X.—THE GEOMETRIDAE. 
The perfect insect appears from October till Decem- 
ber, and is found in the same localities as S. flexata. 
Genus 3—HYBERNIA, Latr. 
Antennae in ¢ bipectinated, 
apex simple. Palpi shortly rough-scaled. Thorax with small 
triangular anterior crest, hairy beneath. Femora glabrous. 
Fore-wings: 10 absent (in New Zealand species), 11 separate. 
Wings of @ rudimentary. 
A genus of few species, chiefly northern-temperate ; 
the single New Zealand species is common and widely dis- 
tributed in Australia. 
Face with appressed scales. 
HYBERNIA INDOCILIS. 
(Zermizinga indocilisaria, Walk., Cat. xxvi., 1530; Hybernia 
boreophilaria, Guen., Ent. Mo. Mag. v., 61; Hybernia 
indocilis, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst. xvi., 97; Proc. Linn. Soc. 
N.S.W. 1891, 623.) 
(Plate XVII., fig. 9 @, 10 9.) 
Formerly this species occurred plentifully in the 
neighbourhood of Christchurch. It has since been found 
on the Peak Lake Coleridge, at Wedderburn Central Otago, 
and at Queenstown, Lake Wakatipu. 
The expansion of the wings of the male is 1} inches, of the 
female 4 inch. All the wings are pale grey, speckled with darker 
grey. The fore-wings have four obscure wavy transverse lines; 
the first near the base, the second and third beyond the middle, 
rather close together, and the fouth subterminal, much inter- 
rupted; there is a series of black dots on the termen. The 
hind-wings have two very faint transverse lines, and a series 
of black terminal dots; the termen of the hind-wings is slightly 
scalloped. The cilia of all the wings are grey. The female has 
the wings extremely small and quite useless for flight; in colour 
and markings they resemble those of the male, except that the 
transverse lines are black and sharply defined. 
The perfect’ insect appears from July to January. 
According to Fereday the male was found plentifully at 
rest on the bare ground, amongst Leptospermum, and the 
female on the stems. A systematic examination of manuka 
serub, with a lantern, on mild winter evenings, would pro- 
bably often result in the discovery of this interesting 
species. 
Described and figured from specimens from the Fere- 
day collection. 
Genus 4—GARGAPHTA, Walk. 
Face with cone of scales. Antennae in @ simple. Palpi 
rough-secaled. Fore-wings with hyaline scar on transverse vein; 
10 out of 11, sometimes anastomosing shortly with 9. 
(Plate C., figs. 61, 62 neuration of Gargaphia muriferata.) 
There are two New Zealand species, and one from 
Venezuela. 
GARGAPHIA MURIFERATA. 
(Gargaphia muriferata, Walk., Cat. xxvi., 1635; Panagra ephyr- 
aria, Walk., Cat. xxvi., 1761; ? Zanclognatha (?) cookaria, 
Feld., Reis. Nov. pl. exxiii., 26; Zanclognatha (?) haastt 
aria, ib., 32;' Drepanodes muriferata, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. 
Inst. xvi., 107.) 
(Plate XVIL., figs. 34, 35 @ varieties, 36 9; Plate IL. fig. 7 larva.) 
This interesting species is common and generally dis- 
tributed throughout the country. 
147 
The expansion of the wings is about 12 inches. All the 
wings of the male are yellowish-brown; there is a faint trans- 
verse line near the base, and a conspicuous darker transverse 
line running from a little before the apex of the fore-wing to 
the middle of the dorsum of the hind-wing; there is also a dark 
spot in the centre of the fore-wing, often containing one or two 
white dots. In the female, all the wings are slate-coloured; the 
transverse lines are very- faintly indicated, and the central dot 
of the fore-wing is reddish-brown. The apex of the fore-wing 
in each sex is conspicuously hooked, the termen is bowed and 
sometimes has a very slight angle in the middle. 
Both sexes of this insect are very variable. In the 
male, the ground colour ranges from dingy-brown to bright 
orange-brown ; the transverse lines differ much in intensity, 
and in some specimens the central area of the wings 
enclosed by them is much darker than either the basal or 
the marginal portions; occasionally there is a series of 
black markings between the outer transverse line and the 
termen of the fore-wings, whilst’ the transverse line itself 
is frequently edged with a band of paler colouring. The 
female also varies in the ground colour and in the 
intensity of the transverse lines, which are sometimes 
marked by a few black dots. 
The egg, which is laid flat, usually singly, is about one- 
fortieth of an inch in length, oval, symmetrical, both ends 
being uniform. There is no flattening above, but some eggs 
have a small dent. The surface is smooth, except under a 
high magnifier, when it is seen to be roughened by minute 
depressions. The colour is very pale greenish-yellow. 
The larva, which feeds on Polypodium diversifolium 
is nearly 14 inches in length, elongate cylindrical, and of 
almost uniform thickness; reddish-brown, with an inter- 
rupted blackish dorsal line containing five more or less 
distinet oblong yellowish-brown spots; there is a row of 
black warts around segments 2, 3 and 4 and 11 and 12, and 
two rows of similar warts on the other segments; each 
wart emits a black bristle. This larva may be found feed- 
ing on the thick-leaved parasitic fern during the summer 
and autumn months, the insect usually passing the winter 
in the pupa state. 
The moth appears from September till March, and is 
occasionally met with in the winter. It frequents dense 
forests and is sometimes fairly common. The colouring 
of the upper and under surfaces of its wings, and the 
shape of the wings are both very protective, giving the 
insect an exact resemblance to a dead leaf. When dis- 
turbed it adds to this deception by keeping its wings quite 
motionless and rigidly extended, and allowing itself to fall 
through the air like a leaf. The resemblance in this case 
to the inanimate object is very perfect, and has no doubt 
enabled the species to escape from many enemies. It is, 
in fact, an extremely interesting example of the simul- 
taneous development of structure and instinct in a useful 
direction, through the ageney of natural selection. 
This insect is much attracted both by light and by 
blossoms, 
ul 
it 
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