550 BRITISH LEPIDOPTEEA. 



that all the specimens from the Isle of Askold are of a pale chamois- 

 yellow, the form taken in Brittany being, on the contrary, of a very 

 deep reddish-brown, although from Pavia, in Italy, he has specimens of 

 the same type of coloration as those from Askold. Leech observes that 

 the examples from Kiukiang are identical with European individuals. 

 Graeser says that in Amurland all the males seen were of the pale 

 clay-yellow colour, and tbat he never saw a brown male like those com- 

 mon in Europe, whilst Staudinger observes that specimens from China 

 are like those from Amurland. Fletcher, however, who saw the species 

 in amazing numbers at Kormiloff (vide, postea, pp. 552-553) says that 

 the males vary from pale whitish-ochreous to dark chocolate red-brown, 

 and from specimens with well-defined fasciae to those almost uni- 

 colorous ; he further observes the great difference in size that is 

 exhibited by various individuals. There is often considerable variation in 

 the width of the space between the two transverse lines (sometimes filled 

 in to form a band). Simes records an aberration in which the trans- 

 verse lines are confluent on one side only. Studd observes that 

 specimens bred from Tiverton show great variation in the width of 

 the bands of the forewings, some being reduced to mere blotches on 

 the costal and inner margins. Fologne figures (Ann. Soc. Ent. Bel<j., 

 vii., pi. iii., fig. 3) a female with the median band starting from 

 the costa, arrested at the middle of the wing, making a trian- 

 gular blotch, similar forms, he says, were bred in both sexes. 

 Barrett also observes that similar aberrations occur in both 

 sexes, with the two transverse lines coalescing, leaving an upper 

 and lower blotch ; further, that some specimens of rich brown 

 colour have the two lines white, and the central band dusted 

 with the same. In almost every really good collection one finds 

 several interesting examples of this species. In looking through 

 Webb's collection, chiefly of picked specimens, we noted that of the 

 yellow examples most of the females are of a distinctly warm yellow, 

 and not pale ochreous in tint, and one finds banded individuals very 

 frequent in the members of this group, as well as in the rather more 

 definite buff-coloured examples. Some of the buff females are distinctly 

 suffused with red, and are, in a few instances, quite rosy tinged. Some 

 of the fawn-coloured examples tend to become ruddy with a distinctly 

 pink band (of which one female has the latter broken). It is also 

 noticeable that when the transverse lines unite in the reddest examples 

 they tend to form a pale median fascia, such as one occasionally sees 

 in parallel aberrations of Maerothylacia rubi. The red-brown $ 

 examples from the " Hopley collection " are very striking* and remind 

 one much of the American 31. americana, they have very distinctly 

 marked cilia, chequered with white and red-brown ; the transverse 

 lines of the forewings whitish, the central area strongly sprinkled with 

 white ssales, the inner line curving round to the thorax, sometimes with- 

 out reaching the inner margin (just as in M. caxtrensis), this peculiarity 

 (in 3L. neustria) is due to the fact that the basal portion of the inner 

 margin is strongly grey, as is the central area^ and continuous with the 

 latter. Another example from the "Hopley collection," evidently of 

 the same type (possibly of the same batch) is intermediate, presenting 



* It may be remarked that Oberlhivr notes (anted, p. 534) certain .1/. castrensis 

 as being similar to M. americana. One suspects this form is the " rich brown" 

 variety roferred to by Barrett (supra). 



