Synonymy. — Since then, we have two perfectly distinct species to 
deal with, the next question which arises is the very difficult one of 
their synonymy. When I tell you with regard to the two red forms 
which cause all our trouble, that in Germany and America, our red 
unidentaria is known as ferrugata, and in Scandinavia as var. (or ab.) 
corcidata, while in Germany, our fer rug aria passes as spadicearia, I think 
some at least of you will agree with me, that it is time something was done 
towards bringing about a common understanding; for, however little 
value we may attach to the “ law of priority,” surely nothing but con¬ 
fusion can arise, if we go on applying German notices of ferrugata to 
our British species of that name, when they really belong to our red 
unidentaria. 
I think I may claim to have worked up nearly all the available 
literature on these two species, though it is too much to hope that I have 
not overlooked any scattered magazine notes which might have been 
of importance; I am indebted to Mr. W. F. Kirby for his ready helj3 in 
these researches ; also to the kindness of my friend Dr. Buckell, for 
many valuable hints in relation to the obtaining of required works of 
reference in the British Museum Library. It appears that the earliest 
description and figure of either of these species are by British authors, and 
refer to the black form of unidentaria, Haw. Bay, in his “ Historia Insecto- 
rum ” (1710), p. 223, No. 16, gives a very fair description of it, and the 
words “ areola in medio lata, transversa, nigra,” leave no doubt, which 
of our two Coreruias is denoted. Albin follows, in 1720, with figures 
of the larva, pupa, and imago of the same species ( Natural History of 
English Insects, No. 97 e-h); he says that “The caterpillar was ash- 
colour. It was found on the white lady’s-bedstraw, in the marshes near 
Kotherhithe, the 3rd of September; ” The moth which it produced h e 
figures with black band, and with the ochreous of the ground colour 
somewhat exaggerated. This figure is of interest as explaining the 
occasional citations of “ferrugata, Alb.” by Guene'e and other French 
authors, according to their absurd custom of giving the name of the first 
author to describe or figure an insect as sponsor to its scientific name. 
Specific, or trivial names, as Dr. Buckell reminded us in his valuable 
paper of March 21st, 1893, begin with Linnaeus in 1758, 38 years 
after Albin. 
Linnaeus in the Systema Naturae, does not refer at all to these 
species ; we owe the name ferrugata to his disciple Clerck, who, in his 
leones Insectorum Bariorum, 1759, (pi. 6, fig. 14), figures one of our two 
species under that appellation ; Linnaeus following with a brief diagnosis 
in the Fauna Suecica, Ed. Alt., 1761 (p. 338, No. 1292); “ alis purpu- 
rascentibus; strigis tribus albidis, postice cmereis; macula didyma 
fusca.” The next name in the field was Hufnagel’s corcidata ( Berl. 
Mag., 1769, p. 616, No. 94); Werneburg, on account of Bottemburg’s 
size-indication, “ size of Ph. notata ,” has indeed supposed this name must 
be a synonym of quadrifasciata, Cl. ; but the whole descrqetion seems to 
show that it really belongs to the commoner unidentaria, Haw., and it 
was so accepted by Borkhausen (who cites it to his linariata), and by 
Zeller, Herrich-Schaffer, and Staudinger. There can be no doubt that 
it belongs to unidentaria, Haw., rather than ferrugaria, Haw., for though 
Hufnagel describes it as “ reddish-brown,” and Gleditsch ( Forstwis - 
senschaft, ii., p. 50, 1775), as “red and light brown,” yet Bottenburg, 
who is the fullest and most reliable, distinctly says that the transverse 
