332 THE entojiolochst's kecgrd. 



struck him." Mr. Sloper, who also knows M. athalia, M. deione, and 

 M. berisalensix in nature, and who took both M. deione and M. athalia 

 at Digne about May 26th, 1902, says that " beriaalensiti is, without 

 doubt, the northern form of M. deione.'" It must be conceded 

 that these lepidopterists who know these insects in nature are much 

 more likely to come to a correct conclusion as to their sjpecific value 

 than those of us who only know their dried bodies in the cabinet. — 



J. W. TUTT. 



J^OTES ON LIFE-HISTORIES, LARY^, &c. 



Notes on the early stai^es of Agrius (Sphinx) convolvuli. — 

 As I can find, with the exception of Professor Poulton's masterly 

 account {Trans. Knt. Soc. Loud., 1888, pp. 550 et seq.), very few refer- 

 ences to the early stages of Ai/rius (SjjJiinx) convolvuli in the entomo- 

 logical works which I possess or in the magazines, a few notes thereon 

 may be of interest. On September 7th, a damaged 5 was brought to 

 me alive, which had been taken that evening in Sunderland. As it 

 had been captured not on the wing but by the wing it was by no 

 means in cabinet condition, so I determined to try for ova, and im- 

 prisoned it in a large glass jar with sprays of Coni-olrulus arvemis and 

 flowers of Petunia and Xicotiana as sustenance. It devoted the first 

 few days to knocking off what scales remained, but, by the 18th, had 

 started to lay, producing in all 17 ova before dying. The ovum is 

 already known and has been described, so I need not go further 

 than to say that I was struck, as others have been, with its small size and 

 brilliant green colour. Three or four were laid loosely in the jar and 

 the rest on steins or leaves in small groups. About September 25th a 

 few had changed colour and were now of a pale yellowish-grey tint, and 

 from their collapsed appearance I concluded that they were dead, but in 

 two days more the larvte began to hatch — 8 in all. The remaining eggs 

 also changed colour but failed to hatch, chiefly, I think, because the 

 leaves turned wet and mouldy. The young larva is very slender and 

 fragile-looking, pale yellowish, with a long black horn, curved in dif- 

 ferent individuals at different angles, and, in one case, in which I took 

 deep interest, bifurcated half its length, and very odd in appearance ; 

 unfortunately the owner promptly died, as did three others, apparently 

 without feeding much. The rest took well to C arrensis and white garden 

 convolvulus, at first riddling the leaves with holes, after the habit of the 

 larva of Heinaris j'ucifonuis on honeysuckle, and later eating at the side. 

 They speedily developed a green tinge, and, by October 4th, were f inch 

 in length, and laying up to moult. By October 6th, all four had 

 moulted, but one died without eating. The three survivors were very 

 lethargic, but irritable when disturbed or even breathed upon, throw- 

 ing themselves off' their food, and twisting angrily about. They were 

 now pale green, slender larv», developing a darker stripe down the 

 back as they grew, and having a somewhat rough shagreened appear- 

 ance; the horn still large in proportion, black and slender ; two pairs 

 of anal spiracles, large black ovals, the others represented by black 

 dots. They grew steadily to fin. with no change in colour except the 

 horn, which turned reddish, and by the 12th were laid up for their 

 second moult, which they accomplished on the 14th by midday. In 

 this instar they were still light green, ribbed closely and shagreened 

 with whitish points, segmental divisions paler, and a broad darker 



