﻿300 
  

  

  BRITISH 
  LEPIDOPTERA. 
  

  

  apex 
  of 
  third 
  plumule, 
  which 
  has 
  a 
  long, 
  projecting, 
  perpendicular, 
  

   blackish, 
  dorsal 
  scale-tooth, 
  rather 
  beyond 
  middle. 
  Abdomen 
  (suggestive 
  

   of 
  $ 
  ) 
  tawny-brown, 
  marked 
  with 
  black, 
  paler 
  posteriorly. 
  Fig. 
  24, 
  

   " 
  acanthadactyla'''' 
  (abdomen 
  suggestive 
  of 
  ? 
  ; 
  exp. 
  al., 
  20*5mm.) 
  differs 
  

   from 
  fig. 
  23 
  in 
  the 
  following 
  chief 
  points 
  : 
  (1) 
  forewing 
  not 
  dark 
  

   speckled 
  ; 
  dark 
  markings 
  dusky- 
  brown, 
  more 
  decided 
  in 
  shape 
  and 
  

   size, 
  consisting, 
  anteriorly, 
  of 
  a 
  mainly-dark 
  basal 
  area, 
  with 
  one 
  or 
  

   two 
  oblique 
  bars 
  from 
  near 
  middle 
  of 
  costa 
  ; 
  (2) 
  the 
  four 
  costal 
  dots 
  

   are 
  placed, 
  three 
  before, 
  and 
  one 
  after, 
  the 
  primrose 
  costal 
  spot 
  ; 
  lower 
  

   lobe 
  with 
  two 
  terminal 
  dots 
  instead 
  of 
  one 
  ; 
  all 
  these 
  dots 
  are 
  white 
  ; 
  

   (3) 
  cilia 
  of 
  hindwings 
  dull 
  brown 
  instead 
  of 
  white 
  ; 
  (4) 
  abdomen 
  

   black-marked, 
  white 
  anteriorly, 
  tawny-brown 
  posteriorly.] 
  

  

  Imago. 
  — 
  20mm. 
  -21mm. 
  Forewings 
  narrow, 
  divided 
  into 
  two 
  lobes 
  ; 
  

   falcate 
  at 
  apex; 
  the 
  outer 
  margin 
  wide 
  and 
  indented; 
  colour, 
  pale 
  

   olivaceous-ochreous 
  ; 
  the 
  costal 
  margin 
  darker 
  olivaceous-brown, 
  

   conspicuously 
  marked 
  with 
  white 
  dots 
  from 
  the 
  base 
  to 
  the 
  costal 
  

   triangular 
  blotch 
  ; 
  the 
  latter 
  inconspicuous, 
  only 
  a 
  slightly 
  darker 
  

   shade 
  than 
  ground 
  colour 
  ; 
  the 
  lobal 
  area 
  similarly 
  rather 
  darker, 
  both 
  

   lobes 
  crossed 
  by 
  a 
  pale 
  ochreous-white 
  transverse 
  line, 
  almost 
  medially 
  ; 
  

   a 
  large 
  ochreous-white 
  costal 
  mark 
  above 
  end 
  of 
  fissure 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  

   edge 
  of 
  the 
  costal 
  blotch 
  ; 
  the 
  inner 
  margin 
  of 
  the 
  wing 
  of 
  the 
  darker 
  

   tint 
  (similar 
  to 
  the 
  costa) 
  ; 
  the 
  median 
  area 
  rather 
  paler 
  ; 
  a 
  fine 
  white 
  

   longitudinal 
  line 
  from 
  end 
  of 
  fissure 
  halfway 
  to 
  base, 
  a 
  short 
  dark 
  

   longitudinal 
  discal 
  mark; 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  fine 
  white 
  lines 
  crossing 
  the 
  wing 
  

   from 
  costa 
  to 
  inner 
  margin, 
  giving 
  the 
  wing 
  a 
  very 
  reticulated 
  or 
  

   mottled 
  appearance 
  ; 
  the 
  fringes 
  of 
  the 
  outer 
  margin 
  white, 
  externally 
  

   shaded 
  with 
  grey 
  ; 
  at 
  the 
  anal 
  angle 
  a 
  black 
  patch 
  ; 
  on 
  the 
  inner 
  margin 
  

   also 
  whitish, 
  very 
  narrow, 
  chequered 
  with 
  single 
  black 
  scales 
  and 
  

   small 
  patches. 
  The 
  hindwings 
  blackish-brown, 
  finely 
  mottled 
  with 
  

   minute 
  paler 
  scales; 
  the 
  fringes 
  of 
  plumules 
  1 
  and 
  2 
  dark 
  grey-brown; 
  

   of 
  plumule 
  3 
  also 
  dark 
  grey-brown, 
  but 
  with 
  paler 
  bases, 
  with 
  a 
  large 
  

   median 
  scale-patch, 
  a 
  small 
  black 
  patch 
  near 
  apex, 
  and 
  a 
  row 
  of 
  

   scattered 
  black 
  scales 
  from 
  median 
  scale-patch 
  to 
  base. 
  

  

  Variation. 
  — 
  Bankes 
  writes 
  (in 
  litt.) 
  that, 
  "as 
  a 
  rule, 
  in 
  British 
  

   specimens, 
  the 
  variation 
  in 
  colour 
  seems 
  confined 
  within 
  rather 
  narrow 
  

   limits, 
  and 
  of 
  about 
  30 
  specimens 
  bred 
  from 
  Dorset 
  and 
  Devon 
  larvae 
  

   and 
  pupae, 
  all 
  have 
  the 
  ground-colour 
  of 
  the 
  forewings 
  olive-grey, 
  

   though 
  in 
  some 
  this 
  is 
  of 
  a 
  much 
  lighter 
  tint 
  than 
  in 
  others. 
  One 
  

   specimen, 
  probably 
  hybernated, 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  Isle 
  of 
  Purbeck 
  on 
  July 
  

   17th, 
  1884, 
  is 
  of 
  a 
  browner 
  hue 
  than 
  any 
  others 
  I 
  have 
  seen, 
  and 
  made 
  

   one 
  wonder 
  whether 
  it 
  could 
  possibly 
  be 
  a 
  worn 
  cosmodactyla, 
  Hb., 
  but 
  

   this 
  is 
  certainly 
  not 
  the 
  case. 
  The 
  only 
  extreme 
  form 
  known 
  to 
  me 
  is 
  

  

  ab. 
  albida, 
  n. 
  ab.— 
  Forewings 
  white, 
  irregularly 
  mottled 
  with 
  fuscous, 
  and 
  

   with 
  the 
  usual 
  dark 
  markings 
  only 
  faintly 
  expressed. 
  Hindwings 
  fuscous-grey. 
  

   My 
  only 
  example 
  came 
  to 
  me, 
  without 
  data, 
  from 
  the 
  " 
  Machin 
  " 
  collection, 
  

   and 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  another, 
  both 
  being 
  British. 
  Haworth's 
  representative 
  

   of 
  the 
  Alucita 
  tesseradactyla 
  of 
  his 
  Lep. 
  Brit., 
  p. 
  479 
  (1812), 
  bearing 
  

   his 
  own 
  MS. 
  label 
  "tesseradactyla,'" 
  and 
  agreeing 
  with 
  the 
  description 
  

   there 
  given, 
  has 
  recently 
  come 
  into 
  my 
  hands. 
  It 
  is 
  totally 
  unlike 
  

   the 
  true 
  tesseradactyla, 
  L., 
  both 
  in 
  size 
  and 
  shape, 
  and 
  rather 
  

   dissimilar 
  in 
  colour, 
  and 
  is 
  certainly 
  a 
  pale 
  example 
  of 
  punctidactyla, 
  

   Haw., 
  with 
  the 
  ground 
  colour 
  of 
  the 
  forewings 
  ivory-white, 
  very 
  

   faintly 
  mottled 
  with 
  fuscous, 
  and 
  with 
  the 
  usual 
  dark 
  markings 
  

  

  