﻿344 
  

  

  BRITISH 
  LEPIDOPTERA. 
  

  

  feeds 
  on 
  Coris 
  monspeliensis, 
  a 
  plant 
  belonging 
  to 
  the 
  Primulaceae" 
  

   although, 
  strangely, 
  we 
  cannot 
  find, 
  in 
  Zeller's 
  notes 
  on 
  the 
  species, 
  

   that 
  he 
  confines 
  it 
  to 
  this 
  particular 
  foodplant, 
  this 
  conclusion 
  having 
  

   been 
  reached 
  by 
  Buckler 
  (Ent. 
  Mo. 
  Mag., 
  x., 
  p. 
  182). 
  In 
  the 
  Frey 
  col- 
  

   lection 
  are 
  two 
  specimens 
  labelled 
  " 
  arid 
  us," 
  "Brussa 
  (Mann)," 
  and 
  

   " 
  Corsica 
  (Mann)," 
  of 
  pale 
  greyish 
  colour 
  and 
  very 
  doubtfully 
  to 
  be 
  

   referred 
  to 
  A. 
  bipunctidactyla, 
  and 
  quite 
  possibly 
  distinct 
  therefrom. 
  

   Bebel, 
  however, 
  does 
  not 
  even 
  query 
  it, 
  but 
  makes 
  it 
  a 
  var. 
  of 
  A. 
  bipunc- 
  

   tidactyla, 
  and 
  diagnoses 
  {Cat., 
  3rd 
  ed., 
  p. 
  77) 
  it, 
  as 
  " 
  Minor, 
  multo 
  

   dilutior, 
  lutescens. 
  Southern 
  Europe, 
  Armenia, 
  Hyrcania, 
  Pales- 
  

   tine." 
  In 
  1852, 
  Zeller 
  wrote 
  (Linn. 
  Ent., 
  vi., 
  p. 
  366) 
  that 
  "the 
  

   principal 
  difference 
  between 
  it 
  and 
  loewii 
  (zophodactylus) 
  is 
  the 
  

   presence 
  of 
  a 
  small 
  blackish 
  -brown 
  dot 
  at 
  the 
  inner 
  angle 
  of 
  the 
  

   upper 
  lobe. 
  The 
  best 
  species 
  with 
  which 
  to 
  compare 
  aridus 
  is 
  

   stigmatodactylus, 
  which 
  occasionally 
  agrees 
  with 
  it 
  almost 
  exactly 
  in 
  

   size. 
  It 
  (aridus) 
  is 
  paler 
  at 
  the 
  apex 
  of 
  the 
  anterior 
  wings, 
  which 
  is 
  

   less 
  produced 
  ; 
  the 
  blackish-brown 
  dot 
  at 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  cleft 
  is 
  less 
  

   distinct, 
  and, 
  if 
  enlarged, 
  is 
  increased 
  upwards 
  towards 
  the 
  costa 
  ; 
  

   whilst 
  stigmatodactylus 
  usually 
  has 
  a 
  sharp 
  black 
  dot 
  situated 
  in 
  a 
  very 
  

   oblique 
  direction 
  inwards 
  above 
  the 
  lower 
  one, 
  and 
  the 
  fringes 
  of 
  

   the 
  anterior 
  border 
  of 
  the 
  apex 
  of 
  the 
  forewings 
  are 
  not 
  edged 
  with 
  

   white." 
  Milliere 
  records 
  (Nat. 
  Sic, 
  1885, 
  p. 
  223) 
  the 
  insect 
  from 
  the 
  

   Esterel 
  and 
  Cannes, 
  in 
  October 
  ; 
  and 
  Palumbo 
  notes 
  (op. 
  cit., 
  1888, 
  p. 
  193) 
  

   it 
  from 
  May 
  to 
  July, 
  at 
  Monte 
  Medio, 
  Syracuse, 
  and 
  the 
  Madonie 
  mountains, 
  

   all 
  in 
  Sicily. 
  Turati 
  says 
  (Bull. 
  Soc. 
  Ent. 
  ItaL, 
  1879, 
  p. 
  207) 
  that 
  it 
  

   occurs 
  in 
  the 
  Brughieri 
  di 
  Alzate, 
  in 
  Lombardy, 
  in 
  September. 
  In 
  

   favour 
  of 
  supposing 
  that 
  a 
  form 
  of 
  A. 
  bipunctidactyla 
  occurs 
  in 
  this 
  

   country, 
  agreeing 
  with 
  aridus, 
  is 
  Stainton's 
  remark 
  (Ent. 
  Annual, 
  

   1870, 
  p. 
  143) 
  that 
  Zeller 
  writes 
  that, 
  amongst 
  the 
  specimens 
  of 
  Ptero- 
  

   phorus 
  which 
  he 
  had 
  received 
  from 
  Jordan, 
  was 
  one 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  

   captured 
  by 
  D'Orville, 
  in 
  Devonshire, 
  and 
  which 
  appeared 
  to 
  be 
  

   identical 
  with 
  the 
  Italian 
  P. 
  aridus, 
  and 
  raises 
  the 
  question 
  whether 
  

   aridus 
  is 
  only 
  a 
  pale 
  variety 
  of 
  serotinus 
  (bipunctidactyla), 
  or 
  whether 
  the 
  

   English 
  and 
  Italian 
  climates 
  are 
  sufficiently 
  in 
  accord 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  species 
  

   to 
  exist 
  in 
  both. 
  Gregson 
  observes 
  (Ent. 
  Mo. 
  Mag., 
  vii., 
  p. 
  88) 
  that 
  

   he 
  captured 
  a 
  specimen 
  in 
  the 
  Isle 
  of 
  Man, 
  which, 
  on 
  comparison 
  with 
  

   D 
  'Orville's 
  example, 
  was 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  identical 
  with 
  it. 
  Since 
  then, 
  

   several 
  supposed 
  examples 
  have 
  been 
  taken 
  of 
  this 
  particular 
  British 
  form, 
  

   and 
  referred 
  to 
  aridus, 
  the 
  name, 
  in 
  Britain, 
  being 
  thus 
  used 
  merely 
  for 
  

   an 
  aberration 
  of 
  A. 
  bipunctidactyla. 
  Hofmann, 
  referring 
  to 
  the 
  German 
  

   records 
  of 
  aridus, 
  says 
  : 
  " 
  The 
  examples 
  recorded 
  from 
  the 
  Baltic 
  coast 
  

   of 
  Russia, 
  are 
  probably 
  (teste 
  Wocke) 
  based 
  on 
  incorrect 
  identification 
  ; 
  

   the 
  same 
  is 
  probably 
  the 
  case 
  with 
  the 
  statement 
  of 
  its 
  occurrence 
  at 
  

   Heudorf, 
  in 
  Wurttemberg." 
  Bankes 
  refers 
  to 
  fifteen 
  so-called 
  aridus 
  

   in 
  the 
  "Mason" 
  collection, 
  as 
  "all 
  typical 
  bipunctidactyla, 
  except 
  

   three, 
  the 
  worse 
  for 
  wear, 
  which, 
  when 
  fresh, 
  were 
  perhaps 
  rather 
  

   paler 
  than 
  usual, 
  though 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  so 
  pale 
  a 
  form 
  as 
  is 
  occasionally 
  

   met 
  with 
  in 
  Britain 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  quite 
  possible 
  that 
  their 
  pallor 
  is 
  solely 
  

   due 
  to 
  absence 
  of 
  scales." 
  Crombrugghe 
  de 
  Picquendaele 
  says 
  that, 
  in 
  

   Belgium, 
  aridus 
  only 
  occurs 
  in 
  the 
  Campine, 
  on 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  the 
  little 
  

   lakes 
  distributed 
  over 
  the 
  large 
  lande 
  or 
  plain 
  of 
  Calmpthout 
  ; 
  here 
  it 
  

   was 
  common 
  in 
  July, 
  1900. 
  [Buckler's 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  insect 
  he 
  referred 
  

   to 
  aridus, 
  is 
  given 
  at 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  our 
  notice 
  of 
  A. 
  bipunctidactyla.] 
  

  

  