HEMARIS TITYUS. 529 



Wallgrn., " Skand. Het.," i., p. 56 (1863); Newm., "Brit. Moths," p. 12 

 (1869); Buck!., "Larva?," ii., p. 122, pi. xxvi., rig. 4 (1887); Poulton, "Trans. 

 Ent. Soc. Lond.," p. 283 (1889); Auriv., " Nord. Fjar.," p. 47 (1889); Barr., 

 " Lep. Brit.," ii., p. 73 (1893); Meyr., "Handbook," p. 293 (1895); Lucas, 

 "Brit Hawk Moths," p. 147 (1896) :" Cann., " Riv. Ital.," xxi., p. 15 (1901). 

 Bombyciformis, Leach, " Edinb. Encyl.," p. 131 (1815) ; Sam., "Ent. Comp.," 

 p. 244 ( 1 8 1 9} . Fusciformis, Bdv., "Gen. et Ind. Meth.," p. 45 (1840). Scabiosae, 

 Zell., " Stett. Ent. Zeit.," xxx., p. 387 (1869); Staud., "Cat.," 3rd ed., p. 105 

 (1901). Knantiae, Zell., "Stett. Ent. Zeit.," xxx., p. 387 (1869). 



Original description *. — Sphinx tityus, abdomine barbato, 

 cingulo nigro. M. L. U. Habitat in calidis regionibus. Alarum 

 margo niger est (Linne, Sys. Nat., xth ed., p. 493, no. 24). [In the 

 xiith ed., p. 803, Linne treats it as a var. fi otfuciformis, repeating the 

 preceding description.] 



Imago f. — 38mm. — 45mm. Anterior wings with the costa and 

 a basal patch extending along inner margin beyond its centre 

 blackish, scaled with ochreous-brown, the central area more or less 

 transparent, with blackish nervures ; a narrow, dull, blackish-brown, 

 hind-marginal band, broader at apex, very narrow at anal angle. 

 Posterior wings transparent, with blackish nervures, inner margin 

 blackish, scaled with yellow-ochreous, a very narrow (linear), blackish- 

 brown, hind-marginal border. Thorax brown with long yellow silky 

 hairs, paler at sides. Abdomen blackish-brown, thickly covered 

 with yellow hairs, more golden-coloured behind the two narrow 

 black median bands, a pale yellow hair-tuft on either side behind 

 the black bands ■ the apex terminating in two black tufts separated 

 by yellow hairs. 



Variation. — There appears to be very little variation in the 

 species, since Jordan asserts that the so-called Amurland brunneo- 

 basalis, Staud., referred to by various authors as a local race of 

 this species, is identical with manderina, a local race of Hemaris 

 radians, and has no connection with H. tityus. Caradja reports, in 

 his Macrolepidopteren Rumaniens the capture of an interesting 

 aberration with exceptionally broad black border to both fore- and 

 hindwings. Bartel adds that the specimens from the Thian-Schan 

 are also broader bordered than the European. The single 2 

 specimen recorded from Sicily is said to be very large (wing ex- 

 panse 48mm.), and to have the underside of the abdomen, the 

 femora and tarsi deep black. 



Egglaying. — The eggs are laid on the underside of a leaf of 

 Scabiosa succisa (Jeffery). Sladen reports (Ent., xxi., p. 14) that 

 he once observed a £ at Burghclere, as he thought, laying its 

 eggs whilst on the wing, but that he failed to find any eggs. 

 Bartel states that the oval green eggs are attached to the under- 

 side of leaves of scabious ( Knautia arvensis), but only one or at 

 the most two eggs are laid on one plant. The £ s, he asserts, 

 are easily induced to oviposit in confinement. 



Ovum. — Almost spherical in shape, but with a distinct depression 

 on the upper surface of the egg. It is of a bright apple-green 



* The original description of bombyliformis reads as follows: "Sphinx 

 bombyliformis, abdomine barbato coccineo, alis hyalinis luteo variis ; posticis margine 

 albis. Habitat in Europa " (Linne, Sys. Nat., xth ed., p. 493, no. 27). In the 

 xiith ed., p. 801, Linnet sinks this as var. /3 of Theretra porcellus. 



f When freshly emerged, the wings are thinly covered with silvery-grey scales, 

 having a purplish iridescence. These are all shaken off at the first movement (teste 

 Barrett). 



2 K 



