96 Transactions. — Zoology. 



curved, irregular, bent outwards on inner margin ; orbicular roundish, not 

 pale, finely black-margined, separated from reniform by a round black- 

 margined spot, somewhat paler and more whitish than ground colour ; 

 claviform roundish, cloudy, black, detached ; reniform 8-shaped, not pale, 

 black-margined ; often a clear whitish or ochreous streak from claviform 

 along submedian fold to second line ; sometimes a rather broad dark fuscous 

 streak above submedian fold from first to second lines ; second line rather 

 narrow, white, dark-margined, generally suffused with ochreous towards 

 submedian fold, rather abruptly bent above middle ; subterminal line 

 broad, very cloudy and indistinct, whitish, interrupted, generally touching 

 second line ; a waved whitish hindmarginal line : cilia pale greyish, with a 

 dark fuscous interrupted line, basal and terminal thirds obscurely barred 

 with whitish. Hindwings 1^, whitish-ochreous irrorated with grey ; lunule 

 and postmedian line very indistinctly darker ; a tolerably well-defined dark 

 fuscous hindmarginal band ; cilia whitish, with a dark grey line. 



A variable species, but generally distinguishable from its nearest allies 

 by the irregular dark suffusion of the forewings, and the ochreous tinge and 

 dark marginal band of the hindwings. 



Cambridge, Palmerston, "Wellington, Christchurch, Castle Hill, Mount 

 Hutt, and Lake Wakatipu, probably universally distributed at low levels, 

 from November to March, on rock-faces, fences, etc. ; generally abundant. 

 38. Sco]). cataxesta, n. sp. 



Male, female. — 23-27 mm. Head and thorax dark slaty-grey, somewhat 

 mixed with grey- whitish. Palpi 2^, dark fuscous, slightly mixed with 

 whitish, basal joint white. Antennae dark grey, ciliations f . Abdomen 

 whitish-grey. Legs white, irrorated with dark fuscous, tibiae and tarsi 

 banded with dark fuscous. Forewings very elongate, triangular, costa 

 hardly arched, apex rounded, hindmargin almost straight, slightly oblique ; 

 rather dark slaty-grey, with an indigo-bluish tinge (strong in very fresh 

 specimens), with fine scattered grey- whitish scales, the coalescence of which 

 forms obscure first and second lines ; first line hardly curved, moderately 

 indented ; second line tolerably distinct on costa and inner margin ; orbi- 

 cular faintly perceptible as a slightly darker suffusion ; reniform 8-shaped, 

 slightly darker, lower or sometimes both halves centred with whitish ; sub- 

 terminal line obscurely indicated, interrupted, not touching second line : 

 cilia slaty-grey, tips paler. Hindwings If, whitish -grey; postmedian line 

 faintly indicated ; a narrow hindmarginal band suffusedly darker grey ; cilia 

 white, with a grey line. 



Very obsoletely marked ; distinguished from all by the peculiar dark 

 bluish-grey colouring, adapted for concealment on the bare slaty rocks of 

 the mountain-range, which it exactly resembles. The same tint recurs with 

 the same habits in several species of other groups. 



