200 THE entomologist's record. 



comosa was found locally in some abundance, and a search at the roots 

 of the plants soon revealed the larvae in question, in various stages. 

 They were invariably found huddled amongst the very bases of the 

 long, stringy stems of the plant, and it was no easy matter to dis- 

 entangle these without injury to the larvae. 



In the majority of cases, yellow ants were found, if not in 

 attendance on, in close proximity to, the larvre so obtained, and, in one 

 instance, where eight were found at the roots of one plant (so closely 

 associated as to suggest a gregarious habit), an ant's nest had been 

 formed below, and the fine powdery earth thrown up had completely 

 enveloped the A. coridon larvae, in no way to their discomfiture, 

 apparently. Though the earth adhered so closely to their bodies as 

 completely to conceal the green and yellow markings, so that they 

 were barely recognisable. 



These larvae retained their earthy powdering until the next skin- 

 change, or pupation. Having established them in a cage, with their 

 native food-plant, experiments were made with other plants of the 

 order, with a view to substitution, larvae being confined for 24 hours 

 with the leaves (and where possible, the flowers) of the following 

 plants — Lotus corniculatus, Ononis arvensis, Anthyllis vulneraria, Ono- 

 brychis saliva, Trifolium repcns, T. pratense and T. minus. With each of 

 these in succession the larvae showed the utmost dissatisfaction, slowly 

 wandering over them, and round their cage, and returning greedily to 

 the Hippocrepis, when their period of probation Avas over. 



A minute nibble was essayed from one of the Lotus flowers, and 

 another from a young leaf of Ononis, after which these plants were 

 rejected with disgust. Whatever other plants L. coridon may possibly 

 select in some localities for egg-laying, it seems pretty evident from 

 the above, that larv^ accustomed to Hippocrepis from the outset are 

 unable to change their diet subsequently to any of the substitute 

 food-plants above selected, even Lotus proving a " starvation- 

 alternative," as the writer previously found to be the case when 

 rearing Ayriades thetis {adonis) from the egg. 



No instance was found of the Hippocrepis blossoms, but only the 

 leaves, being devoured. Pupation is definitely subterranean in 

 captivity, a loose cocoon being formed about half-an-inch below the 

 surface of the earth. 



This possibly accounts for the inability, some weeks later, to find 

 pupae in nature in the locality where the larvae were previously taken, 

 though they were hunted for at the roots of the foodplant for 

 some time, but without success. 



The soil not being very dry on this occasion any that might adhere 

 to a dislodged pupa amongst the chalky rubble overhauled would 

 pretty surely render the pupa — never very conspicuous — indistinguish- 

 able from the surrounding earth. 



Cross- Pairing of Papilio machaon and P. polyxenes. 



By CECIL FLOERSHEIM, B.A., F.E.S. 

 On June 29th, 1908, I was fortunate enough to obtam a cross- 

 pairing of Papilio machaon and P. poli/xenes (asterias) in my butterfly- 

 bouse. Papilio polyxenes is an inhabitant of the central and southern 

 portions of North America, and belongs to the same group of 



