226 TUB entomologist's record. 



things I noticed more plentiful than usual, were the larvae of Pyrameis 



cardui." On August 11th, Mr. E. A. Bowles writes : — " I have but 



little to report of my two visits to the New Forest. The earlier one, 

 in May, was rather successful, as I got a few nice Macroglossa homhyli- 

 formis, and larva? were fairly plentiful ; the oaks were stripped by 

 common geometer larvge, and the beating-tray revealed a mass of such 

 plebeian customers after each beat. Last month's visit was spoiled by 

 the weather. Argi/nnix adippe, Heliothis dipsacea, and AcidaJia stramr- 

 nata, wei'e fairly plentiful, but larvas were absolutely wanting, and the 

 fresh green foliage of the oaks was utterly unattached. Nothing came 



to sugar, and no geometers flew at dusk in the woods." On 



August 13th, Capt. Brown writes from Enniskillen : — " The season here 

 has been very wet, sugar has been entirely useless, and, as I have not 

 the conscience to tramp about the mowing-grass, of which the country 

 round here mostly consists, and a great deal of which is even yet not 



cut, my movements have been hampered." On August 15th, Mr. 



Beadle writes from Keswick : — " Sugar has little attraction, or else moths 

 are very scarce. The only good day I have had was amongst Erehia 

 epiphron, which I think came out all at once during the sudden burst of 

 hot weather at the end of June. I went up Skiddaw for Saturnta carpini 

 but only got one larva and two late larva? of Bomhyx caJlnnne. I was 

 glad also to get a series of a Cramhits, which Mr. Tutt has determined 

 to be C. ericellus. The time of its appearance, so far as I know, is from 

 the middle to the end of June ; it flies, or is easily disturbed, in the 

 day time, and the only place where I have found it is in Green Crag, 

 Borrowdale, near Keswick. I succeeded in hatching forty or fifty 

 larvse of E. epiphron, and fed them till they were about a quarter of an 

 inch long when they died. The eggs are at first j^ellow, changing to 

 pink and darkening just before hatching. The larva? are dull yellow 

 at first but change to greenish after commencing to feed. I fed them 

 on a common species of grass of which they ate the edges of the blades." 



On August 17tli, Mr. Finlay reports from Morpeth : — " I'he 



weather here at jiresent is so wet that collecting is impossible, and 



insects are not plentiful." On August 20th, Eev. C. K. N. 



Burrows Avrites from Kainham, Essex : — " Things entomological have 

 undoubtedly improved since the end of June. I, at least, have found 

 it so in my part of the world. My collecting, however, is chiefly con- 

 fined to the use of sugar ; it is but rarely that I get a chance of using 

 the net or in fact collecting in the day time." 



Lee, Kent. — I am afraid I must add my testimony to that of otliers, 

 that this is really a bad year. There have been worse lately, but, after 

 tlie promise of tlae early spring, it is rather disheartening. Micros are 

 getting a little more jilentiful, but I think I have known days when 

 Macros seemed entirely absent, not even Cabera 'puf^aria appearing on 

 the ai)plication of the beating stick. Sugar is entirely useless here. I 

 have turned most of my time and attention to rearing larva?, and have 

 done pretty well in this way, as indoors the weather has little effect. 

 I have just got a nice brood of Acromjcta alni into j^^pfe? ^^^d out of a 

 big Ijrood of Seleuia Innnria the few I kept for myself turned out nearly 

 all of the summer l)rood (delunarta). I have just set out the last specimen 

 of the 2nd summer brood of Selenia bihmaria, i.e. the 3rd emergence this 

 year, and have got eggs which I hope will not produce a fourth, for 

 they are the result of a cross between Yorkshire and Sutherland 



