250 



THE BRITISH NATURALIST. [December 



at the fissure" ("Entomologist's Monthly Magazine," Vol. VI., p. 150). 

 The same writer says of the American species in this genus: — " In the 

 genus Aciptilus there is a great falling off in the number of species as 

 compared with those of Europe, and in these there is an evident 

 tendency to an aberration from the type-form. Three species are 

 given (by Lord Walsingham), all of which are now before me : two 

 of these seem undoubted Aciplili, the first, A. cinevascens, Wlsm., is very 

 similar to L. lienigianus in colour and size, the other, A. montanus, 

 Wlsm., is about the size of A . pallidum, but is white with brown scales, 

 and a costal streak of the same colour ; the third, A . califovnicus is a 

 most remarkable insect, with the wings of an Aciptilus but the 

 colouring of an Oxyptilus, and with the same ' tuft of projecting scales 

 in the fringes of the third lobe of the hind-wings.' Our author (Lord 

 Walsingham) says : — ' Its nearest European ally is A. siceliota, Zell.' 

 The three Aciptili — A . paludum, A . siceliota and A . baptodactylus have 

 very much in common with each other, so that they at least form a 

 very distinct section of Aciptilus, and certainly there is much re- 

 semblance to this species in the group, but none of them have the tuft 

 of projecting scales. Although the inferior lobe of the fore-wings in 

 Oxyptilus is truncate, with a concave margin, yet this is not equally 

 shown in all species, it reaches its greatest development in 0. didactylus 

 and 0. evicetovutn, also in O. ningoris of the present work (" Pterophoridse 

 of California and Oregon "), but it is much better marked in 0. kottavi, 

 and still less so in the 0. rutilans of St Helena ; none of them haye, 

 however, the simple pointed feather of an Aciptilus, such as is found in 

 A. califovnicus. It is an undoubted link between Oxyptilus and Aciptilus, 

 and very possibly may hereafter modify the classification of the plume 

 moths" ("Entomologist's Monthly Magazine," VoL XVIII., pp. 119 

 — 120). 



Acipiilia tetvadactyla. — This is one of the original hinncean species, 

 and appears to have a very considerable range of distribution. 



Synonymy — Tetvadactyla, Linn., ' Faun. Suec.', No. 1455, pp. 370 

 — 371 ; Tr., IX., 2, 255 ; Haw. 477 ; Dup. XL, 314, 6 ; Stphs., ' 111.', 



IV. , 373 ; Zell. ' Isis ' (1841) 862 ; ' Linn. Ent.' VI., 394 ; H.-S., 35, 



V. , p. 385; Frey, 419; Sta. 'Manual,' II., p. 444; Tutt, 'Ent. Record,' 

 L, p. 91. Tvidactyla, Linn., ' Sys. Nat.', X., p. 542; XII., p. 900; 

 Haw, ' Lep. Brit.', 477 {=q). Leucodactyla, Hb. 5. Didactyla, Scop., 

 * Ent. Carn.', No. 672. Niveidactyla, Stephs., ' 111.', IV., 373. The 

 synonymy of this species is difficult and not at all easy to work out. 

 Writing of this matter in 1890 I said : — " Tetvadactyla, Linn, and 

 tvidactyla, Linn. ; tetvadactyla, Haw. and tvidactyla, Haw. — About the 

 species tetvadactyla and tvidactyla of Linnaeus, there is, as Mr. Stainton 

 pointed out (" Entomologist's Monthly Magazine/' Vol. I., p. 12) some 

 difficulty. The Linnasan species tetvadactyla of the " Fauna Suecica," 



