AND THEIR TRANSFORMATIONS. 231 
as well as the margin itself; the hind wings are brown, rather darker along the margin, and with a short fascia 
near the middle. The caterpillar is green, with a dark dorsal and pale lateral lines, and black setigerous tubercles. 
It feeds on Aconitum lycoctonum aud Thalictrum aquilegifolium, in May and June, when it forms a delicate 
cocoon, and the moth appears in June and July. Formerly taken in some numbers on Salisbury Plain, and since 
in South Wales, by Mr. Donovan. 


DESCRIPTION OF PLATE LII. 
Insects.—Fig. 1. Plusia Iota (the beautiful golden Y). 2. The Caterpillar. 
és Fig. 3. Plusia circumflexa (the Yorkshire Y). The Caterpillar is figured in Plate LI. 
= Big. 4. Plusia chalcytis. 
a Fig. 5. Plusia aurifera (the slender burnished brass). 
Fig. 6, Plusia Chrysitis (the burnished brass). The Caterpillar is figured in Plate LI. 
a Fig. 7. Plusia orichalcea (the scarce burnished brass). 
¢ Fig. 8. Plusia bractea (the gold spangle). 
Plusia Lota, Chaleytis, and aurifera, are from specimens in the British Museum; circumflexa is from the unset specimen in the cabinet of 
Mr. J. I’. Stephens; P. orichalcea and P. bractea are from specimens in the collection of Mr. 8. Stevens ; and the others are from specimens 
furnished me by Mr. H. Doubleday ; the caterpillar is from Hiibner. H. N. H. 
SPECIES 2.—PLUSIA IOTA. Puare LIL, Fie. 1, 2. 
Synonymes,— Phalena Noctua Iota, Linneus; Fabricius ; Hiib- Noctua interrogationis, Esper. 
ner; Treitschke; Haworth ; Stephens. Plusia percontationis, Wood, Ind. Ent. pl. 16, fig. 397. 
This species measures rather more than 11 inch in the expanse of the fore wings, which are of a rich purplish- 
brown colour, varied with dark brown, and fulvous ; near the base of the wing is a slender, waved, pale striga, 
followed by a transverse dark fascia, and a second undulated striga; the discoidal cell is purplish, with the 
anterior stigma small, and placed obliquely ; it is brown, and slightly edged with golden scales behind ; the 
outer stigma is brown, and deeply notched on the outside, and with a slender golden edging ; the characteristic 
space behind the stigmata is dark-brown, varied with fulvous, and bears two gold spots, one like the letter V, 
and the other an oval dot placed longitudinally ; the third striga is slender, pale, and margined with brown 
lines, and angulated towards the inner margin ; the apical portion of the wing is varied with the colours above 
mentioned, with a golden gloss in the middle, and bears the fourth slender, dark-brown striga, which is deeply 
bidentate in the middle; hind wings reddish-ash, with the veins, margin, and central fascia, brown. The 
caterpillar is green, with whitish lines and stripes. It feeds on burdock, nettle, &c. The moth is far from rare, 
and widely dispersed, affecting woods, and occurring in July. 

SPECIES 3.—PLUSIA PERCONTATIONIS. Puare LI., Fie. 4. 
Synonymes.—Plusia percontationis, Ochseuheimer ; Stephens. 
ry 8 
Noctua Lota, Esper ; Donovan, 8, pl. 256, fig. 7 Haworth ; Wood, Ind. Ent. pl. 16, fig. 398. 
This species is rather larger, and less variegated, than the preceding species, the fore wings being of a rich 
rosy brown, varied with dark-brown patches; the strige are much less undulated and plainer, the third being 
nearly straight towards the anal angle ; the stigmata are very obsolete, and destitute of the golden edging of the 
preceding species ; the golden markings behind the median vein are much smaller; the fourth or subapical striga 
is obscure, and but slightly bidentate in the middle. The hind wings are not so strongly marked with the 
brown veins asin P. Iota. It has been considered by many writers as a variety of the last-named species, but 
Mr. Stephens is fully persuaded of their distinctness. The present species appears at the end of June, frequenting 
lanes in preference to woods,—a peculiarity mentioned by the late Mr. Standish, sen., to Mr. Stephens. 
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