208 THE entomologist's record. 



I have already largely discussed (in a work now in the press) the 

 question of the glossy colour seen on many insects' wings, particularly 

 those of Erebias, Hipparchias, &c. There can be little doubt that 

 they are almost entirely due to diffraction and interference phenomena. 

 I have also (British Noctuce, &g., vol. ii., pp. 3-4) entered somewhat 

 fully into the actual structure of scales, the walls of which may them- 

 selves be black in colour. There is no need to repeat the facts, and I 

 would only suggest that this is the point I wanted to make (ante, p. 110) 

 in my remarks on black coloration, which may be found there. — 

 J. W. TuTT. March 3rd, 1895. 



„URRENT NOTES. 



Mr. John Hartley Durrant, F.E.S., shows the hand of a master 

 (E.M.M., April) in his article on the true sponsor of the name oceUntella 

 (Gelechia). It has generally been attributed to Stainton, but Mr. 

 Durrant shows that while it is in the highest degree probable that 

 Stainton did give the name, yet the earliest 2)Mished descrijjtion of the 

 species under this name is by Boyd in the Weelcly TateUigencer, of 

 August 31st, 1858, and that, therefore, according to rule, the species 

 miist in future be known as Lita oceUateUa, Boyd. 



Mr. Sidney Grompton writes (E.M.M., April): — "Those specimens 

 of Colias cdiisa caught in Teneriffe are similar to the English, but much 

 brighter in colouring and larger in size." They differ greatly "in 

 point of size, colouring, and width of the black hind-marginal border, 

 and in the size and colouring of the orange discoidal spots." In the 

 ? s there is considerable difference from the type ; especially notice- 

 able is " the great size and conspicuous dentation of the yellow mark- 

 ings on the black border of the hind- wings." Both var. helice and 

 C hyale are very rare in Teneriffe. 



Mr. Samuel Stevens records (E.M.M., April) an experience with 

 Psyche viUoseUa in 1848 ! Dealing with the question of the method of 

 copulation he says :—" One afternoon I found a g and ? in cop., 

 and on examination I observed that the latter had turned itself round in 

 the case to admit the organs of the <? when pairing took place, and the 

 wings of the ^ then became horizontal. In no case did I find the $ s 

 leave their cases." 



Mr. Henry Schneider, in an interesting " Life-history of Ornithop- 

 tera richmoudii" (Entom., April), states that the pair of fleshy horns 

 {i.e., the osmateria) that can be extended behind the head, are propor- 

 tionately very much longer in the young caterpillar. 



Mr. C. W. Dale has compiled a summary of insects known to be 

 symbiotic with ants (Entom., April). He states that the known species 

 (British we presume) which inhabit ants" nests are: — Coleoptera, 54; 

 Lepidoptera, 1 ; Neuroptera, 1 ; Hemiptera, 1 ; Homoptera, 12: Dip- 

 tera, 1 ; Thysanura, 1 ; Acari, 3 ; Onisci, 1. Total 75 species. The 

 editor of our contemporary would do well, however, to submit Mr. 

 Dale's contributions to some literary revision. What can we make of 

 the following? "They were accredited by the ancients with carrying 

 on harvesting operations, which have since been discredited but have 

 been proved to be fully correct, etc." We should like to know on what 

 grounds the harvesting operations carried on by the ants were dis- 



