NOCTUID.^i:. — ^MORMO. 129 



One example of this only has occurred ; it was taken by the Rev. 

 W. Kirby, at Barhani, who kindly presented me with the speci- 

 men : — of its history nothing is known. 



Genus CLVIII. — Mormo, Ochsenheimer. 



Palpi rather short, densely clothed with scales, hair-like on the basal joint, the 

 terminal joint conspicuous, ovate-conic, acute; the basal joint about half the 

 length of the second, rather curved; the second elongate, slender, slightly 

 curved at the base, sublinear, obtuse ; terminal elongate, slightly attenuated 

 to the apex, which is somewhat acute ; maxillae shorter than the antennse. 

 AntenncB moderate, simple, slightly pubescent beneath in the males; head 

 smooth, densely squamous between the antennre ; eyes naked ; demmata 

 distinct; tliorax r-iihex stout, densely pilose, crested; abdoinen rather stout, 

 crested on the back, and with a small tuft at the apex; wings deflexed 

 during repose, and forming a triangle ; anterior sub-triangular, broad, the 

 hinder margin crenate ; posterior large, ovate-triangular, crenate on the hinder 

 margin ; legs rather short, and stout. Larva naked, with a small head, 

 ciliated on the sides, the body tapering towards the tail, the caudal segment 

 tuberculated : pupa with two spines at the end ; folliculated. 



I am totally at a loss to conceive why Ochsenheimer should have 

 associated this genus with Nsenia, their differences being so obvious, 

 and the affinity of the present so close to Catocala as to preclude 

 the possibility of disuniting them without doing violence to the 

 natural arrangement of the Noctuid?e : the crenated wings, stout 

 crested thorax, and abdomen, disunite this genus from the pre- 

 ceding semidiurnal Noctuidse, and its sombre colours from Catocala. 

 Treitschke has suppressed Ochsenheimer's term Mormo, and sub- 

 stituted that of Mania — an objectionable name, according to the 

 Fabrician precepts * — giving as a reason that Mormo is employed in 

 Ornithology, but as the name alluded to (Mormon Illiger) ne- 

 cessarily sinks, being synonymous with Fratercula of Brisson, pub- 

 lished many years previously, I have adhered to Ochsenheimer's 

 original appellation in preference to coining a new one. 



Sp. 1. Maura. Alis anticis cinereo nigroque variis, fascia lata medio, maculisque 

 septem costal i bus fuscis. (Exp. alar. 2 unc. 8 lin. — 3 unc.) 



Ph. No. Maura. Linn''. — Bon. vii. pi. 30. f. 1.— Mo. Maura. Siejjh. Caial. 

 part'ii. p. 111. iVo..6422. 



* Nomina gencrica insectorum cum Botanicorum, Zoologorum, Lithologorum, aut Me- 

 dico>-um nomenclaturis communia, si ab Enlomologis postca assurnta, ad ipsce remitlendav 



Haustellata. Vol. III. 30th Afr]l, 1S30. ic 



