LEPIDOPTERA IN GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 37 



Lepidoptera in Gloucestershire: The Wye Valley in 1909. 



By J. F. BIKD. 



Not having spent so much time in the pursuit of lepidoptera as in 

 former years, 1 am not a fair judge as to whether the season 1909 here, 

 in the Wye V' alley, was a good or a bad one entomologically. Treacling 

 was useless until September, ivy blossom was an absolute failure owing 

 to the inclement weather we experienced during the autumn, and larvae, 

 with the exception of some of the garden pests, were mostly conspicuous 

 by their absence; yet when I sallied forth with my net it generally 

 ■came in for a good deal of use, and, on many a night, moths, chietiy com- 

 moners I am sorry to say, trooped into the house, attracted by the 

 lamps, so, on the whole, I found the past season fairly productive, 

 although I cannot report captures of any of the recognized lepidoptero- 

 logical prizes. 



The following is a list of the lepidoptera captured or observed, with 

 •a few notes inserted here and there which I hope will be found of 

 interest. Unless otherwise stated, all the species mentioned were met 

 Avith in the parish of St. Briavels in Gloucestershire. 



DiURNi. — Adopaea Jiara. AtKjiades sijlrauKs. — I took two males SO 

 very diflterent from one another that I think they may, perhaps, be 

 worth mentioning. One is rather larger than usual, the forewings are 

 narrow, long on the costa and pointed at the apex, and the outer 

 margins of all the wings are very straight, giving to the butterfly an 

 •extremely angular appearance ; colour of wings light golden-brown, 

 not very different from the fulvous markings, but darkening slightly 

 towards the outer margin, where they are edged, as usual, by a dark 

 brown line, and the fringe is pale ochreous. The other has well- 

 rounded wings, the colour a dark, rich brown with a smoky- brown 

 fringe ; it is much the darkest specimen we have in our cabinet, while 

 the first one described is the lightest. Hesperia uialrae, Xisoniades tali's. 

 Iliniiicia phlat^as was more abundant during August and September than 

 at any other time of the year, and was still to be seen during the first 

 week of October. An ochreous ? taken on May 24th is probably 

 referable to ab. intennedia, although the ground colour can hardly be 

 ■described as brassy; and on August^ 31st I took an example of ab. 

 radiata g at rest, the marginal band on the hindwings being reduced 

 to a few copper streaks. (Jallophri/s rubi. IJit/iys (jiiorfts. — I took one 

 $ I saw fly from an oak to a larch, attracted thither by the presence 

 of honeydew ; and I was interested early one morning, while fishing, 

 to see one, or perhaps two, of these little butterflies flying about and 

 settling on the reeds by the riverside. Cela)<trina an/iidits, — Both 

 broods. Polijonimatns icarus, like B. pidaeas, was especially common 

 during August and September, and stragglers were to be seen on the 

 wing during the beginning of October. PierU hrassicae was only too 

 abundant, to the detriment of the vegetable garden. A villager 

 remarked to me, at the same time pointing to a regiment of the larvae 

 ■demolishing a cauliflower, " I fancy butterflies has something to do 

 with them blessed things," but not feeling altogether satisfied with his 

 theory, added cautiously, " leastways to a certain extent." During 

 October the fuUfed larvit were to be seen crawling along the ground 

 some distance away from the garden Brassica, up trees, outbuildings, 

 the sides of the house, in fact, almost everywhere ; nearly all my 



