350 THE entomologist's record. 



Here, too, is the home of Macrot/n/laria nihi, seeminnly oettin,s: scarcer, 

 as in recent years I have, during the late autumn, seen hut few of its 

 large and handsome larvfe compared with the quantities of former 

 seasons. During this year I have placed in my collections a Glouces- 

 tershire example of the very uncommon (or rathei- i-arely seen in its 

 perfect state) Ox warble fly. I may note that my Aberdeenshire friend, 

 Mr. W. Sim, of Gourdas Fyvie, recently sent me a cutting from the 

 Barijfsltiie Joiintal containing more of his valuable observations on 

 this increasing pest. — Chas. .1. Watkins, F.E.S., King's Mill House, 

 Painswick. November Idth, 1902. 



Anticlea sIxNUata near Dawlish. — I took a 3 Anticlca siniiata on 

 July 28th last near Dawlish whilst beating for Mrlanijijo' unawjidata, 

 etc. The day was dull, with misty rain at times, and insects seemed 

 very unwilling to answer to the beating-stick, still I secured a fair 

 number of Mdanippe unanipdata, Acidalia bisctata, A. nciitidata, A. 

 emartfinnta, and others. We had had a great deal of wet weather 

 previous to this date, and T had not been collecting in that parti- 

 cular district for a fortnight, and so I probably thus missed the brood 

 of A. sinuata, since it is very unlikely that my capture was the only 

 specimen there. Galium is abundant in the hedgerows of that parti- 

 cular lane. — Ernest A. Rogers, Kalrel House. r)uckeridge Road, 

 Teignraouth, Devon. Xoirmhrr 24tli, 1902. 



Swarming of Pyra]\iets ataianta. — In reading youi- article on 

 " Migration, etc.," I find you mention the swarming hal)its of Sotipiif! 

 hermione. Is it generally known that our coranion Pyirtmci^ atalanta 

 occasionally acts in precisely the same manner ? I have twice noticed 

 a swarm of these insects roosting on the branches of an oak-tree. I have 

 never seen this habit of /'. atalanta mentioned in any book on ento- 

 mology, and should very much like to know the possible reason for the 

 habit. — G. T. Lyee, Brookley Road, IJrockenhurst. Xoi-ember 23r</, 

 1902. [We suspect the habit is not uncommon in some species. It 

 occurs to us that, on several occasions, at Bourg d'Oisans, in August, 

 1896, we watched Papilin pndalirina fly up into some ash trees, as the 

 afternoon sun went oif the lucerne fields in which they fed by da}', to 

 roost, and frequently observed them leave the trees again about 8 a.m. 

 We quoted Snti/rus hermioni' as being so well-knoAvn to lepidopterists. 

 Records of other instances of the habit in other species would be 

 interesting. Ep. 



Collecting in co. kkrry fn .tune, 1902. — The dirge of the lepi- 

 dopterist in 1902 goes up on all sides. Rare species have been very 

 rare, usually common ones have been actually scarcer, and some 

 species have not even appeared at all, where they are regularly to be 

 found. Many theories and notions have been put forward to account 

 for the general diminution. Some sa.y it has been such a wet year, 

 others so cold, others such a broken year, and so on. One sometimes 

 hears the reason assigned to lack of sunshine. Is not this last the 

 real factoi- that has so conspicuously failed us this year '? and is it not 

 want of sunshine that has. far more than anything else, given us such 

 a wretched season for the lepidoptera ? The meteorological returns 

 show that, in reality, the year has noi been an abnormally wet one — 

 not even an average one up to date— in fact the only real difference from 

 an ordinary year bns been th( want of li'jlit and heat, for which " Old 

 Sol " is responsible. One knows by expenmeut that pupie kept in the 



