34 



VARIATION. 



Tephrosia biundularia var. delamerensis in Nottingham. — T. 

 biundiilaria, so far as I am aware, only occurs in one locality in this 

 district. In this locality in some seasons it occurs in fair numbers, 

 while in others it is comparatively scarce. The time of appearance 

 differs from that given by Newman, who states that it occurs in April 

 and again in July. Here it only appears to occur during June. I have 

 found it from the ist to the 15th of the month in good condition, the 

 date of appearance varying with the season. We appear to get two 

 extreme varieties here, one very light, the other very dark. I have 

 found the melanic forms so far in greater abundance than the light 

 ones. The dark form is very dark greyish black in colour, and probably 

 occurs in about the proportion of three to two paler ones. Intermediate 

 forms of course occur. Last season I captured a pair of T. biundularia 

 in copula, one of the palest form, the other of the darkest, and from 

 them I obtained ova, now having pupae of this batch, the imagos from 

 which I am waiting anxiously to appear. The wood in which biim- 

 dularia occurs, is situated on a sandy soil, chiefly planted with oak ; 

 but it is in a small chestnut plantation that I take biiindularia, at rest on 

 the trunks of the chestnut trees. Here I believe the larva feeds on 

 chestnut, and pupates at the foot of the trees, as I have rarely taken the 

 imago on oak. Those I have reared I have fed on hawthorn. The 

 larvae grow very slowly and rarely pupate until August and September. 

 — W. Daws, New Wood Street, Mansfield, Notts. 



[The time given by Newman is that for the allied T. crepuscularia, 

 not biundularia, which always occurs in the south from about May 24th 

 to June loth. Newman did not distinguish the species correctly and 

 hence is in error. I have reared the species on birch, sallow, oak, 

 hawthorn, and other trees and shrubs .^ — J.W.T.] 



A SUFFUSED var. OF AcRONYCTA ALNi. — I havc a Specimen of A. alni 

 bred by the late J. G. Ross of Bathampton which has the black colora- 

 tion spread over the basal half of the fore wings. — C. W. Dale, Glan- 

 ville's Wootton. 



A BLACK VAR. OF Brephos parthenias. — I have a specimen of B. 

 parthenias also from the late Mr. Ross, which is entirely black without 

 any trace of white or yellow about it. It is one of the best melanic 

 specimens I have ever seen. — C. W. Dale. March, 1890. 



[I would propose for this the varietal name oi nigra. — J.W.T.] 



Miana arcuosa var. morrisii. — Acosmetia niorrisii is described in 

 the Naturalist for 1837, p. 88. It is a white var. of M. arcuosa and 

 has occurred at Chermouth. — C. W. Dale. 



Acronycta ligustri var. nigra. — Mr. A. E. Hall of Sheffield sent 

 me a perfectly melanic specimen of this species a short time since, 

 under the impression that it was ruinicis var. salicis. It is entirely 

 black, the paler markings of the type being entirely absent, the trans- 

 verse lines being more intensely black than the ground colour. Mr. 

 Hall writes : " I only took two A. ligustri, both on the same date, viz. 

 June nth, 1888, in Wadworth Wood near Doncaster. One I sent you, 

 the other I have myself." It is interesting to note what a number of 



