Descriptions of New Zealand Lepidoptera.

Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Volume 58, 1928, Page 313

Descriptions of New Zealand Lepidoptera. By Edward Meyrick, B.A., F.R.S. [Read before the Wellington Philosophical Society, 7th September, 1927; received by Editor, 8th September, 1927; issued separately, 12th November, 1927.] I am once more indebted to the kindness of Mr. G. V. Hudson for the material of the following new species:— Caradrinidae. Aletia eucrossa n. sp. ♀ 36 mm. Head, palpi, and thorax grey-whitish mixed fuscous. Forewings costa straight, termen somewhat obliquely rounded, waved; brownish-grey, basal two-fifths and a costal stripe suffusedly irrorated whitish, veins in disc suffused blackish-grey; sub-basal line indicated by two straight blackish strigulae from costa; small oblique black spots on costa at ⅓ and ⅔, and a third between them; first and second lines curved, acute-dentate, whitish, edged black on veins, median shade obsolete; orbicular and reniform near together, edged whitish suffusion, orbicular round, reniform transverse-oblong, its lower edge whiter; terminal area sprinkled whitish; cilia brownish-grey mixed darker, sharply barred white. Hindwings grey, veins darker; cilia white towards base whitish-ochreous. Waiuku, March (Phil. Shepherd, Waiuku School); 1 ex. Melanchra cyanopetra n. sp. ♂ 36 mm., ♀ 40 mm. Head, palpi, and thorax dark bluish-grey. Antennae ♂ serrate, moderately fasciculate-ciliated. Abdomen grey. Forewings posteriorly dilated, termen bowed, rather oblique, waved; rather dark bluish-grey; first line posteriorly and second anteriorly edged by fine interrupted waved black lines or crescentic marks, second edged posteriorly by some black dots; median shade slender, indistinct, dark grey, irregularly dentate; orbicular and reniform of ground-colour, partially or hardly edged dark grey, orbicular round, reniform transverse, without white scales; claviform obsolete; subterminal line slender, faintly pale or slightly whitish-tinged, without perceptible teeth; cilia grey. Hindwings grey, somewhat darker terminally, veins darker; cilia grey, tips whitish. Waiho Gorge, February, April; 2 ex. (Miss Castle.) Nearest M. omicron Huds., with similarly-formed forewings (therefore less elongate than most New Zealand species of the genus), but distinguished by the peculiar bluish tinge, and absence of the small but well-marked claviform of that species. Hydriomenidae. Chloroclystis ruflpellis n. sp. ♂ 21 mm. Head, palpi, thorax brown-reddish. Antennae strongly fasciculate-ciliated. Abdomen brown-reddish, a dark fuscous

sub-basal band. Forewings rather elongate-triangular, termen oblique, slightly bowed, hardly waved; red-brown; a curved fascia of obscure pale striae towards base; median band moderate, oblique darker, infuscated, forming two darker costal spots at sides, preceded and followed by fasciae of obscure ochreous-whitish striae, anterior edge concave, posterior obtusely prominent in middle, slightly bisinuate on upper half; subterminal line fine, whitish, waved-dentate, forming a small distinct white dot above tornus, and traversing two cloudy dark grey spots before middle of termen connected with termen by dark bars: cilia reddish-grey, basal half obscurely barred dark grey. Hindwings rather narrow, termen irregular, rather deeply sinuate between 4 and 6 and broadly prominent from 3 to 4; brown-reddish, costal half greyish; a curved post median fascia of pale ochreous striae, preceded by dark grey towards dorsum; subterminal line as in forewings; cilia brown-reddish, obscurely barred grey. Wellington, Gollan's Valley, bred in September from pupa found amongst moss (Hudson); 1 ex. Oecophoridae. Trachypepla cyphonias n. sp. ♂ 15 mm. Head ochreous-whitish. Palpi ochreous-whitish, second joint dark fuscous except apex, terminal joint with two dark fuscous rings. Antennal ciliations 1. Thorax ochreous-whitish, shoulders fuscous. Forewings elongate, termen very obliquely rounded; purplish-fuscous, darker-sprinkled, costa suffused darker; an ochreous-whitish spot on base of dorsum; first discal stigma formed of black and white raised scales, plical small, of black raised scales, beneath first discal, second discal included in a curved transverse linear white mark edged with raised black scales; a minute whitish dot on costa before middle; a suffused whitish triangular dot on costa beyond ⅔, whence a very indistinct irregular curved series of undefined dots of blackish irroration runs to tornus: cilia greyish, with series of ochreous-whitish points. Hindwings grey, paler near base; cilia ochreous-whitish, with faint pale greyish lines. Wellington, December (Hudson); 1 ex. Quite distinct from anything else. Hyponomeutidae. Zelleria porphyraula n. sp. ♂ 13 mm. Head white, forehead and a lateral stripe on crown light fulvous, forehead sprinkled black. Palpi pale grey sprinkled black. Thorax dark bluish-grey, a central whitish streak, tegulae purple. Forewings narrow, costa arched towards pointed apex; bronzy-greyish-ochreous, slightly orange-tinged; costal edge greyish-purple, with some scattered small black dots; sub-costal and median suffused greyish-purple streaks, confluent towards base and terminating in an apical blotch, median interrupted by a whitish patch above tornus; suffused white dots on sub-costal representing discal stigmata and one on median obliquely before first discal representing plical; an irregular white streak above dorsum from near base to middle of

wing, sprinkled or dotted black, dorsum beneath this narrowly brownish-ochreous from base to tornus, dorsal edge towards base mottled black; a few white scales towards apex: cilia bronzy-brown, on tornal area light greyish, tips round apex black, at origin of costal cilia some white scales. Hindwings light bluish-grey; cilia light grey. Wellington, April, beaten from Podocarpus totara (Hudson); 1 ex. Plutellidae. Orthenches dictyarcha n. sp. ♂ 19 mm. Head and thorax whity-brownish, face with a whitish bar. Palpi brown, apex of joints white, terminal joint not longer than second. Forewings rather narrow, slightly dilated, termen straight, rather strongly oblique; 7 to termen; white, veins and transverse strigulae dark fuscous, forming an irregular reticulation; five subtriangular dark fuscous spots on dorsum from ¼ to ¾, plical area suffused pale bronzy-ochreous above these; three very irregular oblique fuscous fasciae partially suffused dark fuscous on edges from costa at one-fifth, two-fifths, and three-fifths, terminated by plical suffusion; two dark fuscous spots on costa posteriorly, and a praemarginal streak before lower part of termen; cilia fuscous, a darker basal line, a white spot below apex, tornal area partly suffused whitish, costal cilia white barred dark fuscous. Hindwings 4–6 rather approximated towards base; pale grey; cilia grey-whitish. Arthur's Pass, 3,000 feet, January (Hudson); 1 ex. The largest species of the genus. Lyonetiadae. In find that the genus Hieroxestis Meyr., hitherto distinguished from Opogona by the presence of rough hairs on crown behind the frontal fillet, is not tenable, passing insensibly into that genus both structurally and superficially. Therefore omoscopa Meyr., the type of Hieroxestis and an immigrant in New Zealand, and also aurisquamosa Butl. from the Kermadecs, must be referred to Opogona. But the genus Amphixystis Meyr. must be revived for hapsimacha, on which it was founded. On examining the unique type of this species, I regret to find that my original description, made some 26 years ago, is very poor and unsatisfactory; the specimen was not in fresh condition, but admits of more adequate treatment, and I therefore now redescribe genus and species as under. Amphixystis Meyr. Head smooth, a raised frontal fillet, behind it a thin ridge of erect airs, face very retreating; tongue obsolete. Antennae nearly 1, scape (basal joint) moderate, swollen, without pecten. Labial palpi moderate, slender, smooth, second joint curved, sub-ascending, terminal joint shorter, porrected, obtuse. Maxillary palpi long, severaljointed, folded, filiform. Posterior tibiae with long hairs above. Forewings with apex down-turned, 1 b simple, 2 from beyond ⅔, 3 from ⅚, 4 and 5 connate from angle, 6 and 7 stalked, 7 to costa, 8

almost connate with 6, 9 approximated, 10 from ¾, 11 from middle. Hindwings 3/5, narrow-lanceolate, cilla 3; 2–4 remote, parallel, 5 and 6 connate from apex of cell, 7 closely approximated at base. A. hapsimacha Meyr. ♂ 14 mm. Forewings greyish-ochreous, some scattered blackish scales on edges of markings; markings shining silvery-withish, viz., a slender costal streak from base to apex, confluent over central third with a broader supramedian streak from base to 5/6, where it is terminated by an irregular transverse streak, a submedian streak from base to about ⅔, and a dorsal line from base along termen to apex; a few blackish scales in a linear series in disc towards apex; cilia ochreous-whitish, on costa towards apex a blackish basal line. Hindwings brassy-grey; cilia greyish. Wellington. Tineidae. Tinea atmogramma n. sp. ♂ ♀ 12 mm. Head grey, face ♀ whitish. Palpi white, externally dark grey except apex of joints. Antennae 3/5, dark grey. Thorax blackish, tips of tegulae whitish, on each side of metathorax above a shining pellucid spot. Forewings elongate, apex pointed, termen very oblique; dark grey irregularly mixed and suffused black; an oblique obtusely angulated whitish stria near base, thick in ♀; three irregular angulated fasciae of two or three suffused white striae each, before and beyond middle and at 4/5, slender and imperfectly marked in ♂, thicker and whiter in ♀, first forming an irregular white spot on dorsum, third forming a distinct white dot at tornus; several white dots on margin round apex: cilia grey, dark grey median and apical shades, in ♂ slight white dashes above and below middle of termen and beneath tornus, in ♀ suffused white median and tornal patches. Hindwings dark purplish-grey, an indistinct blackish-sub-basal shade. Arthur's Pass, 3,000 feet, January (Hudson); 2 ex. Nearest argodelta, but does not show the clear white dorsal spot of that species, the antennae much shorter (remarkably short for the genus), and otherwise quite distinct.