68 THE entomologist's record. 



Jwspita and the inferior wings typical ate not rare, but one I captured 

 had the superior wings typical and inferior wings with a pure white 

 ground colour, a very pretty variety indeed. Had we been able to 

 devote more time to this species we might have done more with the 

 varieties, but Zygcena exulajis was the special insect for which we went 

 to Braemar, and although we worked very hard for them my captures 

 only reached about fifty, while Mr. Maddison's were even less. While 

 here, I also turned up another species which proved exceedingly scarce, 

 viz., Crambus furcatellus, of which I only secured about half-a-dozen. — 

 Wm. Reid, Pitcaple. 



A. PLANTAGiNis VAR, HOSPiTA — I ncver saw this form in the Lowlands. 

 I have enclosed in the exhibition box three females of plantaginis with 

 smoky, yellow and rosy undervvings, and would like to know if the same 

 forms occur in the south. — A. Horne, Aberdeen. 



Var. of Noctua festiva. — I captured last July at sugar a striking 

 and distinctly marked var. of this protean species. It is of an uniform 

 reddish-ochreous colour, with the stigmata inconspicuous, but with the 

 transverse lines (half, inner and elbowed lines) strongly marked in 

 blackish. There is also an absence of transverse shades, which serve 

 to make the black lines show up more clearly. The pronounced 

 transverse lines on an uniform reddish-ochreous ground, with the faintly 

 outlined stigmata, and absence of transverse shades, make the insect a 

 very pretty one. The specimen has been favourably commented on 

 by the members of one of the baskets belonging to the " Record 

 Exchange Club." — J. Collins, Warrington. [The specimen is a very 

 strangely coloured one, I have not seen another like it. — Ed.] 



Current notes. 



It is probable that the old Cambridge Entomological Society will be 

 resuscitated. It is rather a disgrace that one of our Universities, which 

 were previously the centres of Entomological Science, should be so 

 hopelessly behindhand now. 



In the last number of the Ent. Record, p. 33, I wrote : — " It is also 

 very strange that our Oxyptilus heterodactyla {teucrit) is not known on 

 the Continent. Do the Continental lepidopterists, at any rate in part, 

 call this species hieraciiV The suggestion soon proved true, for 

 whilst looking over some type-specimens of Pterophori in Mr. Briggs' 

 collection, which had come from Dr. Staudinger, I immediately 

 detected two heterodactyla which had been sent to him for hieracii, Zell. 



The second volume of T/ie British IVoctucs and their Varieties 

 has now, we believe, been sent to all subscribers. If any have not 

 yet received them, we should be pleased to hear. We should also 

 be pleased if those gentlemen, who still owe for Vol. I., sent out last 

 May, and who have not yet acknowledged its receipt, would do so. 



Mr. Leonard S. Sellon kindly informs us that the woods about Sils- 

 Maria, mentioned in The Record, vol. ii., p. 268, are about 6,500 ft., 

 and not 5,500 ft, as there stated. The village is 6,000 ft. 



Mr. H. Goss deserves the thanks of field-naturalists in general, for 

 the determined stand he has made against the War Office annexing 

 800 acres of the New Forest. Of course, this 800 is only likely to 

 be a first instalment. 



