Insects. 2159 



Sp. 31. Clerckella, Linneus (fig. 29). 



Tinea Clerckella, Linneus, Fauna Suecica, 1411 (non Linn. Mus). Fabricius, 

 Ent. Syst. iii. ii. 329. Haworth ? Lepid. Brit. 578, 64. 



Elachista Clerckella, Treitschke, ix. ii. 191. Duponcbel, xi. 510, PI. 307, 

 f. 6. 



Lyonetia Clerckella, Zeller, Tsis, 1839, 216. 



Argyromiges autumnella, Curtis, Brit. Ent., Genus 1025, p. 185. 



Argyromiges nivella, Stephens, Illust. iv. 2(30. Wood's figs. 1332 and 1333. 



Linnsea Entomologica, vol. ii. PI. 2, f. 30. 



Var. /3. Argyromiges semiaurella, Stephens, Illust. iv. 260. Wood's fig. 1334. 

 Elachista cereella, Treitschke, ix. ii. 192. 

 Elachista Fonscolombella, Duponchel, xi. 549, PI. 309, f. 7. 



Expansion of the wings 3| lines. Head white. Forehead white. Palpi white. 

 Antennae deep fuscous. Thorax white. Abdomen fuscous. Legs white. Tavsi 

 white, annulated with black. Anterior wings pure white to beyond the middle ; then 

 follows a little fuscous patch, nearer the costa than the inner margin, beyond which is 

 a fuscous fascia, followed by a pale line ; the remainder of the wing is fuscous, termi- 

 nating in a very conspicuous black dot : the shape of the apex of the wing is very pe- 

 culiar, though much disguised by the long cilia, being a decided hook : cilia pale, with 

 three little fuscous patches from the costa, a strong black line from the apex, and two 

 curved fuscous lines opposite the hinder margin. Posterior wings clear gray ; cilia 

 grayish tawny. 



Var. (3 semiaurella has the head, thorax and anterior wings of a bronze hue. 



Taken by Mr. Weir near Tunbridge Wells, in July and August, off whitethorn, 

 and once from birch; also taken by others near West Wickham, I believe out of 

 whitethorn hedges. 



This is not the Clerckella of the Linnean cabinet, which appears identical with the 

 prunifoliella of Hubner (Tinea, 191) ; it wants the brown patch so conspicuous in au- 

 tumnella ; moreover, it has an extremely angulated fascia, before 

 the apical dark part of which the inner marginal half extends -*z^ ) 



much further towards the base of the wing than the costal half of 

 it does. 



The Linnean description is sufficiently vague to suit both species, " substriated with 

 brownish golden." It neither mentions the brown patch of autumnella, nor the ex- 

 tremely angulated fascia of prunifoliella : this latter has not hitherto been detected in 

 this country. 



Zeller says of it, " At Berlin and Glogau, in gardens, in July and August." As 

 the Clerckella of the Linnean cabinet answers his description quite as well as autum- 

 nella does, I should not have adopted its name for the latter species, were it not 

 that it has been so generally adopted on the Continent, that without a more efficient 

 reason I should not have considered myself justified in altering the continental 

 name. 



