This species has occasionally occurred in the neighbourhood of Wellington. I have no records of its capture elsewhere, but expect it will be found to be generally distributed.
The expansion of the wings is about 1¼ inches. The fore-wings are bright orange-red; there is a very faint transverse line near the base, darker on the costa; a dark red oblong mark on the costa near the middle; and a faint transverse line beyond the middle, also darker on the costa. The hind-wings are bright ochreous-yellow, with the cilia orange.
This insect varies considerably in the intensity of its colouring. It has long been considered as merely a variety of Sestra humeraria, but as I have not observed any intermediate forms, although the two insects frequently occur together, I think it may be regarded for the present as a distinct species.
The perfect insect appears from October till December, and is found in the same localities as S. humeraria.
Genus 5.—GONOPHYLLA, Meyr.
"Face shortly rough-haired. Palpi moderate, arched, ascending, shortly rough-scaled, terminal joint short. Antennæ in male rather stout, pubescent. Coxæ and femora densely rough-haired beneath. Fore-wings with vein 6 from below 9, 7 from below angle of areole, 10 shortly touching 9, 11 separate, 12 free. Hind-wings normal."—(Meyrick.) (Plate [II]., figs. 63 and 64, neuration of Gonophylla nelsonaria.)
Of this genus we have but one species.
GONOPHYLLA NELSONARIA, Feld.
(Gonodontis (?) nelsonaria, Feld. cxxiii. 3. Gonodontis felix, Butl., Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1877, 389, pl. xlii. 10. Phyllodoce nelsonaria, Meyr., Trans. N. Z. Inst. xvi. 104. Gonophylla nelsonaria, ib. xviii. 184.)
(Plate [X]., figs. 3 and 4 ♂ varieties, 5 and 6 ♀ ditto.)