64 [March, 



and Geometra papilionaria in beautiful condition near Wellington College. 

 I have paid very little attention to Lepidoptera myself, but Jiave always taken 

 an interest in them, as like nsost other entomologists, I began with them as a 

 boy, but from the records and my own observation I believe that the Reading 

 district, within a radius ot ten or twelve miles from the town, is one of tlie best 

 districts for Lepidoptera in the kingdom. I might perhaps, in conclusion, 

 record the occurrence of a single specimen of Limenitis sihylla, the " White 

 Admiral," on a bramble flower, within half a mile of my house, which is on 

 the outskirts of the borough of Reading; it has occurred in numbers some ten 

 or twelve miles off, but never, as far as I know, in the immediate neighbour- 

 hood. I have further notes on a few of the Coleoptera of the district from 

 Mr. Holland, but will reserve them for another occasion. — W. W. Foavlf.k, 

 Earley Vicarage, Reading : Januanj 26th, 1020. 



Early appearance in ninnbers of Phujalia pedaria Fb. (pilosaria Hb.). — 

 Perhaps nothing could better illustrate the exceptionally mild weather we have 

 experienced for most of the presei:t winter in this part of the country, tlifin tlie 

 appearance of PhiyaUa ])edaria in its normal numbers in the middle of Januarv. 

 Since Christmas the weather has been for the most part really spring-like, and 

 on the afternoon of January 17th, Mr. S. L. Mosley, wishing to procure a fresh 

 series of this species for our Technical College Museum, during a walk through 

 the woods near the town found no fewer than thirty-eight specimens, and three 

 days later, on the 20th, forty-eight more, or eighty specimens for the two 

 afternoons. Probably such an experience is altogether unprecedented. I have 

 never myself seen the species in the open before the last week in January, 

 and then very sparingly, but Dr. H. H. Corbett found a specimen in a Avood 

 at Doncaster on December 4th last. Mr. Mosley brought to me for examina- 

 tion a representative series of the males he had taken (as is usual in the 

 daytime, he saw very few females), which varied from our normal type to 

 unicolorous dark olive green, and black. But one of them was a very striking 

 variety, having the ground of the normal pale colour, but in the centre of each 

 of the fore wings was a broad melanic band, in the same position and very 

 similar to the band on the variety conversaria of Boarmia repandata ; indeed, 

 on seeing the specimen it reminded me at once of that variety, and I had. never 

 previously seen one at all like it. 



It may be worth while mentioning that on December 2('>tli last, a wasp 

 Avas flying about in one of the rooms of my house as lively as if it were mid- 

 summer, and one was also killed in another room of the house about a week 

 ago. Whethei" they had come in from outside or had been hibernating in the 

 house I do not know. — Geo. T. Pobritt, Elm Lea, Dalton, Iludderstield : 

 February Uh, 1920. 



liutterjlies and Beetles on the loing in winter. — Some d lys ago I sent to 

 this Magazine a note on winter appearances of queen w.isps. 1 am now able 

 to add a few lines on similar cases among other insects, tesiifyinij' to the excep- 

 tional mildness of most of this winter hitherto. A male Goneptery.r rlmnini 

 was seen by Miss K. M. Habgood, at about middiiy on January 16th, in her 

 garden at Hook, Lydiard Tregoze, Woottou Bas.sett, Wilts. The sun was 

 shining brightly, and the insect rose from among sume dry leaves and flew 



