276 BRITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



the emergence of the imago, and, when the latter has escaped, leaves 

 the pupa- skin projecting from the free end of the case. 



Standfuss has repeatedly noticed that if, in confinement, the end of 

 a larval case be spun-up by its fellow captives, the larva very soon 

 turns itself round in the case and re-opens the case with its jaws ; also, 

 that if larvae be removed from their cases they soon regain an entrance, 

 turning themselves round after crawling in head first. He also notes 

 that of the eight Silesian species, only two (S. hirsutella and A. opa- 

 celld) complete their metamorphoses in one year, the others require two, 

 passing some 22 months of this time in the larval state, a fact the 

 more remarkable because the larvae are practically polyphagous. Very 

 few species live on trees, the larvae of most being confined to low plants, 

 and they appear to prefer uncultivated ground, and more especially 

 localities protected from cold winds and yet exposed to the full blaze of 

 the midday sun. Most of the Fumeids, however, appear only to take 

 one year, and probably also the Epichnopterygids,both of which Stand- 

 fuss excludes from his consideration of the Macro-Psychids. He 

 further notes that " the female larvae, which, until the time they are 

 full-fed, live in similar situations with those of the males, separate from 

 the latter and pupate on tree-trunks from 2ft. -5ft. from the ground 

 (unicolor, villosclla, opacella, standfiissi), or on the ends of twigs Of 

 bushes and trees (hirsutella, graslinella), on tall herbaceous plants 

 (stetinensis, viadrina), occupying a position where they may be readily 

 discovered. On the other hand the male larvae generally spin up low 

 down on stems (stetinensis, viadrina, standfiissi, tjraslini), on fallen 

 leaves and twigs (rillosella, stetinensis), on exposed roots (opacella), at 

 the foot of tree-trunks (unicolor, villosclla, opacella, stetinensis), but 

 always so as to be exposed to the sunshine during the day. The male 

 larvae of C. unicolor often spin higher up, and it is the general rule for 

 those of S. hirsutella to do so." 



The rapidity with which the wings of the male expand after emer- 

 gence is very remarkable. Standfuss notes the expansion as occupying 

 only from 50-55 seconds in hirsutella, stetinensis, and unicolor, and allows 

 another three minutes for the wings to be folded back roofwise ready 

 for use, although flight rarely takes place under from 10-20 minutes. 



Family : fumeidae. 



We have placed in the family Fumeidae two subfamilies Proutiinae 

 and Fumeinae, but are by no means satisfied that these are so closely 

 related to each other as placing them thus implies. The species in 

 these two subfamilies, together with Bacotia sepium, have hitherto been 

 included in one genus. 



The differences that distinguish the male imagines of the Proutiids 

 from the Fumeids are in precisely the same characters that most 

 clearly differentiate the Epichnopterygids from the higher Psychids. 

 These are more particularly : (1) The presence of the " celiula intrusa " 

 formed by the bifurcation of the median nervure within the discoidal 

 cell.* (2) The absence of scales on the antennal pectinations. (3) The 

 shorter anterior tibial spurs. These characters link the Proutiids with 

 the Epichnopterygids, and one might assume from this that the Proutiids 



* We learn from Chapman that this character does not distinguish the 

 Proutiinae from the Fumeinae, since Bruandia (reticulatella) has this cell whilst 

 Fumea (casta) is 'without it. 



