ORTHOLITHA. By L. B. Prout. 163 



N. E. Caucasus in May. I have no information regarding Ihe variety or allied species which, according to 

 Staudinger, occurs in the Changai Mounlain.s, Mongolia. 



0. iibanaria spec. nov. cf, 34 mm. Shape of vicinaria, markings more nearly as in bipauctaria, the Uhanaria. 

 median band widening gradually but decidedly in its anterior part and forming a rather stronger tooth liehind the 

 S"' radial. Forewing light sand-colour slighlly mixed with whitish, the lines darker sand-coloiir, in pan 

 (especially the two whicli stand nearest to the cell-marl<) dusted with fuscous; cell-mark comma-shaped, strongly 

 overlaid with fuscous; subterminal whitish line very faint, with scarcely any dark filling-in; dark apical streak 

 moderately conspicuous. Hindwhig whilish, tinged with sand-colour, especially at dislal margin; fringes sand- 

 colour, very weakly chequered. Under surface strongly and pretty uniformly irrorated with sand-colour. 

 Rather broader-winged, less glossy and more sharply marked than nehidata B.-Haas. Lebanon (Mrs. Nicholl). 

 Type in the British Museum. 



0. pinnaria Chr. is diagnosed as near junctata Stc/r., which it closely resembles in colour and pattern, pimmria. 

 The proximal of the two lines nearly straight, gently crenulate, the distal acutely angled and dentate, the 

 space between them more or less filled in with fuscous, subterminal line moderately distinct, dentate. Median 

 line of hindwing angled, obscure, fuscescent. ? paler. Length of a forewing 13-16 mm. Taken above 

 Kurusch (Transcaucasia) in moist mountain pastuies at the end of July and beginning of August. 



0. junctata Stgr. (7g) was considered by its author to be near bipundaria and vicinaria, but if the junctata. 

 species which today passes under the name of junctata is correctly determined the resemblance is not at all 

 close. It is narrower-winged, more glossy and appears rather more slenderly built, while the tone of colour 

 is more brownish; the aspect, on this account and also because the edges (especially the distal edge) of the 

 median band are very strongly and irregularly lunulate-dentate, is scarcely that of an Ortholitha. The median 

 band is, as is usual in the genus, pale in its central part and contains a rather thick, elongate discal mark 

 (thickest anteriorly) which according to Staudinger is never broken up into 2 dots; in the only ? before me 

 however, this is distinctly the case, and they are much reduced in size. Hindwing and under surfac e weakly 

 marked or without markings. The ? is smaller than the cf. Distributed in Central Asia, flying frojn the end 

 of .lune to the end of July. — microgynaria Hmps., from the N. W. Himalayas, appears to me to be a still micro- 

 narrower-winged, rather greyer form o\ junctata with the discal mark frequently (especially in the ?) much W«"*- 

 reduced. The ?? in this form are still smaller than in typical junctata. June to September. 



0. perplexaria Stc/r. is unknown to me. According to Staudinger's description and figure it is noi perplexaria. 

 a typical Orfholitha, inasmuch as the costal margin of the hindwing is scarcely produced. Forewing light, 

 whitish grey, the edges of the dark median band formed nearly as in junctata, but the proximal edge with a 

 strong indentation in the cell which is not shown in that species. Subterminal line white, undulate, proximally 

 (especially in the anterior part) aci.ompanied by a dark shade. Hindwing whitish grey (lighter and more nearly 

 markingless than in vicinaria and stibvicinaria), with faint darker and lighter transverse lines in the distal 

 half. Forewing beneath somewhat brownish grey, with a narrow, very indistinct lighter band in its distal 

 part, containing a weak darker line in its centre. Hindwing beneath with a dark discal lunule and obscure 

 dark distal band. Only known from the South-western Caucasus, where it was discovered by Christoph in July. 



0. bipunctaria Schiff. (= undulata Sc. nee L.) (6h) is one of the commonest and best-known of the bipunctaria. 

 European species, but is always interesting on account of its great variability. This is in large measure 

 dependent on the nature of the rocks or soil on which it rests. The name-type, as described by Scopoli 

 (bipunctaria was given as nom. nov., to avoid homonymy with undulata L.), is at the same time the commonest 

 form, with the ground-colour cinereous, the median band mixed with fuscous, the discal dots seated on a pale 

 central space. As there is no known species with which bipunctaria can be confused, a detailed description 

 is unnecessary. The ?? are on an average paler than the d'cf, especially in the chalk-frequenting forms, in 

 which no doubt the more perfect protective adaptation of the $ is an advantage to the species. In general 

 these chalk forms can be distinguished by their whiter ground-colour, but I find no sufficiently sharp distinction 

 to .justify a varietal name. — ab. fasciata ab. nov. may, however, be employed for a pretty and rare form in fasciata. 

 which the ground-colour is almost pure white and the central band strongly darkened. The specimen figured 

 as herberti (6i) — an unnecessary name — is intermediate towards ab. gachtaria. — In ab. obliterata ab. nov., ohliterata. 

 on the contrary (see Barrett, Lep. Brit. Isl. vol. 9, pi. 379, f. 1 e) the oi'dinary markings are almost completely 

 suppressed. — ab. reversa ah. nov. is a very extraordinary form in which the basal and median bands are reversa. 

 grey or whitish while the rest of the forewing is almost iDlack. Barrett mentions one from Box Hill in coll. 

 Adkin and I have seen a second example, also English. — ab. grisescens Neuburc/er, described from Digne, grisescens. 

 is entirely without brown dusting in the median and distal areas, thus of a uniform clear grey tone. My 



