108 



THE ENTOMOLOGIST S RECORD. 



pupae in England, his reason being that he never found they could 

 survive a long exposure to winter temperature. In vol. ix., 1897, 

 pp. 249-51, in a paper " On a collection of Spring Lepidoptera made 

 in the Riviera, etc.," Mr. J. W. Tutt notices, on the authority of Dr. 

 Chapman, the occurrence of atalanta in February, and further quotes 

 Chapman as saying that, at Cannes, " during last winter P. atalanta 

 was always in evidence, the same individuals at the same places 

 (apparently, and probably really) all the winter, the imagines not 

 emerging or ovipositing, as far as one could judge, but hybernating 

 without hiding away, except on dull and cold days." In this paper 

 Mr. Tutt remarks, "It is well known that the imago of this species 

 never goes into hybernation in the autumn, in Britain, until obliged, 

 feasting first on the hop catkins and later on ivy bloom." In vol. xi., 

 1899, p. 79, Dr. Chapman remarks that, in February, 1899, in the 

 Riviera, of hybernating butterflies atalanta was much the most abun- 

 dant ; and (p. 97) on March 6th he found a full-grown larva. In vol. 

 xii., 1900, p. 53, Mr. J. Mason notes having seen atalanta flying about 

 in the bright sun on January 9th, at Clevedon Court, Somersetshire. 



(11) Buckler's Larva of British Butterflies and Motlis, vol. i., p. 

 176, the Rev. John Hellins writes, " I have not many records of this 

 species ; perhaps one of the most pleasant entomological memories is 

 that of seeing the butterfly (atalanta) in good condition, flying about 

 during a gleam of sunshine on the morning of Christmas Day, 1866 ; 

 at last it settled on a child's shoulder, and was an object of admira- 

 tion for some time." 



With regard to the question as to whether pairing takes place 

 before or after hybernation, I have seen it stated that females of 

 Vanessids captured in the autumn, and dissected, show no trace of ova, 

 or ova only slightly developed, but I have no personal knowledge of 

 the subject. Boisduval says that impregnation takes place in the 

 spring, but there seems to be a difference of opinion on this point. I 

 once saw a pair of Pyrameis cardui, in cop., at Gibraltar, on April 20th. 



In very hot and dry localities in the Mediterranean, such as Malta, 

 Gibraltar, etc., where, during the summer months, the foodplant of 

 atalanta is practically burnt up, the imagines appear to aestivate, but 

 towards the end of September or beginning of October the weather 

 becomes cooler, the rains commence, and the nettles soon spring up, 

 and then atalanta busies itself ovipositing, and, as I have before men- 

 tioned, being a long-lived species, larvae of all sizes, and pupae, are to 

 be found among the food-plants, and freshly-hatched imagines begin 

 to emerge in November. 



At Alexandria, on February 8th, 1898, I found a full-grown larva 

 spun up and preparing to pupate in a bed of nettles, other larvae of 

 various sizes, and a fresh imago. The larva found on the above 

 date, produced a fine butterfly on the 28th of the same month. 



From the above I think it is pretty clear that this species does 

 hybernate in this country. 



Larva' of Polyommatus icarus and their connection with ants. 



By A. L. ItAYWARD, F.E.S. 

 It is, I think, not very generally known that the larva of our com- 

 mon blue butterfly, Polyommatus icarus, like those of at least three 

 other species of our British Lycaenids, is possessed of a gland which 



