NOTES ON COLLECTING, ETC. 15 



countryman is asked his ojoinion of the weather, he will, in all 

 probability, say that he doesn't think we shall have any rain, it looks 

 to him more like " blight," and here his knowledge ends. What is 

 meant I have never yet been able to discover, but the general imj^ression 

 seems to be that the air is so densely packed with flies as to obstruct 

 the light, and that it may remain so for several days together — a highly 

 probable event ! Another entirely new and interesting fact which 1 

 learnt the other day from a gentleman was, " that, after a succession of 

 easterly winds, all trees and plants are found to be covered with 

 thousands of grubs which have been brought by the wind " — perhajjs 

 from the depths of the German Ocean ? 1 should like to know if any 

 similar phenomena have been observed by entomologists in other 

 parts of the country, — Alfred J, Johnson, Boldmere, Erdington. 

 October Idth, 1893. 



Late occurrence of Argynnis euphrosyne. — I took a fine fresh 

 specimen of this butterfly at Darenth on September 6th. Is this not 

 unusually late ? — B. Scarfe, Dartford, Kent. 



CoLiAS HYALE. — This spccics seems to have been scarce in this 

 locality during the past season. I only saw one specimen, which I 

 captured near Darenth Wood on August 13th. — B. Scarfe, Dartford, 

 Kent. 



NOTES OF THE SEASON 1893. 



York. — The season which is now rapidly drawing to a close, and 

 which will long be remembered meteorologically on account of the 

 marvellous weather experienced, has not been (here at least) equally 

 memorable for the quantity or quality of the lepidoj)tera noticed. Many 

 generally common insects have been either very rare, or else entirely 

 conspicuous by their absence ; the only species which have been more 

 than usually common at York this season are the following ; — Pieris 

 brassicce, P. rapce, Vanessa urticce, V. atalanta, Acherontia atrojws, 

 Sjyhinx conoolvuli, Macroglossa stellatarum, Orthosia suspecta, Anchocelis 

 litura, Phlogophora meticidosa, Hadena protea, Abraxas syloata, Venusia 

 camhricaria, Lobophora lobulata, Collix sparsata, H. marginata, Thera 

 variata, Diurnea fagella ; whilst of those which have not occurred in 

 anything like their usual numbers the following, amongst many others, 

 may be quoted : — Zygaena lonicerce, Lithosia raesomella, Arctia lubricipeda, 

 Acronycta leporina, Noctua festiva, N. rubi, Hadena porphyrea (? Ed.), 

 Taeniocampa pjopideti, Pachnobia leucographa. Epione vesjjertaria, Asrnlates 

 strigillaria, Eupithecia satyrata, Acidalia immutata, Hypsipetes elutata 

 PhibalapAeryx lignata, &g. Of those species which have entirely failed 

 to put in an appearance, and which we generally take each season in 

 some numbers are : — Nndaria senex, Hydrelia unca, Plusia festucoi and 

 Chortodes arcuosa. My first outing took place on the 14th February in 

 quest of the variety fuscata of Hybernia progemmaria, of which I took 

 six; my last on the 3rd November, when sugar produced but a 

 few Scopelosoma satellitia and Orrhodia vaccinii; H. aurantiaria II. 

 defoliaria, Cheimatobia boreata and C. brumata were very scarce, whilst 

 Oporabia ddidaria and Hiinera ptennaria were not seen. I have noticed 

 the gradual diminution in point of numbers of these species for tlie 

 past ten years ; each year they become scarcer in this neighbourhood • 

 why, I know not. Owing to the almost tropical weather, instances 

 of early appearances have been far too numerous to mention here; 



