9-2 The Irish Naturalist. April, 



NOTES. 



ZOOLOGY. 



Entomological Notes from Abbeyleix. 



During the past few months I have made in spare intervals some 

 acquaintance with the beetles of this neighbourhood. The district is 

 rather flat and very well wooded, the large demesne belonging to Lord 

 De Vesci being thickly and widely timbered, and containing many 

 ancient oaks and hawthorns said to be remnants of the primeval forests 

 of Ireland. x 



In such a locality the wood-boring beetles might be expected to be very 

 prominent, and notable amongst these are four of the Longicornia: — 

 Grammoptera ruficomis, G. tabacicolor, Rhagium inquisitor, and Leiopus 

 nebulosiis. The two species of Grammoptera abound upon the Cow-parsley 

 in the wood-openings, but tabacicolor is much rarer. Rhagium inquisitor 

 appears to be common, as I swept three specimens from the hawthorn 

 blossoms in the month of May. Leiopus nebulosus is represented by one 

 specimen taken upon the person of a youthful friend who had been 

 pulling flowers in the demesne. By far the most prominent insects in 

 the hot summer months were various species of Telephorida — the rarest 

 and most interesting of these being Telepkorus nigricans v. dUcoideus. I 

 took a couple of specimens of Podabrus alpinus in my garden, but did not 

 notice this species anywhere else- Rhagonychia limbata occurred in great 

 numbers on the Umbel liferae in the woods. Sweeping the hawthorn 

 blossoms afforded abundance of Malthodes bipustitlatus ; this insect 

 however seemed restricted to one spot in the woods, as any amount of 

 searching in other places proved quite disappointing. 



Corymbites cupreus cannot be uncommon, as two specimens were taken 

 here, but a more striking find was made in Elater pomorum which I dug 

 out of a damp rotting tree-trunk. 



I have taken but two species of Silpha — rugosa and at rata v. subrotundata. 

 The variety of the latter is most abundant, but of the type I have not 

 seen a specimen. Of the Lamellicornia two examples are prominent. 

 Melolontha vulgaris simply abounded in May and early June, and the 

 grubs might be dug out of the ground in quantities. Scrica brunnea might 

 be taken commonly after rain under the elm trees or in vessels of water 

 left in the open. 



The most remarkable finds amongst the Rhynchophora were Barynotm 

 Schonerii under a stone at Ballyroan ; Cionus horlulanus, one specimen by 

 sweeping ; Hylobius abietus, several specimens and apparently very far 

 from uncommon. 



Out of some half-dozen species of Coccinella I notice Halygia xiv. -guttata 

 as the most remarkable. I found one specimen in an oak opening in 

 the demesne. 



J. Montgomery Browne. 



Abbeyleix. 



