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  BRITISH 
  LEPIDOPTERA. 
  

  

  Thames 
  and 
  Medway 
  ; 
  on 
  Portsea 
  Island, 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  the 
  Yar 
  in 
  

   the 
  Isle 
  of 
  Wight, 
  and 
  similar 
  localities. 
  Whittle 
  has 
  observed 
  it 
  in 
  

   abundance 
  on 
  saltings 
  about 
  Southend 
  and 
  the 
  salt-marshes 
  at 
  Shoe- 
  

   buryness, 
  Raynor 
  on 
  those 
  at 
  Maldon, 
  and 
  Porritt 
  on 
  the 
  salt-marshes 
  

   among 
  Statice 
  limonium 
  at 
  Hunstanton. 
  In 
  Durham 
  and 
  Yorkshire 
  it 
  

   occurs 
  on 
  the 
  salt-marshes 
  around 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  Tees, 
  and 
  it 
  

   is 
  recorded 
  also 
  from 
  Caithness. 
  Richardson, 
  however, 
  states 
  (Lep. 
  

   Fauna 
  of 
  Portland, 
  p. 
  4) 
  that, 
  at 
  Portland, 
  the 
  species 
  occurs 
  on 
  the 
  

   cliffs 
  by 
  the 
  sea, 
  the 
  larvae 
  here 
  affecting 
  Statice 
  binervosa 
  {auriculae- 
  

   folia) 
  and 
  not 
  the 
  ordinary 
  saltmarsh 
  species, 
  S. 
  limonium. 
  It 
  has 
  

   only 
  occurred 
  in 
  the 
  marshes 
  of 
  Holland 
  outside 
  this 
  country. 
  

  

  Localities. 
  — 
  Exceedingly 
  local, 
  but 
  possibly 
  still 
  overlooked 
  in 
  many 
  

   counties. 
  Caithness: 
  Bilbster 
  near 
  Wick 
  (Dunbar). 
  Dorset: 
  Purbeck 
  — 
  Wych 
  

   (Bankes), 
  Portland 
  (Kichardson). 
  Durham 
  : 
  Hartlepool 
  (Bobson), 
  Greatham 
  

   (Sang). 
  Essex: 
  Benrleet, 
  Shoeburyness, 
  Southend, 
  Canvey 
  (Whittle), 
  Northey 
  

   Island, 
  Maldon 
  (Baynor), 
  Tollsbury 
  salterns 
  (Curtis), 
  St. 
  Osyth 
  (Harwood), 
  

   Burnham 
  (Bower). 
  Hants: 
  Isle 
  of 
  Wight 
  — 
  Yarmouth 
  (Bankes), 
  Freshwater 
  

   (Sheldon), 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  the 
  Yar 
  near 
  Freshwater 
  (Tutt). 
  Kent 
  : 
  Medway 
  marshes 
  

   — 
  Strood, 
  etc. 
  (Tutt), 
  Sheerness 
  (Hodgson), 
  Sheppey 
  (Walker). 
  Norfolk: 
  Hun- 
  

   stanton, 
  common 
  (Porritt), 
  King's 
  Lynn 
  (Atmore). 
  Suffolk: 
  Ipswich 
  (Morley), 
  

   Woodbride 
  (Waller), 
  Southwold 
  (Cruttwell). 
  Yorks: 
  Middlesborough, 
  near 
  Bedcar 
  

   (Sang). 
  

  

  Distribution. 
  — 
  The 
  species 
  at 
  present 
  has 
  only 
  been 
  recorded 
  from 
  

   Britain 
  and 
  Holland. 
  

  

  Holland: 
  Zeeland 
  near 
  Zurikzee 
  (Fokker). 
  

  

  Superfamily: 
  ALUCITIDES. 
  

   Comparison 
  of 
  the 
  Platyptiliidje 
  and 
  Alucitid^. 
  

  

  This 
  superfamily, 
  as 
  already 
  noted, 
  includes 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  

   Palaearctic 
  Alucitids 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  forewing 
  of 
  the 
  imago 
  is 
  divided 
  into 
  

   two 
  lobes 
  by 
  a 
  fissure 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  margin 
  in 
  the 
  median 
  area, 
  and 
  

   extending 
  almost 
  to 
  the 
  discal 
  cell, 
  and 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  hindwing 
  is 
  divided 
  

   into 
  three 
  distinct 
  plumules 
  or 
  feathers 
  separated 
  by 
  two 
  fissures, 
  one 
  

   dividing 
  the 
  radial 
  and 
  cubital 
  areas, 
  the 
  other 
  the 
  cubital 
  and 
  anal 
  

   areas, 
  the 
  latter 
  fissure 
  more 
  deeply 
  cleft 
  than 
  the 
  former. 
  The 
  

   plumules, 
  therefore, 
  are 
  only 
  united 
  towards 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  wing. 
  We 
  

   have 
  already 
  noted 
  (antea, 
  p. 
  113) 
  that 
  there 
  are 
  exotic 
  Alucitid 
  

   genera 
  that 
  have 
  undivided 
  wings, 
  e.g., 
  Ochyrotica 
  and 
  Steganodactyla, 
  

   others 
  that 
  have 
  more 
  than 
  two 
  lobes 
  to 
  the 
  forewings, 
  e.g., 
  Heptaloba 
  

   (with 
  four) 
  and 
  Deuterocopus 
  (with 
  three). 
  

  

  The 
  Alucitid 
  egg 
  is 
  flat, 
  oval 
  in 
  outline, 
  not 
  markedly 
  truncate 
  at 
  

   the 
  micropylar 
  end 
  (as 
  is 
  the 
  Agdistid 
  egg). 
  The 
  Platyptiliine 
  egg, 
  

   however, 
  is 
  more 
  cylindrical 
  and 
  truncate 
  than 
  the 
  Alucitine, 
  although 
  

   there 
  is 
  much 
  variation 
  in 
  the 
  extent 
  of 
  this 
  difference. 
  

  

  The 
  Alucitid 
  larvae, 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  a 
  general 
  similarity, 
  exhibit 
  two 
  

   marked 
  varieties 
  of 
  form, 
  (1) 
  the 
  cylindrical 
  (or 
  Platyptiliine) 
  and 
  (2) 
  

   the 
  flattened 
  (Alucitine). 
  They 
  vary, 
  however, 
  greatly 
  in 
  the 
  arrange- 
  

   ment 
  and 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  tubercles, 
  some 
  larvae 
  being 
  almost 
  naked 
  and 
  

   exhibiting 
  the 
  primary 
  tubercles 
  as 
  single-haired 
  setae, 
  others 
  having 
  

   them 
  modified 
  into 
  complicated 
  warts. 
  In 
  the 
  Platyptiliine 
  section, 
  

   there 
  is 
  a 
  tendency 
  to 
  simplification 
  in 
  the 
  tubercular 
  structures, 
  in 
  the 
  

   Alucitine 
  a 
  tendency 
  to 
  complication. 
  

  

  The 
  Alucitid 
  pupae 
  are 
  particularly 
  uniform 
  in 
  their 
  general 
  appear- 
  

   ance, 
  their 
  mode 
  of 
  attachment, 
  and 
  capacity 
  to 
  perform 
  a 
  peculiar 
  

   somersault 
  movement 
  by 
  turning 
  the 
  anterior 
  segments 
  backwards 
  over 
  

  

  