SOCIETIES. 



87 



newly hatclied larvae of Geometra papilionayia. Mr. E. I>. Poulton 

 exliibited, and made remarks on, a mimber of cocoons of HdJiati j^rasi- 

 luina, in order to show the changes of colour produced in them by their 

 surroundings: he also exhibited the coloured backgrounds emi)loyedby 

 him in his recent experiments on the colours of larvae and pui)a>, and 

 illustrated his remarks by numerous drawings on the black) )oard. Dr. 

 T. A. Chapman read a paper — which was illustrated l)y the nxy-hydro- 

 gen lantern — entitled " On some neglected points in the structure of 

 the i^upa of Heterocerous Lepidoptera and their probable value in 

 classification." A discussion ensued, in which Mr. Elwes, Mr. Poulton, 

 Mr. Champion and Mr. Merrifield took part. Dr. F. A. Dixey com- 

 municated a paper entitled " On the Phylogenetic Significance of the 

 V'ariations })roduced liy differences of temperature on Vanessa atalanta.'' 

 The President, Mr. Merrifield, Mr. Poulton, Dr. Chapman and Mr. Tutt 

 took part in the discussion which ensiied. — H. Goss, Hon. Sec. 



Lancashire and Chesiiike Entomolooical Society. — Febniary dth. 

 Mr. S. J. Capper referred to the death of the Eev. F. 0. M.n-ris. which 

 <jccurred last Saturday, in his eighty-third year. — Mr. C. H. Hesketh 

 Walker read a paper entitled, " Pond life." Keferring to hobljies gene- 

 rally, he considered that natural history was one of the mc)st interesting. 

 He then stated that a stagnant pond was a paradise prolific in animal 

 life, and poetically described it with all its attendant insects, Scc^ 

 showing by a table that examples of most of the animal kingdom from 

 Protozoa to Mammalia were to be found therein. Proceeding, he gave 

 brief descriptions of these animals, illustrating his remarks liy rapidly- 

 drawn figures on the blacklward. — The President exhibited some fine 

 varieties of Arciia caja. also a numljer of port-wine corks comidetely 

 riddled by some coleopterous or lepido})terous larva'; Mr. Locke, 

 Carabus (jiahratus, from Ijangdale Pikes ; Mr. Deville. GoJiathus (/i(janteus, 

 from Cameroons ; and Mr. Gregson, Nociva tr/aiujiihim, from Ijancashire 

 and London. — F. N.Pierce, Hon. Sec, 143, Smithdown Lune, Liverpool. 



South London Entomological Society. — February 0th. ]h93. — 

 Mr. Frohawk exhil)ited hyliernating larva' of Epinephele janlra, and 

 stated that they fed intermittently throughout the winter, seldom re- 

 maining more than ten or twelve days Avithout food. These varied 

 consideral)ly in size, one being quite half-grown. Mr. Jenner Weir 

 referred to the habit of the larva in resting head downwards on the 

 grass culms, the anal points being evidently protective. Mr. Adkin, a 

 series of Aplecta prasrna (herbida), the ova having Ijcen o])tamed from 

 a moth captured at Polcgate, Sussex, during the past summer, and the 

 moths emerging during Novemlier and December. Mr. Waller, a vari- 

 alde hved series of Smerinthus tilne, one of which exhil)ited a very strong 

 tendency towards melanism, and others, having the markings distinctly 

 asjanmetrical. Mr. McArthur, Tceniocavipa gothica var. gothicina,. 

 Coccyx cosmophorana and Itetinia diiplnna, and a discussiijn ensued, Mr. 

 Barrett stating tliat the original British specimens of so-called 7?. du- 

 plaua, were, in his opinion, only small specimens of B. tnrionana, al- 

 though Mr. Warren considered them a distinct species named E.pjosticana. 

 Mr. Adye a variable series of Boarmia repandata, taken at sugar in the 

 New Forest, July, 189"2. Mr. Weir exhibited a photograph taken from 

 " Insect Life," for January, 1893, of a twig bearing some two dozen 

 specimens of Anosia plcxippus, resting at night during migration, and 

 read a paper which illustrated the migratory instinct of this, and indi- 

 rectly of other species. A discussion, in which Messrs. Barrett, Weir 

 and Hawes took part, then fulloAved, it being noted that, whereas some 



