XIII.—THE PTEROPHORIDAE. 209 
PLATYPTILIA CELIDOTA. 
(Stenoptilia celidota, Meyr. Trans. N.Z. Inst., xvii, 125.) 
(Plate SoxXIlis, fie. 3aa.) 
This very delieate-looking species has oceurred at 
Palmerston North, Christchurch and Lake Wakatipu. 
The expansion of the wings is slightly under # inch. The 
fore-wings have the costa almost straight, the upper digit acutely- 
pointed and the lower slightly dilated; pale greyish-ochreous; 
there is a series of very faint brownish marks on the costa and 
dorsum and an elongate, oblique, dark brown mark just before 
the cleft; the termen is slightly tinged with brown; there are 
minute tufts of dark brown scales in the cilia on each side of 
the outer portion of the cleft and along the dorsum. The hind- 
wings are greyish-ochreous, slightly darker than the fore-wings. 
The ‘perfect insect appears in November and December 
and again in April. It frequents open grassy places near 
forest but appears to be very local. This species is also 
widely distributed in Australia. 
As this insect has distinct black seales in the dorsal 
cilia of the hind-wings it is here placed in the genus Pla- 
typtilia. 
Genus 2.—ALUCITA, Linn. 
Forehead without tuft. Forewings bifid, segments narrow, 
vein 2 sometimes absent, 3 absent, 8-10 absent, 11 sometimes ab- 
sent. Hind-wings trifid, third segment without black scales in 
dorsal cilia; 3 absent. (Plate E., figs. 4, 5 neuration of Alycita 
monospilalis; fig. 6 head of ditto.) 
Fairly extensive, but mainly located round the shores 
of the Mediterranean; some of the species range very 
widely. The four New Zealand species seem to be of Indo- 
Malayan affinity, but are all endemic. 
ALUCITA MONOSPILALIS. 
(Aciptilus monospilalis, Walk., Cat., xxx., 950; Aciptilia monos- 
pilalis, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., xvii., 124; Aciptilia patruc- 
lis, Feld. Reis. Nov., pl. cxl., 56.) 
(Plate Xx fen 4s 609s) Plate TL, fie, 29) larva; 
fig. 28. pupa.) 
This very beautiful insect is common in most localities 
in both islands and seems to be generally distributed 
throughout the country, but is rare in the extreme south of 
the South Island although fairly common in Stewart Island. 
The expansion of the wings is slightly under 1 inch. The 
whole insect is pure snow white with the exception of the basal 
portions of the front legs, a few minute dots on the cosia of the 
fore-wings, a large dot in the fissure of the fore-wings and a 
smaller dot on the termen before the middle, which are all dark 
brown or black, 
There is considerable variation in the size and number 
of the minute blackish, or dark brown markings on the 
fore-wings. Specimens are also occasionally found with a 
very fine brown line along the dorsal margin of the upper 
digit of the fore-wings. These individuals somewhat ap- 
proach A. lycosema. 
The larva, which feeds on Schefflera digitata, is slightly 
under 4 inch in length, rather flattened, broad, tapering 
posteriorly, with the segmental divisions distinct; the head 
oO 
is yellowish-green, the rest of the larva bright clear green 
or dull green; there is a series of long tufts of reddish- 
brown bristles round each segment, longer on the second, 
twelfth and thirteenth segments; in addition there are 
numerous tufts of short white bristles on the lower portions 
of the larva; there is a fine darker dorsal line and cloudy 
sub-dorsal lines, and sometimes two rows of black blotches 
with white dots on segments 6 to 12 inclusive; the spiracles 
are bright orange-brown. This larva is sluggish in habit, 
clinging tightly to the surface of the leaf and feeding on 
the green fleshy portion. The pupa is about five-sixteenths 
of an inch in length, rather pale green, or bluish-green, 
often much paler on the wing-cases; there is a conspicuous 
row of tufts of bright. orange-brown bristles round each 
segment becoming white on the ventral surface; the eye- 
ease is blackish; there are several long whitish bristles on 
the head. It is attached by the tail, the whole ventral por- 
tion of the pupa resting on a leaf. 
The perfect insect appears from November till March, 
and frequents forests from the sea-level to 4,000 feet. It 
is sometimes seen abroad in the middle of winter, and I 
onee observed a specimen, in a natural state, which had 
just emerged from the pupa, as late as 17th May. Whether 
noticed at rest, or flying through the forest, this species has 
a most graceful appearance and must certainly rank as one 
of the most charming of our native Lepidoptera. Stainton 
thus referred to the emergence of a very similar British 
species (Alucita pentadactyla). ‘‘It is a startling spectacle 
to see one of these little creatures burst into life, for the 
insect is more nearly developed than is generally the case, 
the wings have but little to grow, and its robes of virgin 
white seem so typical of angelic purity that one seems to 
witness a resurrection. ”’ 
ALUCITA LYCOSEMA. 
(Aciptilia lycosema, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., xvii., 124.) 
(Plate XXIII., fig. 18 9.) 
This species is common and generally distributed 
throughout the country, but is rarer in the extreme south. 
It has also been taken at Stewart Island. 
The expansion of the wings is barely 1 inch. The fore- 
wings have the costal edge white almost to the apex; there is a 
broad, dark brown longitudinal stripe from the base to the end 
of the first plume; the second plume is white with two minute 
brown marks near the middle, and occasionally apother mark at 
the apex. The hind-wings and the cilia of all the wings are 
snowy white. There is a faint brown band across the thorax but 
the rest of the body is white. 
This species varies slightly in size as well as in the 
intensity of the brown stripe on the fore-wings. 
The life-history resembles that of Alucita monospilalis. 
The perfect insect appears in December, January and 
February, and frequents forest. 
Mr. Creagh O’Connor informs me that he has captured 
a specimen of this insect paired with a typical example of 
A. monospilalis. It would thus appear almost certain that 
the two forms belong to the same species. 

