300 THE entomologist's record. 



" Young Barnes," published in T/ie Intelligencer, thirty years ago, and 

 the epithet "Young Barnes" is nowadays on many an older collector's 

 lips as he reads down the exchange column, and sees what " duplicates " 

 certain collectors offer for their " desiderata." We only, however, 

 want now to draw attention to that inconsistent class of persons who 

 encourage fraud, and then wonder if they are being swindled, and who, 

 if only half the energy they display in worrying people in order to fill 

 up a "blank," was put into working out the life-history or observing 

 the habits of some familiar species, would be creating a pleasure for 

 themselves, and doing service to science. — Ed. 



Entomological Pins. — In the Record, p. 240, Mr. Bankes, in an 

 interesting and instructive article on pins, speaks of the Minuten 

 Nadeln rusting. So they do if you use the steel ones, but they are to 

 be had made of silver, which I suppose will not rust. I have not 

 found them to do so, and I maintain that it would be an advantage to 

 use them for all NepticulcB. True they are easily bent when stuck in 

 cork, but I find they go easily into, and hold well in, strips of well- 

 dried elder pith ; and setting boards can be made of the same material 

 fastened on to wood. The first time I used them it struck me that 

 they filled, as nearly as pins could, the want Mr. Stainton mentioned 

 •some thirty years ago in the Ento/nologisfs Companion, of a perfect 

 pin for Neps. — W. Farren. October 2\th, 1892. 



FooDPLANTS OF CucuLLiA LYCHNiTis. — It may be generally interest- 

 ing to note the fact that larvaj of C. lychnitis will eat Scrophularia 

 aqiiatica. I had eighteen larvae sent to me on the 15th August, varying 

 in size from three parts grown to small ones in about their second skin, 

 which had been taken feeding on the white mullein, and was surprised 

 to find that I could not call to mind that I had seen any mullein in 

 these parts ; and on inquiry, found that it does not occur near here 

 or is very rare. I was then in a fix as to what to feed them on, as I 

 could only see mullein (white or black) given as the foodplant ; but 

 tried them with Scrophularia aqiiatica, judging from analogy that as 

 C. verbasci will eat both Verbasciim and Scrophularia, another member 

 of the family might possibly do so. The larvae did not seem to take 

 kindly to it at first, and crawled over it restlessly ; but on looking at 

 them again about an hour afterwards I found them all busily occupied 

 in eating the buds and blossoms. The result so far is that twelve of 

 the larvae have pupated, and the other six died. I cannot say until 

 next year what the ultimate result will prove to be, and have not 

 opened any of the cocoons. Two days ago I came across a note by 

 Mr. J. E. Robson {Etiiom., xxiv., p. 146) in which he says : — " I think 

 it probable that the larvae of all three {viz. : — verbasci, scrophularice, and 

 lychnitis) will feed on any of the mulleins or figworts. — E. W. Brown, 

 Shorncliffe. September 12th, 1892. 



Foodplant of Cosmia pyralina. — Mr. Holland is anxious to know 

 whether this species feeds naturally on blackthorn. That I cannot say, 

 but I can relieve his mind with regard to elm, for in the early part of 

 June, 1885, I beat from some elms near Brentwood a number of 

 Cosmia larvaa, most of which turned out to be affinis, whilst two or 

 three were diffinis, and a single one was pyralina. I still possess the 

 imago which resulted from the latter, and see from its label that it was 



