SCOP^VRIA DUBITALIS AB. ALBA. 143 



wings creamy-white ; linos obscurely indicated by narrow ochrcous 

 suffusions ; 8-sbaped discal mark absent. Hind-wings very light- 

 fuscous, cilia white." A figure of this individual, together with 

 typical diihitalis and " the intermediate form known as ini/ratdla," 

 which " was not scarce " are also given. To this Mr. Fryer adds : 

 " Had I not taken the light variety of Scnparia dnhitalia in company 

 with the above, I should have undoubtedly considered I had taken a 

 new species. However, on my sending specimens to Mr. Barrett he 

 informed me that he considered my capture a variety only of N. 

 (hibitalis, but that it (rr/.s qidti' neir to him." 



Now, had this been published anywhere except in the magazine in 

 which it appeared, one would have supposed that Mr. Fryer had made 

 as much as possible of a well-known detail in the variation of this 

 species, had, as is usual with many who record their captures, omitted 

 to look up any literature whatever on the subject, and had misunder- 

 stood Mr. Barrett's communication. 



This lapse of memory on the part of Mr. Barrett is quite unaccount- 

 able. In January, 1886, I wrote (Kntom., xix., pp. 129-130) along 

 note, detailing the occurrence of the pale form known as Scoparia 

 inf/ratdla in the neighbourhood of Deal in the early part of July, 1885, 

 and state : " I noticed, however, flying among the others, tAvo or three 

 specimens apparently bleached, and thinking they were very wasted I 

 did not take them. However, observing one at rest and remarking that 

 it looked comparatively fresh, I boxed it, and on arriving home and 

 looking over my captures was surprised to find a remarkably pure 

 white ^Scoparia whose species would, at least, have been exceedingly 

 doubtful ; however, taking the surroundings of the insect into account 

 I think it more than probable that the insect is a white form of <S'. 

 iwiratdla. Showing the specimen to my friend Mr. Coverdale some 

 time afterwards, and telling him where it was captured, he told me 

 that he had one, taken the previous summer at the same place. His, 

 however, shows the markings, although very indistinctly." I have 

 Coverdale's and my own examples (with other later captures) now. 

 The next note bearing on the subject appears to be from Mr. Bankes, 

 Avho writes (K. M. M., xxiii., p. 2.58) : "At the end of June, when 

 collecting on the Purbeck coast, I was fortunate enough to meet with 

 four examples of a most beautiful and striking variety of Kudorca 

 pi/raldla. The fore-wings are pure white, and, with the exception of 

 a" few coloured scales at the base and a small wedge-shaped blotch and 

 dotted line at the extreme hind margin, the only markings are con- 

 tained between the first and second lines, and arc of the usual type 

 and colour ; the space enclosed by these lines shows out against the clear 

 white ground colour as a well-defined and conspicuous central fascia. 

 There is not the faintest trace of any subterminal band. . . . These 

 four specimens of this pale variety were all I could meet with out of 

 numbers of the usual type." The next note on the subject is written 

 (Ent. Mn. Mcu/., xxiv., p. 43) by myself : " Varieties of Smpana 

 imiratdla, somewhat resembling those mentioned by Mr. Bankes, occur 

 in moderate numbers among typical N. iwiratdla, which is found com- 

 monly on the coast, near Dover, Folkestone, and Deal, although the 

 variation is more extended and general than it appears to be in the 

 Purbeck locality. I have a dozen striking pale varieties of iwiratdla 

 in my series, which I captured in July last, 1886, showing almost 



