Insects. 



8395 



desinente ; subtus plumbeae, margine latissime griseo-lutes- 

 cente, vitta costali lutea, costa basi nigra, fasciculum squamo- 

 sum luteum superante. Ala3 posticae griseas, plus minusve 

 ochraceo tinctae, subtus ochraceae, margine interno griseo. 

 Corpus plumbeum, capite anoque luteis. 



Of frequent occurrence over almost the whole of Europe, in small 

 woods, July ; it delights in cool, shady, and even moist situations. 



It varies much, especially in the colour of the hind wings ; 1 pos- 

 sess a male which has them of a pure ochre. In those specimens in 

 which the hind wings are gray, the disk is almost invariably more yel- 

 low, even to the disco-cellular, which then forms a long distinct 

 stripe ; I possess another specimen in which the thorax is pure yel- 

 low without any trace of gray. It should also be observed that the 

 thorax is sometimes entirely yellow, and sometimes stained with 

 grayish lead-colour. 



The larva is black, with two yellow dorsal lines composed of 

 irregular spots : on its anterior segments these two lines become 

 confluent ; the hairs are much longer than in the larva of L. com- 

 plana; the head is shining black. It feeds on the lichens growing 

 on trees, and is much more difficult to find, at least with us, than that 

 of the last-named species. 



Var. A. STRAMTNEOLA. 



Stramineola, Douhleday, Zool. 1914 = Flava, Haw. p. 147, No. 

 4 ; Steplu p. 95 ; Wood, 99 = Plumbeolata, Wood, 103 ? 



The whole insect is of a dingy straw-yellow colour all over, without 

 any mixture of gray, except a slight shade on the abdomen and some- 

 times on the thorax. 



This beautiful variety has hitherto been found only in England, and 

 generally in marshy places. It is much more rare than the type, from 

 which, at first sight, it appears very different ; but if we study atten- 

 tively its organic characters, the form of its wings, the scaly fascicle 

 which covers the receptacle of the bristle, the shape of the body, &c, 

 we shall find no difference between the two. 



English authors have sought to identify this variety with Lithosia 

 flava of Fabricius (Suppl. 9), which appears to me rather to be one of 

 the varieties of L. palleola : but it is impossible to decide from so 

 short a description ; moreover, Fabricius tells us that L. flava inha- 

 bits Italy, — an additional reason for doubting the identity of the two, 

 L. griseola being rather a northern species. 



