130 THE entomologist's record. 



colour, and have a shining horny appearance, similar to that of the 

 scutellum. They also bear long thorny hairs pointing backwards, and 

 are not used for progression. In the 2nd and '3id laical staijcs, they are 

 relatively shorter ; in the Ath stai/e, they are still shorter and less 

 noticeable. In the 5tJt {or Gtli) staije, the prolegs are sometimes used 

 to a very slight extent in crawling. The foot is retractile and only pro- 

 truded when the larva is crawling, and even then is retracted at each 

 step. Its grip seems weak and of little service to the larva. — A. Bacot, 

 154, Lower Road, Clapton, N.E. 



URRENT NOTES. 



At the meeting of the Entomological Society of London, held on 

 March 16th last, a paper by Mr. E. E. Green, of Punduluoya, Ceylon, 

 entitled " Further Notes on Dijacritina, Westwood," was read, and 

 illustrated by specimens and drawings. The author had discovered 

 two distinct species of Pifscritina, which he was able to keep in cap- 

 tivity, and rear from the early larval stage to that of the imago. The 

 characteristic abdominal cerci increased in length with successive 

 moults, until in D. loiujinetosa they became much larger than the body. 

 In the penultimate stadium they were lost without a moult, being 

 probably bitten off by the possessor, the long basal joints alone 

 remaining. The imago was a typical earwig, the forceps being 

 developed within the basal joints of the cerci. Sensory organs on the 

 antennae and palpi were described, as well as the habits of both 

 species. In the ensuing discussion Mr. M. Burr referred the imagines 

 to the genus Diplatys, that of Mr. Green's new form being, he believed, 

 a known species. The genus Dijscritina must therefore be sunk. Mr. 

 Gahan observed that the fact of the forceps being developed within 

 the basal joints of the cerci alone did not prove that they were not 

 homologous with the entire cerci ; perhaps the internal structure of 

 the latter was retracted by a histolytic process before amputation. In 

 Forfirnla he had found evident traces of meristic division in the 

 "forceps of embryos which were nearly on the point of hatching. Mr. 

 Burr, at the meeting on April 6th, stated that B. lon(/isctosa was a 

 good species, Mr. Green's new form proving to be 7). ny/rircps, Kirby. 

 At the same meeting Dr. Chapman read a paper entitled " Some 

 remarks on Ilctcrofpjna jicndla," giving a full account of its life- 

 history. The female was destitute of all appendages whatever, and 

 only left the pupal case for pairing, returning within it about ten 

 minutes later. It possessed an organic connection with the pupal 

 case in the situation of the legs. The larva) were hatched within the 

 case and devoured the remains of the mother. On anatomical cha- 

 racters he assigned to the insect a place near the Zygfenida?. 



Lord Walsingham (E.M.M.) describes a new Tortricid, under the 

 name of Loznpera bcatricdj,a, after Mrs. Carpenter, who bred a good 

 series in either 1879 or 1880 from larva> found at Leiston (Suftblk) 

 in April, in stems of an umbellifer believed at the time to be I'astiiiaca 

 mtiva. The species is nearest L. francilhinana, the fasciae, however, 

 being broader and less oblique than in that species. 



The sale of the collection of Lepidoptera made by Mr. G. Elisha, 

 took place at Stevens' sale-rooms, on April 25th. It was probably one 



