NOCTUIDiE. CATOCALA. 131 



insects, repose with their wings slightly deflexed and a little ex- 

 panded, forming a broad triangle, fly during the day if approached, 

 and with vivacity towards twilight; their wings are deeply crenate, 

 the posterior being mostly of a brilliant crimson, with black fascia 

 and margins ; and their abdomen rather long and attenuated from 

 the base to the apex. 



Sp. 1. Fraxini. Alts anticis albido cinereogue nehuhsis, posticis nigris, fascid 

 lata pone medium ccerulescente. (Exp. alar. 3 unc. 10 lin. — 4 unc.) 



Ph. No. Fraxini. Linne.—Don. v. pi. 171./ 172.— Ca. Fraxini. Steph. Catal. 

 part ii. p. 112. No. 6423. 



Head and thorax whitish-gray, mixed with yellowish and hoary: anterior wings 

 whitish, clouded with cinereous, with several transverse dusky strigte, the first 

 at the base, slightly angulated ; the second flexuous, considerably before the 

 middle geminated, the space between pale, the next considerably angulated 

 and somewhat oblique, with a whitish margin on its outer edge, the fourth 

 also angulated or indented, and situated near the hinder margin, which has 

 an interrupted blackish hne ; the posterior margin itself paler, with its ex- 

 treme edge fuscous; cilia long and white; between the second and third 

 strigae there is a dark fuscescent transverse fasciaeform cloud, in which is a 

 rhomboid white patch : posterior wings black, with a broad pale-blue fascia 

 a little behind the middle, the hinder margin rather pale ; ciha long and 

 white ; abdomen dusky, with darker fascite above, beneath snowy-white. 

 Caterpillar cinereous, sprinkled with minute black dots: it feeds on various 

 plants, as the ash and poplar, beech, oak, birch, elm, maple, &c., but prefers 

 the two first : — the imago appears in the autumn. 



This magnificent insect is at once the largest species of the family, 

 and one of the most interesting from its rarity ; very few specimens 

 having occurred, notwithstanding its great bulk and the diligence 

 with which it has been sought after : a fine, though injured speci- 

 men was taken by Mr. J. Stan-dish, sen., in September, 1827, near 

 Birch-wood, and one or two other examples have occurred near 

 London : in September, 1821, in walking through the churchyard 

 at Shalford near Guildford, I saw a specimen resting on the church- 

 door ; but, from the rapidity with which one of the persons in my 

 company moved towards the spot, the insect took alarm and settled 

 on the roof, from whence I was unsuccessful in my endeavours to 

 dislodge it. Several specimens have, however, occurred in the 

 north of England, in Yorkshire especially. " One specimen at 

 Scarborough, in Sept. 1828." " Near Beverley, in Sept. 1827."— 

 A.H.Haz0orth,Esq., who also possesses specimens from Holderness 

 and Kent. " I have a specimen taken about twenty years ago in a 



