ARGYRAMCEBA. 219 



bunch of very elongate narrow milk-white scales ; rest of dorsum 

 covered with minute black adpressed scales, with numerous black 

 hairs intermixed, aud a row of longer curved ones towards hind 

 border of each segment ; towards and over the sides of each seg- 

 ment after the 1st, a bunch of long dark brown scales with longer 

 black hairs'; a small white scale-spot occurs towards each side on 

 hind borders of 2nd and 3rd segments ; along the base of 3rd and 

 hind margins of 3rd, 4th and 5th segments are small silvery-white 

 scales irregularly placed, or sometimes forming a narrow complete 

 band ; tip of abdomen more or less covered with long broad white 

 scales, extreme tip with copious long black hairs ; geuitalia mainly 

 concealed, the surrounding pubescence long, light brownish yellow. 

 Legs black ; upper side of femora more or less with minute 

 adpressed whitish scales ; posterior pairs with some black bristly 

 hairs below, which are much stronger on hind pair ; tibiae and 

 tarsi dark brownish yellow, latter blackish towards tips ; anterior 

 tibiae with minute whitish scales, middle pair with dark brown 

 overlapping scales. Wings nearly clear, with dark brown baso- 

 costal band, extending from towards end of costa, leaving extreme 

 tip of subcostal cell clear, slightly irregularly to anterior cross- 

 vein, thence encroaching narrowly over the edges of basal half of 

 discal cell, thence to anal margin, cutting anal and axillary cells 

 about their middles, generally leaving anal margin itself nearly 

 clear. The outline of the brown colour is thus in general direction 

 straight, yet actually always more or less zigzag. A small 

 roundish brown spot over fork of 3rd vein and reaching to 2nd 

 vein ; a similar smaller spot over base of 3rd posterior cell ; and 

 distal margin of discal cell narrowly infuscated ; halteres dark 

 brown, with yellowish-white knobs. 



Length, 6-11 mm. 



Described from a good series of both sexes in the Indian 

 Museum, Pusa, Dehra Dun, and my own collections. It is 

 generally distributed in India from February to May, and in 

 September and October, so that it may be two-brooded yearly. 

 Recorded from Pusa practically all the year round. Darjiling r 

 1000-3000 ft. ; Singla, Darjiling Distr. ; Eunjit Valley, Sikkim ; 

 Naini Tal ; Calcutta ; Lucknow ; Parasnath ; Siripur ; Kushtea ; 

 Medha ; Purneah ; Pophli ; Chiplun ; Hamirpur ; Guindy, Madras ; 

 Ootacamund, S. India, 7500 ft. (Fletcher); Mettupalaiyam, 8. India ; 

 Bangalore ; Khasi Hills ; Moulmein ; Kawkareik, Amherst Distr., 

 Tenasserim ; Kandy, Ceylon. 



Type in the Ley den Museum. 



This species shows considerable variation, mainly in the extent 

 of the small white scales on the abdomen and in the wing- 

 markings, the three isolated spots being often much reduced in 

 size, or one or more may be absent ; in one specimen, taken on 

 board ship 10 miles off the Madras coast, all three are absent. 

 The variety tripunctata, Wulp, has these three spots reduced 

 exceedingly, and the dark band fills the whole of the anal and 

 axillary cells. 



