NOTES ON COLLECTING. 219 



the larvae of both species later on, but those of the former species were 

 badly stung by the common Dipteron, and it was not till the end of 

 the season that I was able to get larvfe that produced healthy pup®. 

 C. niipta, usually a common insect with us, was on the contrary, as 

 far as my experience went, conspicuous by its absence.- — Id. 



An Aggressive Habit of Moths. — Monsieur J. de Joannis records 

 in the "Bulletin of the French Entomological Society" for March last, 

 an interesting and curious observation on two species of Heterocera. 

 The two species in question are Arcyophora loiKjivalvis, Gn., and A. 

 zayideri, Feld. M. de Joannis has a nephew on the West Coast of 

 Africa, who was surveying a district at Diondougou in Guinea, and 

 who told his uncle what had taken place. Whilst on the survey his 

 hut communicated with a corral, where his horses were picketed in 

 the open. On one night about March 15th, 1909, he was awakened by the 

 horses kicking and neighing, he therefore called to his boys to go and 

 quiet the animals but they replied that there was nothing the matter, 

 it was only the flies teasing the horses and that it would soon end. 

 The trouble, however, continued and at last he himself went to see 

 what it was ; the moon was brilliant and he could see distinctly the 

 " mouches " which he tried to catch in a small net he had brought 

 with him. This, however, made the horses more restive, so seeing 

 the insects settle on the horses eyes — as he says " sur la glande 

 lacrymale " — he noticed one rub itself against the picketing stake, and 

 then he found a crushed moth, and by holding the horses head with 

 one hand and using the net with the other he succeeded in taking 

 several specimens. He then took a very bright lamp to try and 

 attract them away from the animals but without avail. After having 

 settled for a moment on the eyes of the horses the moths would fly 

 and rest on the mud walls of his hut where they would stay ten or 

 fifteen minutes and allow him to examine them closely with his 

 lantern, remaining quite immoveable whilst their antennae would 

 vibrate with an extraordinarily rapid movement, they would then 

 attack again the eyes of the horses. Sometimes he himself felt the 

 insects dash at his own eyes, but as he wore glasses it did not matter. 

 So sudden, however, was the attack that he had not time to lift his 

 hands before they had flown away again. This went on for five 

 nights in succession, after which it ceased, as his " boys " told him it 

 would. I am sure M. de Joannis will forgive us for recording so 

 interesting an observation in The Record. — -G. T. Bethune-Bakee, 

 (F.E.S., F.L.S.), 19, Clarendon Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham. 

 May 20t/i. 



:i^OTES ON COLLECTING, Etc. 



Hybernia leucophaearia, etc. — In answer to Mr. Turner's enquiry 

 (p. 98) I send my notes on Hybernia leucophaearia. In 1907 I took 

 accurate notes of all specimens of this species seen in Richmond Park, 

 132 in number. The different forms occurred in the following 

 proportions, pale form 68 per cent., black form 21 per cent., inter- 

 mediate or difficult to classify 5 per cent., var. marmorinaria 6 per cent. 

 I also took notes on Nola confusalis and its var. colunibina in 

 Epping Forest in 1907 and 1908. In the former year I took 36 of the 

 type and 9 of the variety, in the latter year, 26 of the type and 6 of the 



