SOJIE LEPIDOPTERA OF GUERNSEY, 1915. 271 



cin.ria were wandering, having left their winter quarters. On this day 

 I was surprised by being compelled to yield my quarry to an unex- 

 pectedly agile entomologist. I had missed, with a rather careless stroke 

 of the net, a geometer — probably Xantlmrhoi' tlnrtiiata — it flew a couple 

 of yards, and I made for it in earnest, but before I could reach it a 

 swallow dived between us, missed the moth, doubled back and caught 

 it, all -^Mthin two feet of my pursuing net. 



May 27th. Melitaea cin.via was still in the larval stage, and the first 

 brood of I'()li/n)in»atuii irarioi on the wing. 1'. nwijacra was very numerous. 

 [Here I may note a capture which really took place May 18th, 1914, 

 but which 1 have not before recorded, of a very beautifully fresh female 

 P. nu'fiaera ab. medio-luf/enn. This probably is very rare, as it is not 

 "stocked" by the chief continental dealers. It is a very striking 

 aberration, in which the whole of the space between the two transverse 

 lines of the forewings is filled with deepest brown, almost black, form- 

 ing a strong band, the wing-rays thickened considerably with the same 

 colour, and the whole of the basal area to the centre of the hindwings, 

 much sutt'used. Seitz says that this form is reported to almost replace 

 the type on some parts of the Upper Rhine. I much doubt the truth 

 of this report, because the dealers do not offer it for sale.] 



June 21st. I took Arctia cillica, Neinoria vbidata, and t'erizoma 

 ftavofaxciata [demlorata) fairly common, and B/pinephele ju rtina abun- 

 dant. 



June 22nd. Satijnui {Hipparchia) semeU began to be common, as 

 also Anthincera (Zipiaena) trifolii, both of which increased in numbers 

 to an enormous extent during the next ten days. Adscita [Procriy.) 

 statin's was also widely distributed and numerous, and M. cinxia 

 became common. I got one nice aberration. I was certainly not 

 expecting Epinephele titJwnns on June 23rd, but males were out in 

 some numbers — surely a very early date. The females did not appear 

 until the 29th. 



On June 25th Xantkorhoi' </aliata first showed up. Larvte and 

 pupre of the Dianthneciae were scarce, on and under plants of Silene 

 tnaritima. D. capsincola and D. capsnphila are generally not hard to 

 get, Z>. conxperaa more rarely. I worked very hard for Dianthoecia 

 luteoijo var. Imcri — pupa?. I only got three in all. These emerged 

 successfully June 26th, 27th, and 29th. The last has none of the 

 orange tone of lowei, but seems to be a veritable var. bnrretti — which 

 form I should say is not very near the French anfillacea from Digne. 



June 30th. Some larvfe of M. cinxia were still feeding, conse- 

 quently a few fresh imagines were to be taken up to almost the end of 

 July. Under broom, and heather growing like mats on rocks, larvae 

 of Selidoneiiia ericetaria and Lithoaia caniola were to be found, the latter 

 commonly. I bred a few of each. Another interesting insect to breed 

 again was J^asj/rhira fascelina. I took twenty larvae and got from these 

 seventeen imagines. The first, a male, emerged July loth, the last on 

 the 30th. These dates agree with my old experience of this species in 

 C-ruernsey. I notice that Newman and Leeds give May and June a3 

 the time of flight. It is never so here. This year I took a freshly 

 emerged female on August 16th, the first I have ever taken in the 

 imago stage, but as I have seldom lieen in Guernsey in July or early 

 August, there is nothing extraordinary in this. Our D. fa^icelina is the 

 slaty-grey form. While larva hunting it was a disappointment not to 



