254 



CIDARIA. By L. B. Prout. 



infuscaia. little from the Indian race catenaria Moore. — ab. infuscata ah. nov. (10 c) is an extreme form of inqumata, of not 

 very rare occurrence, with both wings suffused throughout with dark brownish smoke-colour. Nearly parallel 

 to proceUata procellata ab. infumata. — Larva brown, the middle segments with black dorsal spots, connected 

 by a fine black line, posteriorly continued by a conspicuous chestnut-brown line; subdorsal line dark brown. 

 On Clematis in August — September. Pupa rough, the surface being much pitted and wrinkled; uniform red- 

 brown; cremaster very short. The moth flies in July and is locally abundant among the food-plant. Central 

 Europe, Asia Minor, Transcaucasia, Altai and S. E. Siberia. 



postalbaria. C. postalbaria Leech (13n) is much more glossy, the forewing almost uniformly dark coloured, more reddish 



brown and in some specimens appreciably lighter between the median band and the dark terminal area; 

 median band slightly darkened, of uniform width and intensity throughout, its margins somewhat sinuous; 

 subterminal line indicated by some pure white dots, one behind the 3'''^ radial always and one or two posteriorly 

 often conspicuous. Hindwing glossy white, broadly dark-shaded at inner margin, and with faint dark lines; 

 terminal line dark, fringe strongly dark-spotted. Chang Yang, Pu-tsu-fong and Omei-shan. 



Subgenus Eulype Hhn. Areole single. Discocellulars biangulate. 



luqens ^' 'ugens Oh. (lOd) may be known at once by the broad median area of the forewing, only black at 



its margins, and by the mostly white, only narrowly black-bordered hindwing. The distal area of the forewing 

 shows a white spot in the middle, as in some hastata and its nearest allies. The superficial resemblance to 

 semenovi has been noticed above. W. China and Koko-Nor. 



hecale ^' hecate Btlr. (10 d) differs from hastata gothicata in having the white band of the forewing strongly 



angulated in the middle, much broader anteriorly than posteriorly, not traversed by black dots; band on hind- 

 wing incomplete. Japan; Hakodate, Oivvake. Korea. 



proserpma. 



hastata. 



laxaia. 



demolita. 



subhastata. 



inoestata. 



nigrita. 



hofgreni. 



undulata. 

 chinensis. 



gothicata. 



C, proserpina Alph. is unknown to me but is clearly a near relative of hecate. Larger, the black 

 ground-colour not tinged with brown, the postmedian white band less acutely angled and of more nearly equal 

 breadth throughout, that of the hindwing moderately broad and continued across the wing; forewing in addition 

 with a white antemedian spot behind the median vein; fringes black, apparently not chequered. Korea, only 

 one example (9) known. 



C. hastata is extremely variable and splits up into several local races, some of which have perhaps 

 as good a claim to be regarded as species as the following thulearia. — hastata L. (10 d), the name-typical 

 form, is large, with the median band strongly broken behind the middle, the postmedian white bands broad, 

 the "hastate" white marks in the middle of the distal area well developed. — ab. laxata Krulik. (= latifasciata 

 Hirschke) has the white areas still further widened, the postmedian band much broader than usual, the black 

 median markings narrowed and broken, no black dots in the postmedian band. Our figure approaches this 

 form. — ab. demolita Prout is a more extreme form, the black median band only remaining as a small patch 

 on the discocellulars and a small one at the hindmargin. — The larva of this race feeds chiefly on birch, 

 spinning the leaves together to form a habitation; short, stout, tapering at the ends, rugose, with a black 

 prothoracic plate; very variable in colour, usually some shade of brown, with ochreous spots or blotches on 

 the belly and sides. Pupa short and compact, not very glossy, red-brown, cremaster broad, blacker. Hibernates. 

 The moth flies by day, especially in the afternoon, and is on the wing in May and June. It has a wide range 

 in Central and Northern Europe and in Asiatic Russia. — subhastata Nolck. (— = hastulata Hhn. nom. praeocc, 

 nigrescens CklL, sagittil'era Gmpbg.) (^%)\ii a smaller and darker race, chiefly from high altitudes and 

 latitudes, the median band continuous, though spotted with white, the white mark in the middle of the distal 

 area usually reduced to a small dot or spot. It has often been considered a separate species and the question 

 cannot be regarded as yet absolutely settled. Our Scotch forms, however, which make a balloon-shaped 

 habitation among the terminal leaves of Myrica gale, seems to some extent intermediate; if separable racially 

 they would bear the name of nigrescens Ckll. In Scandinavia subhastata is polyphagous but shows a preference 

 for Vaccinium. In Switzerland, also on Vaccinium, the larvae are said to be lighter dorsally than hastata. 

 subhastata flies in July. — ab. moestata Nolck. (= taunicata Fuchs) is an aberration of subhastata with the 

 black colour somewhat increased, tlie black median area little spotted with white. — ab. nigrita Rbl. has the 

 abdomen unicolorous deep black. — ab. hofgreni Lampa (= digitata Djakonov) is black with the postmedian 

 white band divided by a black line, no other white markings but a distal spot behind the 2"'' radial and a 

 small remnant of the subterminal line near the apex. Thus closely similar to chinensis Leech or gothicata 

 Guen. — ab. undulata Strand, from the Loffoden Islands, is remarkable for having a continuous white sub- 

 terminal line on the forewing and no sagittate mark. — chinensis Leech (= moerens Alpli). Black, with very 

 little white excepting the broad postmedian band (which on the forewing is dotted with black) and an inter- 

 rupted subterminal; the sagittate mark wanting or rudimentary. W. China. — gothicata Guen. does not really 



