. NOTES OF THE SEASON. 185 



fairly common. Through the kindness of a local entomologist I 

 obtained three Callimorpha hera, but I was probably a little early for 

 this species. It was, however, my best capture. Although Exmouth 

 is a great locality for Heliothis peltigera and Char idea umbra, I 

 failed to find the larva of either species. August 3rd found me once 

 more at Babbacombe, in my old haunts, but where were the insects ? 

 A week's work produced nine Acontia luctuosa, nine Leucania 

 putrescens, and one each of Litliosia caniola, Agrotis ohelisca, A. 

 lucernea, CalUgenia miniata and Ilythyia carnella, all species that 

 sometimes occur fairly abundantly at Torquay. Of other species, 

 Gnnphos ohsciirata, Agrotis jnita, Larentia olivafa, Eupithecia 

 subciltata, Endotricha jiammealis, etc., were fairly abundant. E. 

 suhciliata was a new species to me, and was confined to a very small 

 area. This is a poor record, but everything was against us— rain, 

 wind, and the advancing march of civilisation. This latter has quite 

 destroyed a favourite haunt of Cidaria picata, and I fear is only too 

 likely ere long to prove fatal to A. luctuosa. The favourite haunt of 

 this locality was planted with barley, and consequently the poor 

 results above mentioned. A friend of mine, however, dived in after 

 this pretty species, and managed to get about thirty. The last week 

 of my holiday was spent in North Devonshire ; but I obtained nothing 

 worth recording except the larvi« of Agrotis ripae, on the sandhills 

 near Bideford. — (Eev.) E. C. Dotree Fox, M.A., Castle Moreton, 

 Tewkesbury. October 21st, 1895. 



Church Stretton, Salop. — The season of 1895 has, on the whole, 

 been a very good one in so far as this neighbourhood is concerned. 

 Sallow-bloom in early spring Avas not, however, so productive as in 

 1894, and I got nothing worthy of note by working it. Later on, 

 XcDK'dphila plantaiiinis turned up in goodly numbers ; on the 29th 

 of May I saw fifteen ab. Iiospita, but managed to get only two, 

 owing to the nature of the ground, which is extremely hard to work. 

 I did not meet with this insect again, though I visited the locality 

 often, until the 4th of June, when I saw eight more, and captured 

 one. This form of N. plantcu/inis seems to be getting commoner. 

 In 1893 I found it for the first time in England, when I saw three 

 only, and managed to get one ; in 1894 I saAV five, but obtained 

 none. I secured a good series of Luperina cespitis by sweeping 

 grass, from the middle to the end of May, for larvae, which were then 

 not rare. The young larva is light-green with white dorsal and sub- 

 dorsal lines, but later on it becomes of a beautiful bronze colour, the 

 lines being yelloAvish-Avhite. In this coat it exactly agrees with 

 Guenee's description of the larva of Neumnia jwpularis. Cncnllia 

 Hinhratica is, as a rule, far from common about here, but this year it 

 proved an exception, and I managed to obtain a good series. 



Sugar was of no avail here in the summer, but I contrived to get 

 a lot of insects by visiting flowers, especially thistles and ragged- 

 robin {Ljicltnis- flm-cuenli), with a lantern at night. During June, 

 Pliisia idta and P. ptdchrina Avere much commoner than usual, flying 

 over pinks, etc. On the 26th of June I caught in company with 

 these, a very fresh /'. inter nuiationis, and obtained one more very good 

 specimen on the 29th of the same month. This insect is far from 

 common here, though a friend managed also to get two specimens. 

 About the middle of July I was lucky in stumbling upon a good 



