1877.] 239 



history generally, hare engaged the attention of many of the most acute and 

 philosophical naturalists durmg the last century, and they have also been much 

 sludied by desci'ibers and classifiers. Yet, although on the one hand we, in this 

 country, can cite the labours of Owen, Newport, and Huxley, and on the other of 

 Westwood, Curtis, and Walker, there existed no one work in English which presented 

 a general view of the Family or decriptions of the British species. 



Mr. Buckton has devoted many yeai's of assiduous attention to the Aphides, 

 and gives the result of his labours in the present work, which, however, is somewhat 

 erroneously termed a " Monograph of the British Aphides," since it enumerates 

 only those sjDecies that have come under his notice in the living state. It contains — 

 " 1st. — A Terminology, which includes the general anatomy. 



" 2nd. — A Bibliography, containing a resume of the most noticeable work of the 

 early authors. 



" 3rd.^A Life-history, which includes the metamorphoses of Aphides, supplemented 

 by a brief statement of the views of more recent investigators, with 

 refei'ence to their reproductive economy. 



" 4th. — A Diagnosis of such species as have come under my notice in a living state, 

 each species being illustrated by coloured figures representing the larval, 

 pupal, alate, and whei'e possible the sexual forms. 



" 5th. — A description of the principal organs connected with the reproduction of 

 Aphides, coupled with short remarks upon the morphology of the family." 



Fifty-three species, some of which are deemed to be new, are figured on forty- 

 two plates ; and there are three plates of anatomical details. All the figures, made 

 from life under the microscope, have been excellently lithographed by the author, 

 and it is a great merit that they are not too highly coloured. The usual marking of 

 the natural size is however, omitted. We notice, in the anatomical portion of the 

 work, that prothorax and pronotum are used as equivalent terms, and the same with 

 regard to mesothorax and mesonotuin, and metathorax and metanotum ; whereas, in 

 each case, the first term signifies the entire segment, and the second the superior 

 portion of it only. In the descriptive portion of the work only the name of the 

 author of the genera and species is given, without any citation of the name and 

 page of the work where the description occurs, — a serious deficiency for those 

 workers who come after, entailing upon them an immense amount of labour which 

 should have been rendered unnecessary. Neither are there any directions as to the 

 capture of, or the best or any method of preserving. Aphides ; — the want of any 

 satisfactory mode of doing the latter having hitherto, doubtless, had a large share in 

 deterring those who would otherwise have collected such fragile creatures : possibly 

 some such plan as that mentioned at page 237 ante might prove effectual. Never- 

 theless, English entomologists (especially those who care for anything more than 

 making a collection) should be grateful to the author for having so well placed 

 before them the result of the investigations of the best naturalists, distributed as 

 they are in several languages throughout voluminous works, and we trust his labours 

 may prove an incentive to collect and study the too much neglected Aphides. 



The work was originally intended to be comprised in one volume, but it has 

 been found necessary to divide it into two or three. We hope that the last volume 

 will contain an enumeration with diagnoses of the native species not seen by the 

 author and not cited as synonyms, with a reference in full to the works wherein 

 they have been described. 



Entomological Society of London: January 11th, 1877. — Annitersaet 

 Meeting. — Sir S. S. Saunders, Vice-President in the Chair. 



A letter was read from the President stating that, owing to a slight accident, he 



