Page:Transactions NZ Institute Volume 15.djvu/47

Very distinct through, the combination of the dark fuscous blotches and white median streak. It has not the slightest affinity to Hypochalcia, which belongs to another family.

Taken commonly by Mr. R. W. Fereday on Mount Hutt in January. Butler's note would give the erroneous idea that the species was generally common. His figure is not good.

Male, female.—28–27 mm. Head white, with an ochreous-brown spot behind eye. Maxillary palpi white, at base ochreous-brown. Labial palpi long, white, externally and towards apex beneath ochreous-brown. Antennæ dark fuscous. Thorax brownish-ochreous, with a broad central longitudinal white stripe. Abdomen whitish-ochreous. Legs whitish-ochreous, anterior and middle pair brownish-tinged. Forewings elongate, moderately broad, in female rather narrower, costa moderately arched, apex acute, hind margin strongly sinuate, rather strongly oblique; pale brownish-ochreous, more ochreous brown towards base; a very slender white line mmediately beneath costa from base to middle, sometimes obsolete; an ill-defined white central longitudinal streak from base to hindmargin, attenuated towards base, lower margin indented beyond middle, basal two-thirds margined beneath by a suffused dark fuscous streak, upper margin often suffused into ground-colour; between this streak and costa on posterior half of wing the veins are suffusedly marked with white, and sometimes whole costal half of wing suffused with white except margins; a broad ill-defined white or whitish suffusion along inner margin; in female sometimes whole wing suffused with whitish, except the dark fuscous submedian streak; two transverse series of dark fuscous dots, acutely angulated outwards above middle, intersecting median streak, often obsolete, first from middle of costa to below middle of median streak, not reaching inner margin, second from costa at ¾ to before anal angle, rather sinuate beneath; a hindmarginal row of dark fuscous dots: cilia whitish-grey, slightly shining, with a darker ochreous-grey line near base. Hindwings grey-whitish or whitish-grey, towards hindmargin and especially apex darker grey; cilia whitish or whitish-ochreous, with a very faint darker line near base.

The dark fuscous submedian streak, together with the ochreous or whitish ground-colour, sufficiently distinguishes this species from all others; it, however, varies considerably in depth of colouring, in the extent of the whitish suffusion, and the distinctness of the transverse series of dots. In general northern specimens seem to be smaller, darker, and more distinctly marked than southern.