongate, attenuated; basal joint arcuated, slender, about half the length of 

 the second, which is nearly straight, slightly attenuated at the apex, terminal 

 as long as the basal, sublinear, elongate: viaxillw rather long. Antennae 

 simple in both sexes, rather slender, pubescent within in the males: head 

 small, with a crest between the antennae : eyes globose, naked : thorax stout, 

 with the anterior margin having two more or less ocellated spots ; the back 

 with a dense elongate bifid crest : abdomen moderately elongate, with compact 

 fascicles of scales down the back, especially towards the base : wings obso- 

 letely indented : anterior elongate- triangular, without metallic spots or strigse ; 

 the anterior stigma duplicated, as it were, and placed obliquely across the disc, 

 the scales on its edge frequently elevated : cilia very long. Larva, with the 

 anterior segments attenuated, the fourth rather gibbous, the caudal one with 

 one or two prominences; with sixteen legs, the anterior pair of prolegs 

 rather small : pupa enclosed in a soft foUiculus on the earth. 



The insects of this genus are rather nocturnal than diurnal, 

 though the less typical may be observed " vringing their way" in 

 the solar rays during the afternoon : they may be distinguished from 

 the Plusise, with which they nearly agree in the external appear- 

 ance of the palpi, by the anterior wings being destitute of metallic 

 ornament, although in A. illustris they are extremely similar in 

 form to those of the Plusise, with which genus Treitschke unites 

 them, though manifestly improper ; the larvae having sixteen legsj 

 the two anterior prolegs being smallest, while in Plusia they 

 possess but twelve. 



Sp. 1. triplasia. Alls anticis fuscis, basiflavescentlbus, arcu duplici contrario ; 



stigmatibus tribus pallidioribus, posticis fuscis. (Exp. alar. 1 unc. 4 — 5 lin.) 

 Ph. No. triplasia. Linne. — Ab. triplasia. ,Steph. Catal. part ii. p. 104. 



No. 6370. 



Head deep brown, with a transverse black streak : thorax ochraceous-brown, 

 with two obscurely subocellated spots in front, bounded by a fuscous line ; ths 

 crest immaculate ; anterior wings, with the base of an obscure rusty-griseous, 

 or yellowish, bounded by an arcuated black striga, edged with griseous an- 



