Page:Transactions NZ Institute Volume 15.djvu/44

spot on costa; an irregularly dentate dark fuscous transverse line from costa at ⅔ to inner margin at ⅘, followed by a pale line, suddenly bent outwards beneath costa, upper two-thirds rather strongly outwards-curved; a pale oblique mark on costa before apex, and a pale mark on anal angle: cilia grey-whitish, with two dark fuscous lines. Hindwings grey, with a dark grey hindmarginal line; cilia grey-whitish, with a dark grey line towards base.

Very distinct by its small size, grey colouring, and black linear discal spot.

I met with this species at Dunedin, Wellington, and Cambridge, amongst scrub in January. Mr. R. W. Fereday has taken it commonly at Christchurch at rest on old walls, and has furnished me with the following notes on the larva, which he finds in the same position. They are specially interesting, as this is the first larva of the genus which has been discovered.

"The full-grown larva about 9 lines in length, slender, rather flattened, wrinkled, of nearly uniform width, much contracted at the segmental divisions; the ground-colour varying from pale stone to ash-colour; down the middle of the back, on the fifth to the ninth segment inclusive, a series of dark purplish-brown or maroon marks, wedge-shaped, with the point of each wedge cleft, and somewhat resembling a W with the internal space filled up, and having the base of the wedge abutting on the anterior and the cleft end on the posterior extremity of the segment; a cream-coloured tubercular dot at the point of the cleft, and on the base of each dark mark a pair of similar but rather smaller dots; head dark, with a pale longitudinal stripe.

"Feeds on moss on damp walls; when at rest lies stretched out flat on the moss, and entirely exposed; forms in the moss a cocoon covered with dust and moss, hardly distinguishable."

Antennæ of male finely ciliated, rarely pectinated (not in New Zealand species). Labial palpi very long, attenuated. Forewings with 12 veins (rarely 11 through obsolescence of vein 9), 8 and 9 stalked, rising out of 7 (rarely 6 also rising out of 7). Hindwings with 8 veins, 4 and 5 usually stalked or from a point, 6 approximated at base to 7, 7 and 8 stalked, cell open.

Distinguished from all the other New Zealand genera of the family by the origin of the stalk of 8 and 9 out of 7, the close basal approximation of 6 and 7 in the hindwings, and the open cell. The genus is a very large one, being plentifully represented all over the world except in Australia, where it is almost absent. The larvæ feed amongst the roots of grass, and the perfect insects frequent dry grassy situations, and when met with are often very abundant.