212 BKITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



at bottom of groove. The dorsal spines appear on the 3rd abdominal, 

 are distinct (and rather more pronounced than in ? ) on the 4th, 5th, 

 6th and 7th, and exist as wrinkles, at least, on 8th. The interseg- 

 mental membrane, when movable, is pale, as also is that between the 

 2nd and 3rd abdominals, where it is less movable ; it is black between 

 the 1st and 2nd. There are four hairs dorsally on the 9th, two on 

 10th, none on 8th, and four on the 7th, abdominal segments. 



Food-plants. — Grey powdery lichens on tree-trunks, palings, &c. 

 (Bankes). 



Habits and Habitat. — This species has only been taken in England, 

 near Southampton Water, by Swinton and Bankes, where the imagines 

 are to be found at rest in crevices and chinks of tree-trunks, railings, 

 and palings, during the daytime, the females, of course, being only 

 found clinging to the end of the cases from which they have emerged, 

 the pupa- skins protruding from the end of the larval case in both 

 sexes. The males appear to be on the wing from about 7.30 a.m.- 

 9.30 a.m. probably during sunshine (Bankes). 



Time of appearance. — Throughout March. The latter end of 

 March, 1867, on the shore of Southampton Water, opposite Calshot 

 Castle, flying not uncommonly in the neighbourhood of spruce firs 

 (Swinton). Imagines captured at rest March 24th-28th, 1892, March 

 6th-7th,1893 near Southampton Water. Larvae from the same locality 

 produced imagines March 26th-April 2nd, 1892, from cases collected 

 March 26th-28th ; March 6th-17th, 1893, from cases collected March 6th- 

 7th, 1893, also March 2nd, 1893, onwards, from ova laid by ? s captured 

 in March, 1892; March 2nd-22nd, 1894, from cases collected on March 

 1st, 1894 ; in 1894 imagines must have appeared in February, fresh 

 cases with protruding pupa-cases being taken on March 1st (Bankes); 

 March 15th, 1861, imagines bred at Brussels from pupae taken three 

 weeks earlier under the bark of a dead tree, imagines taken freely on 

 the wing between March 15th-28th, 1861 (Fologne). 



Locality. — Hants : Southampton Water (Swinton and Bankes). 



Distribution.* — With the exception of the Belgian and Ajaceio examples the 

 remaining records may belong to other species — conspurcatella, Zell., vernella, 

 Const., and alpestrella , Hein. Our belief that the Ajaceio specimens are B. stain- 

 toni has already been stated (ante, pp. 203-4). Belgium: near Brussels (Fologne). 

 Coesica : Ajaceio (Frey coll.). [? France: Cannes (Milliere), Fontainebleau (teste 

 Stainton), Paris (Constant coll.).] [? Germany : Halle (Sorhagen). Recorded by 

 Herrich-Schaffer as a German species, but it is possible that he confused it with 

 alpestrella, which Hofmann sent out as conspurcatella (Heinemann).] [? Italy: 

 Val Bregaglia in north Italy and Tuscany (Curo).] 



* On p. 206, ante, in the synonymy of B. vernella, Const., there is a reference to 

 the conspurcatella. of Chretien (Lc Nat., 1893, pp. 103-105), and we are informed (in 

 litt.) by Constant that Chretien is responsible for the specimens from Fontaine- 

 bleau, that he notes as being sent out as conspurcatella, and which he fails to dis- 

 tinguish from the vernella of the Alpes-Maritimes. On reference to Le Naturaliste, 

 1893, pp. 103-5, we find in reality no mention of the moths obtained at Fontaine- 

 bleau, but Chretien states that he obtained 200 cases from the island of Jersey, 

 where they were in great numbers on the rocks. The account of the egg, larva, 

 pupa, case, and life-history that he gives of these, agrees very well with that of B. 

 staintoni, but he gives no description of the imago. He then adds that conspurca- 

 tella is certainly French, since it is not rare on the rocks in the forest of Fontaine- 

 bleau. The Jersey locality suggests strongly the possibility of the insect obtained 

 there being the same species as that taken at Southampton. There is no doubt 

 that vernella, Const., conspurcatella, Chretien, from Jersey, and consjjurcatella, 

 Chretien, from Fontainebleau, require to be very critically compared before their 

 relationship can be finally determined. 



