NOTES ON COLLECTING, ETC. 343 



taken any since 1872, but previous to that date I took scores in this 

 district, and to my knowledge they never rolled the leaves together to 

 feed in, but ensconced themselves between two flat leaves, secured with 

 a silk web, similar to Tceniocampa populeti, and other out-of-sight 

 feeders. At Ent., vol. vi., p. 258, Mr. Porritt, describing the larva, 

 says : — " In preparing for the last moult they enclose themselves in 

 loose cocoons formed by drawing together two leaves with silken 

 threads," etc. The way we used to find the larva was to stand under- 

 neath the young limes, so that we had the delicate young (almost trans- 

 parent) leaves between our sight and the sky, when the larvce could be 

 plainly seen between the two adherent leaves. — J. Harrison, Barnsley. 



I must entirely endorse Mr. Harrison's remarks about Xanthia citrago 

 larvje as far as the leaf rolling habit is concerned, and I think the idea 

 must have originated in this way : citrago larvc^, like many of the group, 

 are nocturnal feeders, concealing themselves either between leaves, under 

 bark, among rubbish, in crevices of bark, etc., by day, and coming out 

 at night to feed. In captivity, the lime leaves soon wither and curl up, 

 and these curled leaves would be most convenient hiding places for the 

 larvse in the day time, in which they would spin thin, slight cocoons. 

 The lime trees in avenues, parks, and on roadsides usually have some 

 of the lower branches removed, and, this being done annually, causes 

 a woody excrescence to be formed on the trunks by the numerous small 

 twigs with abundant leafage. These spots I have found to be the 

 favourite feeding grounds of the citrago larvae if searched for after dark ; 

 but except on lime bushes, where they have fewer opportunities for 

 concealment, it is useless to attempt to beat them out by day. — C. 

 Fenn, Lee. Dec, 1890. 



Fratricidal Conduct of Hemerophila abruptaria. — Some larvae 

 I had of H. abruptaria in 1889, when full fed, made their cocoons 

 from the particles of the wooden roof of the breeding cage, and a great 

 many were formed by the later larvte over the cocoons of those which 

 had pupated earlier. Over part of the roof there were, in fact, two 

 layers of pupae in their cocoons, and, of these, only the outermost 

 emerged. After some time I removed the cocoons, and discovered 

 that the earlier moths had obtained an exit from their own cocoons, but 

 had all died in the second, not one having passed through the two. I 

 have had the same thing happen with Dicranura vinula. — (Miss) M. 

 KiMBER, Newbury, Berks. Dec, 1890. 



Peronea hastiana. — Among the many specimens of Peronea 

 hastiana I have bred, one is very like P. comparaiia, so much so, that, 

 if I had not bred it, I might have passed it over. It was the only one 

 of this variety I bred. Can anyone account for the scarcity of P. 

 hastiana in the imago state ? All the larvaj I got came through suc- 

 cessfully, but I tried, time after time, beating with a lantern at night, 

 and every way, but they never were to be seen, although there must 

 have been thousands all round me. Do they fly at any particular time? 

 In the breeding-cage they seemed to be more lively just at daybreak ; 

 i)ut I never had the opportunity to go out on the sandhills at that time. 

 When do they lay their ova ? It is curious that the ova should lie by 

 such a long time, if they are laid now (November) and lie over until 

 next August before hatching. I found no trace of the larvce until well 

 on into August, and the imagines began coming out in September. I 



