NOTES ON COLLECTING, ETC. 85 



I should say, be too juicy a provender for them. — C. Fenn. [The 

 larvae were very abundant last autumn when we were sweeping for 

 DiantJuecia irregularis larvae at Tuddenham last August. — Ed.] 



Larv^ beating in Spring. — To those not knowing the fact, it may 

 be interesting to learn, that night-beating for larvae, especially after 

 lo p.m., is the most productive means of capture possible, and many 

 larvae are obtained of species which do not always come to sugar, such 

 as Noctua ditrapezium, Aplccta tincta, Triphmna interjecta etc. I once 

 beat out of the birches and sallows at Tilgate, over 500 larvae in one 

 night, between to. 30 p.m. and i a.m. and amongst them were 16 iV. 

 ditrapezium, 20 Triphcena fimbria, 8 A. tincta, with Plusia iota and 

 Boarinia repandiia commonly, and any quantity of Noctua baja, 

 brumiea, tria/iguluin, Triphxna janthitia, Aplecta 7iebu!osa, etc' Where 

 the var. conversaria of B. repandata is ever taken, it should be searched 

 for at night about the end of April, along the rides and hedges ; tlie 

 pale larva is then easily found and may be beaten into an umbrella, 

 but it is of little use searching for it in the daytime. In confinement 

 they will eat anything, but I have always found them most common on 

 hawthorn, blackthorn, nut and birch, in the order named. — C. Fenn, 

 Lee, Kent. 



Setting the Forelegs of Agriopis aprilina. — If injection with 

 oxalic acid were adopted as a method of killing lepidoptera, the 

 difficulty referred to {Ent. Rec, ii., p. 295) would not, 1 believe, be met 

 with ; nor would mechanical force have to be used to overcome the 

 intense stiffening resulting from the use of cyanide of potassium. I 

 have a considerable series of this species with all the forelegs extended 

 in front, and have never had any difficulty in setting them. — 

 R. Prideaux. 



Use of Naphthalin. — A method of using the above, that I have 

 adopted for some years, occurs to me as possibly worth recording. 

 Naphthalin melts at 80° C. and the fusion may readily be done in a 

 test tube over a spirit lamp. If a small brush be inserted in the test 

 tube, and the liquid applied hot to the sides, corners, or crevices of 

 pocket, postal or relaxing boxes, etc., it hardens immediately where 

 applied, does not knock about the box, and is most efficient in keeping 

 boxes so treated, free from mites. — R. M. Prideaux, Clifton, Bristol. 



XvLiNA conspicillaris. — Do the specimens of Xyliiia conspicillaris, 

 taken in England, differ in any way from Continental specimens? My 

 British specimens are all of the same type; two came from old Benj. 

 Standish, Darenth Wood captures ; 5 bred by the late E. Horton, of 

 Worcester, and one from Mr. Edwards of the same place. — J. B. 

 Hodgkinson. [I believe there is no difference whatever. A full 

 account of the variation of this species is to be found in T/ie British 

 NoctucB and their Varieties^ i., pp. 69-71. — Ed.] 



Aporia crat^gi. — Has this partly extinct species occurred again ? 

 If so, in what county? — Id. [The last record should be well known 

 to Mr. Hodgkinson. It is in the E.M.M., vol. xxiv., p. 131, and is 

 vouched for by Mr. Webb. Mr. Edmonds has sold a large number of 

 pupce of late, but no one supposes they are of British origin. — Ed.] 



Xylina zinckenii. — I recently had two foreign specimens of this 

 species offered to me to purchase. They were nothing like the specimens 

 which were sold with Mr. Warren's collection. — Id. [Probably as the 



