162 BRITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



Baltic provinces, he has never observed any ? with the outer half 

 of hindwings so dark as that figured by Hiibner (Eur. Schmett., 

 fig- I %3)- Gregson further notes (Enf., iv., p. 12) a $, of a light 

 yellow colour within the oblique . apical streak, but rich ochreous- 

 brown (continued through the hindwings) outside ; also three light 

 whitish-buff $ s from Whittlesea Mere. Glenny records, from the 

 Wisbech district, males varying from ordinary dark to the normal 

 colour of $ s, also $ s with decided greenish shading, 'and 2 s 

 of a very light shade of buff with scarcely any markings. In 

 our own collection, the specimens show a wide range of variation, 

 the males appearing to give almost every intermediate stage between 

 pure yellow and deep red -brown. On the whole, however, they 

 break up into five fairly distinct groups : 



(1) Yellow lore- and hindwings, with (or without) faint oblique line from 

 costa to inner margin, and equally weak subterminal line ; double discoidal spot, 

 silvery ; faint transverse shade across h'mdwmgs=zftotatoria, Linn. 



(2) Orange-yellow, with reddish or buff shading at base of costa, forming a 

 roughly triangular blotch, the oblique line and subterminal line of same shade ; the 

 hindwings buff with rather darker transverse linezrab. proximo., n. ab. 



(3) The reddish-buff occupying the costal area and the outer area beyond sub- 

 terminal line ; the oblique and subterminal lines dark reddish ; the hindwings uniform 

 reddish-buff, with rather darker median line=ab. intermedia, n. ab. 



(4) Forewings deep red-brown or chocolate-brown, except an oblong yellowish 

 basal area having its base along the thorax, one side along the inner margin, and the 

 side opposite the base formed by the lower portion of the oblique line near base 

 of wing ; a second small patch of yellow runs from the lower discoidal to 

 oblique line, and extends slightly across latter towards subterminal; the hindwings 

 uniformly red-brownz=ab. diminuta, n. ab. 



(5) • The forewings almost uniform red-brown or chocolate-brown, with a 

 purplish gloss (as in Eutricha quercifolia) , the oblique line still darker ; the 

 subterminal almost lost in ground colour, the lower discoidal distinct, with the 

 base of the inner margin scarcely paler than the ground colour ; the hindwings 

 unicolorous, purplish red-brown— ab. extrema, n. ab. 



All these forms occurred at Wicken during the first week of 

 August, 1892, in the proportions of 4 (no. 1), 10 (no. 2), 27 (no. 3), 

 17 (no. 4), 2 (no. 5) out of 60 brought away. The finest extreme forms 

 of no. 5 that we have seen came from the Frome district in 1886 

 (St. John), another almost as good is from Birmingham, whilst from 

 Claty Dene in Fifeshire is a form with the purplish-red tint of 

 no. 5 but with a pale base ; nos. 4 and 5 appear to be the typical 

 Folkestone forms, the Deal forms appear to be chiefly nos. 3 and 

 4, and the Strood forms nos. 2 and 3. A peculiar small race 

 (starved) from Bournemouth inclines to nos. 2 and 3. Linne's original 

 description distinctly shows either that he only knew the female or 

 that he knew the male that approaches the female in coloration, 

 so that it becomes necessary to maintain the yellow form, in both 

 sexes, as the literary type. The following is the simplest tabulation 

 of the forms known to us, that we can suggest, that will cover both 

 sexes : 



(1) «. Pale ochreous or whitish-ochreous, tinged with grey, with normal 

 transverse lines, j and ? zzrab. bero/ine/isis, Heyne (local, Germany and England). 



/■}. Pale greyish- or whitish-ochreous, unicolorous, i.e., with obsolete 

 transverse lines. c ? and ? =ab. obsoieta-berolinensis, n. ab. 



(2) a. Yellow, with normal transverse lines. <s and ? z=£otatoria, Linn. 

 /I Yellow, with obsolete transverse lines. cf and ? =ab. obsoleta-potatoria, 



n. ab. 



(3) a. Dee]) yellow or orange-vellow, with normal transverse lines, j 1 and 

 ? r=:ab. lutescens^ n. ab, 



