246 THE entomologist's record. 



species ever throws a second-brood ? I may add that larvte in all 

 stages of growth were, as usual, much in evidence at the same period. 



Sugaring on the downs, in spite of the abundance of common 

 species whenever the weather was favourable, was not remunerative in 

 " good things." A few nice Ai/rotis lunitiera were obtained, and a few 

 good forms of A. corticea, which latter swarmed in July; but the 

 autumn rarities were either completely absent or retarded until after 

 my departure, not even the erstwhile " rarity," Caradrina oiiihii/iia, 

 putting in an appearance. Aporophyla australis was only just 

 commencing to emerge when I left, and the coveted black form (ab. 

 ingenaa) did not turn up. The rarest Depressarias were also absent, 

 though I was pleased to take one D. pallorella, after its disappearance 

 for a good many years. In one locality Hellinsia {Leioptili(s) carpho- 

 dacti/la, second-brood, was found in fair numbers on September 3rd, 

 sitting about on grass and other plants near its foodplant after dark. 



Steyne Wood, Bembridge — that "happy hunting ground" of the 

 late Dr. Wallace — was visited once or twice when it was too windy to 

 work the downs. Sugar, however, was there a failure, and we were 

 limited to a little dusking and chance searching. Mr. Bell, on 

 July 25th, turned up one or two worn Ophium (Toxocampa) paiitinum, 

 a species for which we have no recent records in the eastern part of 

 the island, although its abundance near Freshwater is matter of 

 common knowledge; the rest of the captures were ordinary things 

 such as Rivtda scricealis, Cieorodes lichcnaria, etc. 



But more attention was given to the marshes, and to St. Helens' 

 sand-hills, both of which I felt were worthy of more work than they 

 had formerly received ; and it was here that most of the best successes 

 were achieved. On the marshes the sugaring was not exciting, though 

 not an entire failure. The visitors included Dynchorista fissipimcta 

 (upsilo)i), Mamestra disswiilis (snasa), both broods, Hama abjecta, 

 Hydroecia paludis, and others, but the last-named was much commoner 

 at light, and some nice aberrations were obtained. There were (as 

 usual 1) not many really favourable nights for light, yet with the aid 

 of this attraction, and a certain amount of careful searching among 

 the reeds, a nice bag of Senta waritima and Leucania straiiiinea was 

 made, together with a few Scoparia pallida, C/iilo forficellus, Schoeiio- 

 bius <iif/antelhis, Cramhiis selasellus and C. salinelliis, Tortri.v costana, 

 Ortlwtelia Kparganella, and other sundries. Noctuids, if we except the 

 two named and Apamea did y ma, were decidedly scarce in the actual 

 reed-beds, though Leucania ivipnra was a pest outride ; excepting two 

 Hama abjecta, one Coenobia riifa, two or three Tapinostola fulva, and a 

 few Hydroecia micacea and Amafhes iimbrosa, I can recall scarcely any 

 that we saw there. A pleasant surprise, however, was the appearance 

 of a perfect J No7iagria sparyanii, which came straight to my light on 

 August 12th. Naturally, we followed up this clue, and by dint of a 

 good deal of work managed to discover five or six pupte, besides traces 

 of others which had been torn from the stems by some of the reed- 

 frequenting birds. Mr. Capper also, with commendable perseverance, 

 stationed himself with his acetylene lamp close to the breeding-ground 

 for long periods during the few succeeding nights, and managed to 

 attract two or three more imagines. A cocoon of Plii!>ia festncae was 

 found spun up on a rush, also on August 12th, and produced a fine 

 imago on August 30th. Some very backward larva- of Leucania obsoleta, 



