


XVIATHE 
AEGERIADAE. 
CHAPTER XVI. 
THE AEGERIADAE. 
The family Aegeriadae* is distinguished by the fol- 
lowing characters :— 
The head: is clothed with appressed scales; the antennae 
are dilated on the apical half; the labial palpi are moderately 
long, curved, ascending with the terminal joint short and 
pointed; the maxillary palpi are rudimentary. The fore-wings 
have veins 7 and 8 stalked; the hind-wings are elongate ovate 
with vein 5 absent, veins 6 and 7 nearly parallel and 8 concealed 
in the rolled costa. 
The larvae are elongate, with ten pro-legs, feeding in 
the wood of ,trees, or the rootstocks of plants. The pupae 
have abdominal whorls of spines; segments 8-11 are free, 
in male segment 12 also. The pupa state is spent within 
the larval gallery. 
Superficially the members of this family may be at 
once recognised by the major portion of both pairs of 
wings being devoid of scales and transparent, and for this 
reason they are often known by the very appropriate name 
of ‘‘ Clearwings.’’ The family does not properly belong 
to the New Zealand fauna, its sole representative in this 
country having been introduced from Europe with the gar- 
den currant. The group is chiefly charactertistic of the 
Northern Hemisphere, over one hundred species being 
known from the Palaearctic Region and fourteen species 
from the British Islands. Some of the species have a very 
strong superficial resemblance to stinging insects, such as 
wasps and hornets, and these cases are undoubtedly in- 
stances of protective mimicry, but in many others the sup- 
posed resemblanees which have been traced to ichneumon 
flies and various Diptera are, to a great extent, accidental 
and have no real significance. The family is intimately 
related to the Tineidae, a connecting group, the Tinaeger- 
iadae, occurring in tropical Africa and elsewhere. 

*This family is often called the Sesiidae. 
Genus 1—TROCHILIUM, Scop. 
Head with appressed scales. Tongue developed. Antennae 
3-4, in male sometimes sub-dentate, ciliated. Labial palpi with 
second joint thickened with rough scales beneath, terminal 
loosely scaled. Abdomen with large flattened expansible anal 
tuft. Fore-wings with 7 to apex. Hind-wings with 3 and 4 
stalked. 
There is one species in New Zealand. 
TROCHILIUM TIPULIFORME. 
(Trochilium tipuliforme, Clerck, Icon. pl. ix., 1; Sesia tipuli- 
formis,, Meyr:, rans, N-Z Insts exti 4.) 
(Plate XXXIIL., fig. 6 @.) 
This interesting insect, originally introduced from 
Europe amongst currant-bushes, is now well established 
throughout New Zealand, though nowhere very common. 
The expansion of the wings is about # inch. The antennae 
are gradually thickened towards the apex with the extreme tip 
abruptly pointed and slightly bent. The fore-wings are trans- 
parent with the margins and central spot black tinged with 
orange; the termen is distinctly tinged with orange. The hind- 
wings are transparent with the margins narrowly black tinged 
with orange, the cilia rather paler. The head is black; the 
thorax also black with a slender yellowish streak on each side; 
the abdomen is black with three yellowish rings, the anal tuft is 
entirely black. 
The larva is whitish with a darker dorsal line; the 
head is pale brown, the hinder part of the head showing 
through the second segment; on the upper surface of the 
second segment, behind the lobe of the head, are two linear 
brown spots; it feeds from autumn to spring on the pith 
of currant-bushes, which hence assume a sickly appearance, 
and are sometimes killed by the attacks of these larvae. 
The perfect insect appears in December and January, 
and may be noticed sitting on the leaves of currant-bushes, 
or on flowers in their neighbourhood; though a sleepy- 
looking insect, it requires to be approached with caution, 
and the net should be used to effect its capture. 

