40 THE entomologist's record. 



fact that anyone not blind can see in scales the great round pigment 

 cells, in which the pigment-factor resides. Destructive criticism is, of 

 course, much easier than finding something to take the place of that 

 which is destroyed, and in the place of pigments which can be dissolved 

 out by various reagents. Dr. Freer has nothing better to tell us than 

 that scales " may be of different refractive indices." What, too, is the 

 idea to be conveyed by the phrase " the under layers would then shine 

 through ? " Shine through what ? 1 am rather puzzled as to what 

 this can mean. 



I like Dr. Riding's term " pigment-factor " much. It is an excellent 

 one. One point, however, touched on by Dr. Riding, shows that he 

 has a better hold on some points than I had, for I was once fixed (by 

 Mr. Grote, I believe) by being asked to explain why " colour," being an 

 " acquired character," was hereditarily transmissible, and it took me 

 some time to see the simple fact, that colour is not in this sense an 

 acquired character, but as much structural as legs, thorax or antennas. 

 Dr. Riding's query as to " Why should not the chemical constituents of 

 soil, &c., absorbed by plants, and eaten by the larvas with the food, 

 influence the imago ? " leads me to suggest that, although there appears 

 to be no reason why it should not do so, yet, in cases in which the 

 larva is particular as to its food, and restricts itself to one food-plant, 

 there is but little chance of chemical variation of soil taking effect, 

 because chemistry has shown us that whatever the composition of the 

 soil, the percentage of substances required by, and taken up by the 

 same plant as food, is very constant. When, however, a larva will 

 accept several different plants as food, belonging to different Natural 

 Orders, and built up of vastly different constituents, I fail to see why 

 such should not influence the imago. Little enough, indeed, we know, 

 and " the more we learn " the more strongly the old adage comes 

 home to us that " The more remains for us to learn." — J. W. Tutt. 

 Dec. 2ruL 1894. 



OTES ON COLLECTING, Etc. 



Lepidoptera taken and bred in the Swansea district in 1893. — 

 In Vol. iv., of the Entomoloyist's Record, page 44, is a list of insects 

 taken or bred by me in 1892. Having made several additions to that 

 list during 1891:!, I thought it might interest some of your readers to 

 know what a good locality Swansea is, as I think very few 

 places can show a total of 381 different species in two years, and there 

 is very little doubt that I could have increased this number if I had 

 been there during June and July ; unfortunately I was absent, both 

 years, for about six weeks at this time. Among the Rhopalocera new to 

 1893, were: — Vnnei'sa polychloros, one seen on 23rd March, near Clydach, 

 Swansea Valley ; V. antiopa, one seen, Langland Bay, June 2nd (?) ; 

 Lyraena astrarche, fairly common at Deurch Bay ; and L. ar<jioIus, a few 

 seen at Peullergare and Sketty, round holly. Among the Heterocera, 

 were : — Smerinthus ocellattis, one found dead on the sandhills at Port Tal- 

 bot, May 9th ; Settia sj)heg{formiti, one taken by Mr. Stafford, Peullergare, 

 May 11th; Nmhtria mundana, scarce at light, near Sketty Park; Ne- 

 meopliila rusHula ( $ ) taken flying among heath, June 7th ; N. plantagiim, 

 common in woods and rough meadows near Peullergare ; Spilosoma 



