112 THE entomologist's RECORD. 



daihrata, from Basingstoke, and Boletobia fuliginaria attracting, per- 

 haps, most attention. Mr. Farren exhibits a magnificent series of 

 Bryophila var. impar, and a grand lot of the various species of A?iticlea. 

 Mr. Barrett, a fine lot of Agrotis cursoria and Odotiestis potaioria, 

 including yellow forms, whilst, at the same time, a box of varieties ot 

 Diurni from Messrs. Russ, Sydney Webb, Robson, Rev. Joseph Greene, 

 Drs. Wheeler and Mason are, perhaps, the most bizarre lot of insec:ts 

 ever collected into so small a space. Mr. Nussey, a fine lot of LyccetJCB 

 and Hesperidce ; Mr. South, another very extensive exhibit, amongst 

 which LyccBna akxis, Cidaria russata, Noctua festiva and N. confliia 

 (the two latter very distinct, as arranged in series) are, perhaps, the 

 pick, whilst the same gentleman's Tortrices, Pyrales, and Pteropihorina 

 are most interesting. Mr. Jager his fine drawer of "Tigers," includ- 

 ing Callimorpha hera. Messrs. Billups, Lewcock and West make a 

 grand show of Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Hemiptera, etc., between 

 them; and Messrs. J. Jenner Weir and Edwards exhibit some fine 

 exotics, the cases exhibiting mimicry between the females of certain 

 Papilionidce and Nyiiipiialidce being especially interesting. But, per- 

 haps, the greatest entomological treat was provided by Mr. Leach, 

 whose cases of Paljearctic Bombyces and Noctua were exceedingly fine 

 and interesting, and opened one's eyes to the vagaries of certain species 

 under different conditions, vvhen studied from the point of their geo- 

 graphical distribution. Mr. Tutt exhibited Hydrcecia 7iictita7is and the 

 sub-species H. pahidis and lucens, Cuspidia alni and C. psi, long series 

 of vars., and a drawer of varieties of Tceniocampa gothica ; Dr. Sequeira, 

 two drawers of picked lepidoptera, etc. There were many other 

 exhibitors who made most interesting exhibits. Perhaps it is going 

 out of the way for an Entomological Magazine, but certainly Mr. J. A. 

 Cooper's birds' eggs were quite a feature of the exhibition, and the 

 attention the exhibit drew was quite deserved by its excellence. 



The first part of Mr. C. G. Barrett's work on the British Lepidoptera 

 has been at last published. It has been generally expected that the 

 letterpress would be good, and the plates more or less unsatisfactory. 

 The latter is certainly the case, and not only is the colouring poor, and 

 in some certainly bad, but the larvae have been apparently drawn and 

 coloured from " blown " specimens, and, of course, are most unnatural, 

 and bear no comparison whatever with those drawn by Sepp, Rosel and 

 Hiibner loo to 150 years ago. The letterpress is generally correct, 

 although the nervures of the female of Aporia cratagi are said to be 

 blacker than those of the males, and the species in general is considered 

 not to be variable. As a matter of fact it varies, perhaps, next to Pieris 

 napi rather more than any of our British Pieridce. The explanation in 

 the introduction that the plural of " ovum " is " ova," etc., shows that 

 the work is characteristically suitable for beginners. There appears 

 to be but little in the first part which is not in Newman, except some 

 general statements on variation which occupy usually as much or 

 more space, as the notes on the species in general. We certainly had 

 hoped for something on the lines of Scudder's big work, and must own 

 to being grievously disappointed. Certainly on the present lines there 

 is but little encouragement for collectors of a few years' standing to buy 

 it, and we can only hope that the author will soon reach the smaller 

 " fry," where his intimate knowledge will be far beyond that of the 



