
XVII.—THE 
The perfect insect appears in December and January 
and, although rather local, is generally very abundant 
where found. It is diurnal in its habits and flies with great 
activity in the hottest sunshine. 
HELIOSTIBES ILLITA. 
(Atychia illita, Feld., Reis. Nov., pl. exl., 32; Heliostibes illita, 
Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., xx., 83.) 
(Plate XXXIIT., fig. 25 9.) 
This very handsome species has occurred at Palmerston 
North, Kaitoke, Silverstream, Wainuiomata, Nelson, Dune- 
din, and Invercargill. 
The expansion of the wings is ¢ inch. The fore-wings are 
very rich dark brown, thinly speckled with elongate bluish- 
white scales; there are usually cloudy discal marks before and 
beyond the middle, and a darker curved terminal band. The hind- 
wings are rich velvety-black, with two unequal elongate-triangu- 
lar bright orange-yellow marks, and a cloud of minute yellow 
dots near the tornus. The cilia of the hind-wings are bright 
orange-yellow. 
There is considerable variation in the colour of the 
fore-wings which is sometimes a uniform deep reddish- 
brown without markings, intermediate varieties occurring 
between this and typical form. 
The perfect insect appears from November till Febru- 
ary, and in some seasons is locally abundant. It flies very 
actively, with a mazy flight, over the tops of high bushes 
in the hottest sunshine. I have often thus observed it over 
high tutu shrubs (Coriaria ruscifolia) on which its larva 
may possibly feed. Mr. Meyrick states that it flies over the 
tops of high manuka trees (Leptospermum ericoides.) 
HELIOSTIBES CHLOROBELA. 
(Heliostibes chlorobela, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., liii., 334.) 
(Plate XLIX., fig. 27 @, 28 9.) 
This species has occurred on Mount Arthur at an ele- 
vation of about 3,500 feet above the sea-level. 
The expansion of the wings of the male is ~ inch; of the 
female almost 1 inch. The male is very like the same sex in 
H. illita, but has no orange colour on the hind-wings. The female 
also closely resembles H. illita, but is paler with the orange col- 
our of the hind-wings almost absent. In both sexes the term- 
inal joint of the palpi is hardly half as long as the second joint 
but in H. illita the terminal joint is about % the second. 
The perfect insect appears in January. It may be 
looked for in glades in subalpine forest. 
HELIOSTIBES VIBRATRIX. 
(Heliostibes vibratrix, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., lvii., 702.) 
(Plate L., fig. 21 9.) 
This very obscurely-marked, stout-looking little insect, 
has occurred on Mount Arthur, at an elevation of about 
4,000 feet above the sea-level. 
The expansion of the wings is nine-sixteenths of an inch. 
The fore-wings are oblong, dull grey, very slightly brassy-tinged; 
there is a black diseal dot at about % and a series of very obscure 
wavy blackish transverse lines, forming suffusions near base, 
near middle of costa, and before tornus. The hind-wings are 
deep brownish-black. All the cilia are blackish-grey. 
The perfect insect appears in January, frequenting 
the open mountain side. 
TINEIDAE. 30 
ca | 
Genus 4—SIMAETHIS, Leach. 
Labial palpi with second joint more or less roughly sealed, 
terminal joint shorter, thickened with scales, obtuse. Fore-wings 
with vein 7 to termen. (Plate H., figs. 18, 19, 20 neuration and 
head of Simaethis combinatana.) 
The insects comprised in this genus are mostly dark 
coloured of small size, with speckled white, or purplish- 
white, transverse bands. They are generally sun-lovers, 
flying actively in the sunshine, and often resting on leaves 
or blossoms exposed to the sun. Whilst thus engaged the 
fore-wings are placed backwards and held slightly folded 
in a horizontal position, almost covering the hind-wings. 
This genus is of considerable size, and most numer- 
ously represented within the tropics. We have fifteen spe- 
cies in New Zealand, some of which are extremely difficult 
to discriminate. Of these two are restricted to the North 
Tsland; ten to the South Isand, and three are common to 
both islands. 
SIMAETHIS HXOCHA. 
(Simaethis exocha, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., xxxix., 120.) 
(Plate XXXIII., fig. 31 9.) 
This large and very distinct species was discovered on 
the Humboldt Range at the head of Lake Wakatipu and 
has not yet been recorded from any other locality. 
The expansion of the wings is slightly over # inch. The 
fore-wings, which are rather narrow with the costa almost 
straight, the apex acute and the termen obliquely rounded, are 
very dark grey; there is a large irregular basal patch thickly 
speckled with white scales and containing an oblique black mark 
extending almost from the costa to the dorsum and followed by 
an angulated white line; a large somewhat semicircular white 
mark is situated on the costa before the apex, encircling a dark 
blackish-grey patch; there is a@ broad, wavy, oblique, speckled- 
white sub-terminal band internally bordered by a clear white 
line; inside this line there are two triangular black marks, one 
near the dise and the other on the dorsum, The hind-wings are 
grey, darker near the apex. 
The perfect insect appears in January, and frequents 
sub-alpine veronicas at an elevation of about 3,600 feet 
above the sea-level, where it flies at evening dusk. It is 
evidently a rare and local insect. 
SIMAETHIS COMBINATANA. 
(Simaethis combinatana, Walk., Cat., xxvili., 456; Meyr., Proc. 
Linn. Soc. 1880, 213; Simaethis abstitella, Walk. Cat., xxx. 
997; Simaethis zomeuta, Meyr., Trans. N.Z. Inst., xliv. 
121.) 
(Plate XXXIII., fic. 29 9; Plate III, fig. 32 larva.) 
This robust-looking little insect has occurred at Kaeo, 
Waimarino, Ohakune, Wellington, Mount Arthur and the 
Otira River. 
The expansion of the wings varies from 4 to 8 inch. The 
fore-wings, which are oblong with the termen slightly oblique, 
are rich brown with the basal central and terminal areas darker; 
there are a few purplish white scales at the base; a wavy line 
of purplish-white scales on the edge of the basal area, two simi- 
lar lines on the edges of the central area; a rather broad band 
of purplish-white dots between the central and terminal areas 
and a few scattered dots close to the termen. The hind-wings, 
which have the termen strongly concave near the middle, are 

