NOTES ON COLLECTING, ETC. 109 



about 12 to 1 8 inches from the ground. Now comes the difficulty! 

 I have worked a certain hill on the chalk over 20 years for Scoria 

 dealbata and Pachetra leucophcea, and there I take another five-spotted 

 Zygana commonly, but not so common as the Sandwich insect, which 

 also has gone by the name of trifolii. There are, I believe, two 

 species uinder one name. The Sandwich insect is much larger and 

 brighter than the chalk hill species, the spots deeper in colour, but the 

 chief point is that the former insect always spins its cocoon high up on 

 the grasses or rushes like Z. filipendulcE, the latter does not. I have 

 for many years searched for the cocoon but never found it. They 

 must either spin up close to or amongst the roots themselves. Perhaps, 

 by pulling up the grass, they might be found occasionally, but I have 

 never found a single one ; I have seen cocoons, which I have thought 

 might be the " Burnet," but they have always turned out 6". dealbata. 

 The late Mr, Sydney Smith of Walmer, and other collectors from Deal 

 used to take the Sandwich insect and always called it Z. trifolii. About 

 one specimen in ten would have the spots all joined together forming 

 a large blotch. It would be interesting to know who really takes 

 trifolii^ and whether they spin up on grasses, or is the Sandwich insect 

 lonicerce ? I have, this year, taken some very curious varieties of the 

 chalk hill form, some no larger than nieliloti, others with the spots 

 forming one blotch, their colour sometimes pinkish-yellow. I may 

 add that the Sandwich insect does not appear so soon by a fortnight 

 as the chalk hill one. — J. Parry, St. Paul's, Canterbury, /uly, 1891. 



As we understand species, the different forms known collectively as 

 Zygcena trifolii are very puzzling. The largest and most typical speci- 

 mens of Z. trifolii I have ever received came from Mr. Boult, and 

 were taken at Spurn. The only blotching that I have in these speci- 

 mens is the union of the central pair of spots. These are very large, 

 much larger than from any other locality. The smallest specimens I 

 have ever taken were found in a marshy field in North Kent. In this 

 field I never saw a pupa, never could find a pupa, and I am satisfied 

 that the cocoon is not spun on the grass stems in that locality. These 

 are nearly all blotched, sometimes two, sometimes three, and occasion- 

 ally all five spots being joined. From the New Forest I have a long 

 series of Z. trifolii almost as small as the North Kent specimens. I did 

 not take these myself, so I dare say they were picked over, but none of 

 these are blotched except the central pair of spots. These, however, 

 are undoubtedly the same as the North Kent form. I have a long 

 series of the Sandwich form from the same locality mentioned by Mr. 

 Parry, and these vary exceedingly. Some are almost as large as the 

 Spurn specimens some as small as those from North Kent. Many are 

 blotched. This, however, forms quite a distinct race from either of 

 those before-mentioned. An exactly similar lot came to me from 

 Capt. Robertson, caught in South Wales, and his description of the 

 latter locality corresponded almost exactly with that at Sandwich. I 

 was on the latter ground last night and picked off some two or three 

 dozen cocoons spun up on the sedges as mentioned by Mr. Parry. With 

 regard, however, to the query as to these specimens being lonicerce, they 

 decidedly are not. 



As to the different forms of Z. trifolii, there appears to be no doubt 

 that the different local races are largely due to environment, and the 



