1901.] 45 



Cerastis ligida, Esp., at Poyntzpass, Ireland. — When the ivy came into 

 blossom in October last I began to look out for moths, but finding not many at the 

 ivy I tried sugaring some trees down my avenue, and by this means obtained some 

 extra specimens. Among my captures, both at ivy and at sugar, was a Cerastis, 

 which at first I tliought to be vaccinii, L., but becoming doubtful I referred the 

 specimens to Mr. Barrett, who kindly examined them for me, and then it appeared 

 that I had captured C. ligula as well as C. vaccinii. This capture is of interest as 

 lifjula does not appear to be at all common in Ireland. Moths of any kind wei'e 

 far from plentiful, and only on one night were there more than half a dozen to be 

 captured. 



Besides C. ligitla I took a single specimen of Agrotis saucia, Hiib., on 

 November 1st at sugar ; Scopelosoma sateLlitia, L., at ivy and sugar, three forms, viz., 

 with reniform stigma white, orange, almost obliterated being the same colour as the 

 rest of the wing ; Calocampa exoleta, L., a good many at sugar ; Hhnera pennaria, 

 L., several flying at ivy. I did not notice any of them settled on the blossoms, but 

 perhaps I did not give them time. The ivy grows on the gable of my house, and I 

 place a ladder against the wall and then mount with net and lantern, moving the 

 ladder as I require. It is curious that though there was ivy in blossom in the 

 hedges of my garden, yet there were no moths about it at all. I noticed also that 

 I got most moths about ten feet from the ground.— W. F. Johnson, Acton Q-lebe, 

 Poyntzpass : December 1th, 1900. 



He-appearance of Gelechia malvella in the London district. — It afforded me 

 great pleasure to find this insect in fair numbers in my garden last July, as hitherto 

 diligent search, both for larva and imago, had proved fruitless. 



Stainton, in " Insecta Britannica " (vol. iii, p. 106), refers to the moth as " a 

 common species in gardens," and in the " Manual " (vol. ii, p. 330) adds, " a pest 

 in the larva state." This, no doubt, was perfectly accurate when these works were 

 written, but in recent years the species has become greatly restricted in its distribu- 

 tion, owing to the hollyhock, which was formerly found in most gardens, having gone 

 out of favour by reason of its being attacked and killed by the well-known disease. My 

 good fortune in taking this moth is most likely due to my neighbours having the last 

 two or three years gone in extensively for Althcea. I had hoped to obtain a supply 

 of larvae in the autumn, but the plants were cut down and burned befoi'e an oppor- 

 tunity occurred to bespeak the seed heads. — B. A. Bower, Eltham Road, Lee, Kent: 

 January 12th, 1901. 



Spilodes sticticalis in North-West Kent. — The occurrence of this species in 

 this part of Kent is, I think, worthy of notice, as I can find no published account of 

 its capture in it. There is a rumour that at some remote time it was found in the 

 lucttiosa field by Darenth Wood, but confirmation is not forthcoming. My captures, 

 which number four, were late ones, being made from August 29th to September 6th, 

 1900, and over the country lying between Halstead and Wilmington. — Id. 



Anticlea sinuata in Devon. — '^it\\ reference to Mr. George T. Porritt's 

 interesting notice in last month's Ent. Mo. Mag. of captures in South Devon, and 

 his quei'y as to whether the occurrence of this species is not new to the county, I 



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