12 
ACRONYCTA. By Dr. M. Dratjdt. 
menyanthi- 
dis. 
cirduenna. 
sariorii. 
jaeschkei. 
nigra. 
metaxantha. 
metaxan- 
thodes. 
metaxan- 
thella. 
rapliael. 
centralis. 
persica. 
albidior. 
pulla. 
nigra. 
schlum- 
bergeri. 
ivarpa- 
choivskii. 
tiena. 
euphorbiae. 
obscura. 
parisiensis. 
myricae. 
euphrasiae. 
A. merayanthidis View, is larger and has wider wings than auricoma and has no subterminal line, the 
elbowed line is double always widely filled with white at inner margin. According to Petersen these are the 
characteristics at least for the main type form; on the other hand it is very difficult to distinguish certain 
specimens of the variety suffusa from pepli, as pepli (at least as far as concerns specimens from northern 
localities) also has a very indistinct subterminal line; only the valves of the $ show considerable differences. — 
scotica occurs as an aberration also in N. Germany and Switzerland. — arduerma Gillmer from the Ardennes is 
more yellowish grey with heavily black brown discal area, the yellowish white inner border of the post median 
is distinctly retained; fringes finely intersected by black. Hindwings yellowish grey; darker in Q. — ab. 
sariorii Hockemeyer in contrast hereto has the entire marginal area and sometimes also the basal area darkened, 
discal area remains light. — ab. jaeschkei Kujau is based on a specimen from around Hamburg with very light 
blue-grey colouration of forewings with sharply outlined black markings and wide black marginal band on 
hindwings. — ab. nigra Schafer is an extreme form of suffusa , a strongly melanic specimen with grey-black 
hindwings, on forewings only a feeble indication of a slightly paler subterminal band. Also from near Hamburg. 
Dufrane enumerates the food plants of the larvae as: Crataegus. Tussilago (!). Aconitum and broom. 
A. metaxantha Hmps. ( 1 h) looks on forewings like an aceris that is heavily suffused with red-brown, 
but the hindwings are reddish yellow, paler in disc and with brown interrupted marginal band. The anal dart¬ 
shaped mark is absent on forewings, the posterior transverse line is heavily dentate. — ab. metaxanthodes Strd. 
(= ab. 1 Hmps.) has hindwings suffused with brown, marginal band less intersected, whilst in — metaxantheJla 
Strd. ab. 2 Hmps.) it is brownish white. W. China as far as Ta-tsien-lu. 
A. nigricans Leech. 
A. digna Btlr. 
A. rapliael Obth. ( = raphaelis Hmps.. fixseni Graes.). Here the postmedian line is quite without dentations, 
double and filled with whitish. 
A. centralis Ersch. (1 h) very close to megacephala, but a much paler species, only the postmedian area 
is darker, whilst otherwise the surface is grey-white coarsely sprinkled with black-brown. The subbasal line 
is quite absent, the postmedian line crosses on the submedian fold a dark dart-shaped mark that extends to 
the margin; the subterminal line is only indicated by a contrast in shade between the postmedian and marginal 
areas. Hindwings white with brownish veins at margin and brownish checked fringes. — persica Strd. (= ab. 
1 Hmps.) from northern Persia has more distinct double transverse lines of which the posterior one is filled with 
whitish, the anal sagittate mark is absent. Persia to Turkestan (Ferghana, Sarafshan). 
A. megacephala Schiff. Specimens from Uralsk and Sarepta and Asia Minor (Konia) are extraordinarily 
pale, quite like a pale aceris and probably correspond to — albidior Wagn. described from the Udine. — ab. 
pulla Strd. described from Norway is suffused with black-brown on body and wings, only the area of the 
orbicular stigma remains white. A melanic form that probably also occurs elsewhere and which may be deemed 
a transition to nigra. — nigra Shaw. (= aethiopa Krul.) (1 i) is the extreme form of the above from Moscow and 
Wiatka. It is a form completely suffused with black with traces of light markings and an occasionally more 
prominent white postmedian line than is shown in the illustration, thorax black and abdomen dark. — ab. 
schlumbergeri Schultz is established from a pathologically varying specimen from Silesia. Markings are diffuse 
and subterminal line is closely approximated to margin, the area anterior to same being very wide and pale. 
Hindwings whitish with a faintly dentate dark antemarginal line immediately before margin. warpachowskii 
Krul. (1 h as albidior) has forewings more grey-white with delicate black, partially disrupted markings, the light 
patch behind the reniform stigma almost quite white; the discal area sometimes lighter than the rest of wing 
surface, only inner marginal area darker, the transverse lines more distinct on the pale ground. E. Russia; 
probably the form is identical with albidior and could then claim priority. 
A. tiena Piing. (1 i) is a large dark species, closely resembling dark specimens of megacephala, but 
apparently still more closely related to euphorbiae. Larger than the latter, forewings wider, darker and more 
brownish, underside suffused with black, only marginal area and costa pale brownish grey, markings of forewing 
indistinct similar to euphorbiae. Alexander Mountains, Hi territory, W. China (Moupin). 
A. euphorbiae Schiff. The type form, occurring northwards to the southern part of the Baltic Provinces, 
is always more smoky grey, the northern and alpine form — montivaga is more blue-grey; the latter is generally 
somewhat larger . According to Hampson the much older name: obscura Strom, should be utilised for the 
latter form. — ab. parisiensis Gulot is a specimen darkly suffused with smoky black in which only the transverse 
lines retain a somewhat lighter shade and which is analogous with ab. melaleuca of leporina. — myricae Guen. 
(1 i) is very close to obscura-montivaga and is a very dark blue-grey form with diffuse markings and especially 
dark hindwings. It occurs in Scotland and Ireland and is also mentioned from the Tarbagatai. — euphrasiae 
Brahm had best be classified to euphorbiae as the more southern subspecies. It differs by a constantly smaller 
