108 THE entomologist's recoed. 



were not in such good condition as Mr. Mason's, otherwise I am 

 afraid I should have been tempted ro kill them, as "a bird in the 

 hand is worth two in the bush ;" after the 20th I had two or three eggs 

 a day, though sometimes they stopped laying for a day or two when 

 the nights were extra cold, (I kept the bandbox indoors), I got about 

 30 ova altogether in '88, which began to hatch about 20th May. 

 The ovum is shaped like an orange, with depressed top and ribbed, 

 milk white when first laid, pale straw colour two or three days after, and 

 turns a salmon pink before hatching, with black ring on top, or rather 

 right round it, the young larva is brown and hairy with minute black 

 spots on each segment in centre of back ; after first moult the spots 

 become larger, and the hairs assume a reddish tinge, the body being 

 brown. I fed mine on apple, standing them at first in a glass bell 

 filter, and afterwards sleeved them on an apple tree, on which was 

 unfortunately a Trapezina larva unnoticed, which demolished six or 

 seven before I discovered him ; however, I succeeded in getting 19 

 into the pupal state, but, oddly enough, I had 20 imagines emerge, 

 so must have dug up the odd pupa at some oak or other tree, as 

 I generally keep my bred and dug pupse in same box for con- 

 venience sake. Mr. Hewett, of Winchester College, bred some the 

 same year, and, I think, fed his exclusively on dandelion, with which 

 plant I tried mine at first, but they did not seem to take kindly to 

 it, forsaking it for the apple. The larvae were full fed about last 

 week in July, and began to emerge on Oct. 5th. In spring '89 I 

 took four at sallow, and got about three dozen ova, two dozen of 

 which I divided between Mrs. Hutchinson and Rev. B. Smith. I was 

 pleased to hear that the former succeeded in rearing nine, and sorry 

 to hear that the latter failed utterly, T managed to get seven into pupce, 

 all of which emerged between Sept. 24th and 30th. They seem to be 

 extremely local, for although I have tried for miles round, I have only 

 taken them within radius of 200 or 300 yards. I have only once taken 

 anything approaching a variety, and that had black band parallel to costal 

 margin. I have been after it this year, but failed to take it.^ — R. B. 

 Robertson, Calcot, Reading. June, 1890. 



Retarded Emergences. — Referring to Mr. Baxter's note {ante-' 

 p. 23), I may mention that last season (1SS9) I had several Smerinthus 

 tilia\ which had passed two winters in the pupa state. I also had the 

 following species : Notodo?ita dronicdarius (several), N. canielina (about 

 a dozen), Et(pithecia pygnucata (2), E. Imariata (3). There was cer- 

 tainly nothing exceptional as regards heat last year to account for these 

 appearances. I am inclined to believe this practice of lying over is the 

 rule among the Macro-lepidoptera (moths), and not the exception ; I am 

 constantly meeting new cases. — C. P'enn, Eversden House, Burnt Ash 

 Hill, Lee, S.E. May 12th, 1890. 



In August, 1888, I took a few full-fed larvre of Cucullia verbasci, 

 which went down at once. Four or five came out at the usual time last 

 year, but two others emerged on the 3rd inst. The wings of one did 

 not expand properly, but the other is a fine specimen. — A. F. Bayne, 

 85, Palmerston Buildings. May 12th, 1890. 



In 1888 I bred 19 larvae oi N. trepida : they ail pupated on the same 

 day, and in January, 1889, I put the pupai in a small forcing-house I 

 have in one of the hottest parts of a hot-house. Some of these insects 



